Abstract
Different metabolic and environmental factors affect the blood pressure level, constituting a cluster, especially in hypertensives, that leads to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. The present research was designed to determine the prevalence and the predictors of the metabolic syndrome and the role of insulin and blood pressure in carotid atherosclerosis in 600 treated male and female hypertensives aged 40-59 years and 600 age- and sex-matched controls.
The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in different population-based cohorts varied, depending on the
definition, from 0.8% to 35.3%, being lowest in control men and women and highest in hypertensive men. 73.8%
of a random, middle-aged, urban population showed at least one cardiovascular risk factor, and 91.3% of all
hypertensive subjects showed at least one cardiovascular risk factor in addition to hypertension itself. The
independent predictors of the metabolic syndrome were waist circumference, uric acid, total cholesterol and
gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase. Hypertension had a significant effect on carotid intima-media thickness and the
prevalence of plaques in men, but its effect in women was not significant. A long duration of hypertension
resulted in greater intima-media thickness and a higher prevalence of plaques, particularly in men. There were
significant associations between gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase and the components of the metabolic syndrome
after adjustment for alcohol consumption and also in teetotallers. There were inconsistent associations
between the different insulin measures and the intima-media thickness as a measure of carotid atherosclerosis.
The exclusion of diabetic subjects did not change the results.
In conclusion, a cluster of metabolic abnormalities related to hypertension is frequent among both controls and treated hypertensive subjects. Hypertensive subjects have higher prevalences of carbohydrate and lipoprotein aberrations and structural and functional cardiovascular complications than age- and sex-matched controls.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:oulo.fi/oai:oulu.fi:isbn951-42-6465-7 |
| Date | 10 September 2001 |
| Creators | Rantala, A. (Asko) |
| Publisher | University of Oulu |
| Source Sets | University of Oulu |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess, © University of Oulu, 2001 |
| Relation | info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pissn/0355-3221, info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/eissn/1796-2234 |
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