Higher blood pressure increases arterial stiffness modified by blood glucose levels in a Chinese community-based study

Abstract

Xiaotong Dai,1 Ying Yang,2 Guan-Liang Cheng,2 Jia Jia,2 Fang-Fang Fan,2 Jian-Ping Li,2 Yong Huo,2 Zhike Liu,1 Dafang Chen,1 Yan Zhang21Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Cardiology, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaBackground: Increased arterial stiffness measured by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity is associated with cardiovascular disease. However, the rates at which brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity and blood glucose accelerate within individuals who differ in blood pressure levels are largely unknown.Methods: This study was based on the baseline data of a Chinese community-based atherosclerosis cohort which included 7402 individuals. Using generalized linear regression models, the relationship between blood glucose levels and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity, and the relationship between blood pressure levels and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity were examined.Results: A marked interaction between hypertensive state and diabetic state was seen for brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (P for interaction <0.001). The adjusted coefficient for subjects stratified by hypertensive groups and diabetic states showed that the highest brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity risk subjects were those who had both diabetes and hypertension (B=403.24; 95% CI: 372.43–434.05; P<0.001).Conclusions: The participants with increased arterial stiffness demonstrate a high prevalence of higher blood pressure. When high blood glucose levels co-occur with high blood pressure levels, there is a remarkable increase in arterial stiffness.Keywords: communities, diabetes, hypertension

Keywords

• communities
• diabetes
• hypertension