Evaluating the Femoral Atherosclerotic Plaque in Psoriasis Patients and Controls: A Case-Control Study

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease that can affect the skin or the cardiovascular system. The presence of femoral atherosclerotic plaque could be a promising sign in predicting cardiovascular risk for these patients.

Objective: The study aims to evaluate the prevalence of femoral atherosclerotic plaque between psoriasis and control individuals.

Methods: This case-control study involved 40 patients diagnosed with vulgaris psoriasis and 40 non-psoriasis individuals matched by age group and gender. We used clinical signs and symptoms to diagnose psoriasis and evaluated the disease's severity using the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI). The atherosclerotic plaque on the femoral artery was detected using Doppler ultrasound to measure the femoral artery intima-media thickness (fIMT). Data were analyzed by SPSS 25.

Results: Male patients accounted for the proportion of 72.5%. In the psoriatic group, the mean value of PASI was 12.91 ± 6.73 (points). The proportion of femoral atherosclerotic plaque was significantly higher in the psoriasis compared to the controls (32.5% vs 10%; P = 0.014). Some factors associated with the femoral atherosclerotic plaque include age, smoking, and hypertension (P < 0.05). Hypertension was an independent risk factor for femoral atherosclerotic after regression analysis.

Conclusion: Femoral atherosclerotic plaque is higher in psoriasis patients. This result emphasizes the need to screen for cardiovascular comorbidities in these patients.