Published Online
on February 23, 2006

A more recent version of this article appeared on April 1, 2006

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Submitted on December 13, 2005
Accepted on December 21, 2005

Carotid Artery Diameter in Men and Women and the Relation to Body and Neck Size

Jaroslaw Krejza MD, PhD^*; Michal Arkuszewski MD; Scott E. Kasner MD, PhD; John Weigele MD, PhD; Andrzej Ustymowicz MD, PhD; Robert W. Hurst MD, PhD; Brett L. Cucchiara MD; and Steven R. Messe MD

From the Department of Radiology (J.K., J.W., R.W.H.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; Department of Radiology (J.K.), Medical University of Gdansk, Poland; Medical University of Bialystok, Poland (A.U.); Department of Neurology, Ageing, Degenerative, and Cerebrovascular Diseases (M.A.), Silesian Medical University, Katowice, Poland; and Department of Neurology (S.E.K., B.L.C., S.R.M.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: jaroslaw.krejza{at}uphs.upenn.edu.

Background and Purpose--To explore relationships among gender, body size, neck size, and the diameters of the common carotid artery (CCA) and internal carotid artery (ICA).

Methods--Using multivariate regression, the best predictors of sonographic diameters of CCA and ICA were determined based on age, height, weight, body mass index, body surface area, neck circumference, neck length, and blood pressure.

Results--Measurements were obtained in 500 consecutive patients (age 52±15 years; 61% women). Mean diameters of ICA (4.66±0.78 mm) and CCA (6.10±0.80 mm) in women were significantly smaller than in men: 5.11±0.87 mm and 6.52±0.98 mm, respectively. Sex significantly influenced the diameters after controlling for body size, neck size, age, and blood pressure.

Conclusions--Carotid arteries are smaller in women even after adjusting for body and neck size, age, and blood pressure.

Key words: carotid arteries • carotid endarterectomy • ultrasonography

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