Electrocardiographic p-wave changes as marker of myocardial stress in male patients of chronic plaque psoriasis

Background: Plaque psoriasis is one of the most common forms of psoriasis. Since psoriasis is an inflammatory condition with high oxidative stress, the patients with psoriasis seem to be vulnerable for the development of atherosclerosis, hypertension and coronary artery disease.Electrocardiographic P-wave changes are considered as significant marker of myocardial stress. Methods and materials: A total of 120 male subjects aged 20 to 50 years, out of which 60 were patients diagnosed with moderate to severe form of chronic plaque psoriasis were enrolled for our study. They were subsequently examined for electrocardiographic p wave changes by a 12 lead electrocardiogram and lipid profiles were evaluated. Statistical analysis: The results obtained were statistically analyzed by using the Student’s ‘t’ test. The probability (p-value) was calculated Results: The lipid profile of patient group indicated significantly high TC, LDL, VLDL, TG (p<0.001) and significantly low levels of HDL in comparison to controls P wave duration (PWD) were significantly higher in patient group (p<0.001) than control group. Conclusion: Along with conventional markers of dyslipidemia, higher PWD should be considered as markers of hemodynamic stress for screening of chronic plaque psoriasis patients at the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.