title: Distribution and predictors of carotid intima-media thickness in young adults.
abstract: The authors' aim was to determine reference values and predictors for carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in the Bogalusa Heart Study. Carotid ultrasound images from 1203 young adults (mean age 36 years; 30% black, 43% male) were reviewed. Age-, sex-, and race-specific CIMT percentiles were estimated using multivariable regression. Nomograms of CIMT quartiles for persons aged 25 to 40 years are provided in 5-year increments. CIMT was thickest in the carotid bulb and increased linearly with age, most rapidly in the bulb. With age, composite CIMT increased most slowly in white women and more rapidly in white men and black women. Systolic blood pressure (P<.001) was the strongest predictor of composite CIMT. Male sex, total to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, and age independently predicted CIMT in all segments. This report may be used to help plan epidemiologic investigations and clinical trials investigating atherosclerosis and its changes with interventions.
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Wendy S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Tzou
authors.forename: Pamela S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Douglas
authors.forename: Sathanur R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Srinivasan
authors.forename: M Gene
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Bond
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Shengxu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Gerald S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Berenson
authors.forename: James H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D017536:Carotid Artery, Common / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014463:Ultrasonography; D014922:Wisconsin / Q000453:epidemiology