Serum total homocysteine concentration is related to self-reported heart attack or stroke history among men and women in the NHANES III.
High circulating total homocysteine (tHcy) concentration, which is influenced by folate and vitamin B-12 status, is a suspected cause of cardiovascular events. This relation has been investigated in both case-control and prospective studies but has not been evaluated for different sex x age subgroups of the general U.S. population. We used data on adult (i.e., aged > or =40 y) male (n = 1097) and female (n = 1107) participants in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, excluding diabetics and those supplemented with estrogen, vitamins or minerals, to evaluate the association between serum tHcy concentration and self-report of heart attack or stroke. After adjustment for age, race-ethnicity, smoking, blood pressure, blood pressure medication, body mass index and serum concentrations of creatinine and cholesterol, past events were reported 2.4 (95% confidence interval 1.0-5.5) times as often by men with tHcy concentration of >12 micromol/L as by men with lower values. The odds ratio for women was 2.6 (95% confidence interval 1.1-6.6) after adjustment for the same factors plus menopausal status. A stronger relation in men aged < or =60 y compared with older men may help reconcile conflicting results of earlier studies.
Morris
M S
MS
Jean Mayer U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, USA.
Jacques
P F
PF
Rosenberg
I H
IH
Selhub
J
J
Bowman
B A
BA
Gunter
E W
EW
Wright
J D
JD
Johnson
C L
CL
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000097:blood; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D006710:Homocysteine / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D020138:Hyperhomocysteinemia / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D012307:Risk Factors; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012737:Sex Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D014805:Vitamin B 12 / Q000097:blood
D006710:Homocysteine; D005492:Folic Acid; D014805:Vitamin B 12