DETERMINANTS OF ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN A YOUNG URBAN POPULATION FROM SWEDEN

Objective: An indicator of arterial aging is arteriosclerosis, meaning age-dependent relatively less elastin as well as more collagen content of the arterial media. This leads to stiffer elastic arteries, i.e. of the aorta, contributing to higher blood pressure and measured as increased pulse wave velocity (PWV). An individual's lifestyle is supposed to play a considerable role for arterial stiffness. We aimed to use carotid-femoral (c-f) PWV as a measure of vascular ageing (arterial stiffness) in order to analyze c-f PWV in a younger (<45 years) population in Malmö, Sweden, and also to identify lifestyle and risk factors associated with healthy vascular ageing (HVA). Design and method: c-f PWV was measured by Sphygmocor® in a total of 1156 subjects from the Malmo Offspring Study (MOS). Cardiovascular risk factors, including systolic blood pressure (SBP), were measured and a questionnaire filled by participants. We first statistically compared sub-groups with the 10% lowest c-f PWV (HVA) and the 10% highest c-f PWV (Early Vascular Aging, EVA) from the distribution. Secondly, we also used a multiple linear regression of all subjects to identify cardiovascular risk factors and lifestyle factors significantly associated with c-f PWV, stratified for gender. Results: c-f PWV and hypertension status differed (p = 0.03) when we compared HVA and EVA subjects. There was a significant relationship between PWV and systolic and diastolic blood pressure in both genders (p < 0.001), whereas hypertension status was significant only in men. For the total sample, we found significance for men regarding the positive association between c-f PWV and age (p < 0.001) as well as SBP (p = 0.006) as well as increasing alcohol intake (p = 0.002), but also significant inverse relationships with self-reported chronic stress (p = 0.015) and educational level (p = 0.016). For women, c-f PWV was significantly associated only with age and SBP (both p < 0.001). Conclusions: Besides increasing chronological age and elevated blood pressure, also social and lifestyle-related factors seems to play an important role in the process of vascular ageing (arterial stiffness). Further research should aim to identify targets for preventive actions which could contribute to healthier vascular ageing.