Pulse-wave velocity and cardiovascular risk factors in subjects with Helicobacter pylori infection.
BACKGROUND
Helicobacter pylori infection has been reported to correlate with the onset of cardiovascular diseases. However, the relationship between H. pylori infection and the development of arteriosclerosis has not been fully investigated. We performed a cross-sectional study to clarify the possible role of H. pylori infection in the development of arteriosclerosis.


METHODS
The subjects were 996 cases who attended their annual medical check-up between April and August 2001. H. pylori infection status was determined by assaying serum anti-H. pylori immunoglobulin G antibodies. Total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), triglyceride, fasting blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c and leukocyte levels were determined. Arteriosclerotic parameters (systolic blood pressure (SBP), ankle brachial index (ABI) and pulse-wave velocity (PWV)) were measured non-invasively using an automatic device. The data for H. pylori-seropositive and -seronegative individuals were compared.


RESULTS
Five hundred and seventy-three subjects (57.5%) were H. pylori-seropositive. After adjustment for sex, age, body mass index, and smoking and drinking habits, the HDLC levels of the seropositive and seronegative groups differed markedly (55.0 vs 58.0 mg/dL, P < 0.0001). Although there were no differences between the overall adjusted SBP and ABI values, the PWV was higher in H. pylori-seropositive than -seronegative young (<39 years old) individuals (heart-carotid PWV: 632.2 vs 589.7 cm/s, P = 0.027). These differences tended to disappear with aging.


CONCLUSIONS
The degree of arterial stiffness in H. pylori-positive young subjects is higher than that in H. pylori-negative young subjects. However, no difference between the arterial stiffness values of H. pylori-seropositive and -seronegative elderly individuals was observed.
Adachi
Kyoichi
K
Department of Internal Medicine II, Shimane Medical University, Izumo and Shimane Sogo Health Screening Center, Matsue, Japan.
Arima
Noriyuki
N
Takashima
Toshiharu
T
Miyaoka
Youichi
Y
Yuki
Mika
M
Ono
Masahiro
M
Komazawa
Yoshinori
Y
Kawamura
Akira
A
Fujishiro
Hirofumi
H
Ishihara
Shuji
S
Kinoshita
Yoshikazu
Y
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
D001786:Blood Glucose; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D008055:Lipids