title: No association between dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate and development of atherosclerosis in a prospective population study (Bruneck Study).
abstract: Antiatherogenic properties of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) have been postulated for >40 years. Large-scale epidemiological studies on this important issue, however, are still sparse, and those available have yielded contradictory results. The Bruneck Study involved a large random sample of men and women aged 40 to 79 years that were enrolled in 1990 and reevaluated 5 years later. Baseline DHEA sulfate (DHEAS) levels were measured in 867 subjects after an overnight fast. Development and progression of carotid atherosclerosis was monitored by high-resolution duplex ultrasound. DHEAS levels declined with advancing age (29% and 44% per decade in men and women) and showed a complex sex-specific association with various vascular risk attributes and factors conferring protection against atherosclerosis. Age- and sex-adjusted DHEAS baseline levels did not differ between subjects with or without incident/progressive atherosclerosis (geometric mean 1161 versus 1253 microg/L). After adjustment for vascular risk factors and potential confounders, the odds ratio of incident/progressive atherosclerosis comparing a 50% increase in DHEAS levels was 0.99 (95% CI 0.89 to 1.11). Lack of an association between DHEAS and atherogenesis was confirmed in sex-specific and a variety of supplementary analyses. Statistical power would be high enough to detect differences in DHEAS between outcome categories as low as 15% (alpha=0.05). This prospective community-based study does not support a role for endogenous DHEA(S) in the development of human atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kiechl
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Willeit
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bonora
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000097:blood; D001161:Arteriosclerosis / Q000097:blood*; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000097:blood; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate