Coronary artery diameter of normal children aged 3 months to 6 years

Yu, Jeong Jin; Cho, Suk Kyung; Park, Yong Mean; Lee, Ran; Chung, Sochung; Bae, Sun Hwan

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study was designed to investigate normal domestic values for the diameter of the left main coronary artery (LCA), the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) and the right coronary artery (RCA). These data are necessary to define dilatation of coronary arteries in Kawasaki disease cases.
METHODS
Study subjects were 43 normal healthy children whose ages ranged from 3 months to 6 years. They children visited Konkuk University hospital for echocardiograph examination between March 2005 and November 2007. Measurements of coronary arterial diameters at each branch were done by off-line analyses of recorded images. Simple regression analysis of each the measurements were performed using the body size (body surface area, etc.) as the independent variable.
RESULTS
Body surface area was significantly related to the diameters of LCA (r(2)=0.20, P=0.0038), of LAD (r(2)=0.41, P< 0.0001), and of RCA (r(2)=0.30, P=0.0002). In the regression model, the estimates of the y-intercept were 1.703, 1.058, and 1.007; the estimates of the regression coefficient were 0.971, 1.175, and 1.177; and the estimates of the standard deviation were 0.315, 0.221, and 0.282 with respect to the three coronary arteries.
CONCLUSION
A the linear regression model of the diameters of three coronary arteries adjusted for body surface area was produced. With these results, the Z-score calculation of the diameter of three coronary arteries, based on normal domestic data, will be possible.