Absence of atherosclerotic lesions in the thoracic aorta indicates absence of significant coronary artery disease

The present study showed that atherosclerotic lesions may be readily visualized in the thoracic aorta using transesophageal echocardiography. The absence of aortic plaque in the thoracic aorta rules out significant coronary artery obstruction, while the existence of the former appears to be a sensitive and specific predictor of the latter. The negative predictive value is the most interesting clinical finding of our study.