Document Type
Article
Publication Date
5-1-2014
Identifier
PMCID: PMC4004692 DOI: 10.1016/j.echo.2014.01.007
Abstract
Background: Racial differences in carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) have been suggested to be associated with the disproportionally high prevalence of cardiovascular disease in black adults. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of cardiovascular risk factors on the racial differences seen in cIMT in obese children.
Methods: Obese subjects aged 4 to 21 years were recruited prospectively. Height, weight, blood pressure, fasting insulin, glucose, lipid panel, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and body composition by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry were obtained. B-mode carotid imaging was analyzed by a single blinded physician.
Results: A total of 120 subjects (46 white, 74 black) were enrolled. Black subjects exhibited greater cIMT (0.45 ± 0.03 vs 0.43 ± 0.02 cm, P < .01) and higher lean body mass index (19.3 ± 3.4 vs 17.3 ± 3.2 kg/m², P = .02) than white subjects. Simple linear regression revealed modest associations between mean cIMT and race (R = 0.52, P < .01), systolic blood pressure (R = 0.47, P < .01), and lean body mass (R = 0.51, P < .01). On multivariate regression analysis, lean body mass remained the only measure to maintain a statistically significant relationship with mean cIMT (P < .01).
Conclusions: Black subjects demonstrated greater cIMT than white subjects. The relationship between race and cIMT disappeared when lean body mass was accounted for. Future studies assessing the association of cardiovascular disease risk factors to cIMT in obese children should include lean body mass in the analysis.
Journal Title
Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography : official publication of the American Society of Echocardiography
Volume
27
Issue
5
First Page
561
Last Page
567
MeSH Keywords
Adolescent; African Americans; Body Mass Index; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; Child; Child, Preschool; Comorbidity; European Continental Ancestry Group; Female; Humans; Male; Obesity; Prevalence; Prospective Studies; Risk Factors; South Carolina; Thinness; Young Adult
Keywords
Racial Disparities BMI; cIMT; Carotid Intima-media thickness
Recommended Citation
Chowdhury, S. M., Henshaw, M. H., Friedman, B., Saul, J. P., Shirali, G. S., Carter, J., Levitan, B. M., Hulsey, T. Lean body mass may explain apparent racial differences in carotid intima-media thickness in obese children. Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography : official publication of the American Society of Echocardiography 27, 561-567 (2014).
Included in
Cardiology Commons, Cardiovascular Diseases Commons, Pediatrics Commons, Race and Ethnicity Commons
