This study was designed to assess the relationship between cardiovascular risk factors and the presence of atherosclerosis aortic lesions detected by transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), The purpose was to determine if risk factors observed in Vietnam are similar to those detected in industrial countries. Between 2000 and 2002, TEE was performed in a total of 181 patients with a mean age of 63.1 +/- 9.4 (range, 42 to 79). In male patients over the age of 60 years, smoking, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia were associated with significantly greater thickness of the intima and significantly higher number of complex lesions at all levels of thoracic aorta. Presence of these risk factors was associated with a 4.2 to 7.9 fold higher likelihood of atherosclerotic plaque. Findings in our population of hospital patients in Vietnam indicate that, as in Western populations, age, male gender, smoking, arterial hypertension, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia promote the appearance of plaques in the thoracic aorta. This study provides insight into the cardiovascular risk situation in a city in Southeastern Asia.