Impact of age and sex on carotid and peripheral arterial wall thickness in humans

Background Although previous studies have reported age‐related wall thickening in carotid arteries, it is not clear whether this is a systemic phenomenon which is also apparent in peripheral conduit arteries or whether conduit wall thickness (WT) changes occur to a similar degree in men and women. Aim To determine whether sex modifies the impact of ageing on WT or wall‐to‐lumen ratio (W:L) in atherosclerosis‐prone (i.e. carotid artery, femoral, superficial femoral, popliteal artery) and atherosclerosis‐resistant (i.e. brachial artery) conduit arteries. Methods We included 30 young (23 ± 2 year; 15M : 15F) and 31 older (70 ± 5 year; 18M : 13F) healthy subjects. High‐resolution ultrasound was used to measure diameter, WT and wall‐to‐lumen ratio (W/L) in all arteries. Results Older subjects had increased WT and W/L in the carotid, femoral, superficial femoral, popliteal and brachial arteries (all P