Serum uric acid in asymptomatic adults is weakly associated with carotid artery FDG uptake but not intima-media thickness

Background This study investigated the association of serum uric acid (UA) with carotid fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) uptake as a marker of inflammatory atherosclerosis. Methods and results In this cross-sectional retrospective study of 970 otherwise healthy adults, subjects in the greater serum UA quartiles had higher triglyceride (P < .001), lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P < .05), and lower estimated GFR (P < .001). Mean and maximum Target-to-background ratios (TBRs) of carotid FDG uptake measured by positron emission tomography were significantly increased across greater serum UA quartiles (1.35 and 1.57 for Q1, 1.38 and 1.60 for Q2, 1.39 and 1.62 for Q3, and 1.39 and 1.61 for Q4; P = .001 and < .001). Carotid intima-media thickness was not different. Serum UA showed weak but significant correlations with estimated GFR (P < .001), and with mean (P < .001) and maximum carotid TBR (P = .004). Serum UA correlated with mean TBR in male (P = .008) and female subjects (P = .011), in high (>= 70; P = .015) and low estimated GFR (< 70; P = .035), and in normotensive (P = .001) but not in hypertensive subjects. Conclusions Elevated serum UA in asymptomatic adults is associated with increased carotid FDG uptake, which suggests a potential role of UA in carotid inflammatory atherosclerosis.