Determination of subclinical atherosclerosis by total plaque area in patients with diabetes and hypertension.

This article focuses on comparing the burden of atherosclerosis, measured by carotid total plaque area (TPA), in adults with hypertension (HT), diabetes mellitus (DM), both conditions, or neither. In a cross-sectional study of 606 adults without prior cardiovascular events, individuals with hypertension alone or combined with diabetes exhibited significantly higher TPA than controls, while those with diabetes alone showed no difference from controls. Adjusted analyses confirmed that hypertension, with or without diabetes, was associated with greater subclinical atherosclerosis, suggesting that hypertension may contribute more to carotid plaque burden than diabetes alone. The study underscores the importance of routine monitoring of subclinical atherosclerosis in hypertensive patients and calls for larger prospective studies to validate these findings and their clinical implications.