High-normal blood pressure is associated with a cluster of cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors: a population-based study.
OBJECTIVE
A Few population-based studies have shown that high-normal blood pressure clusters with other cardiovascular risk factors. Increased inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and reduced adiponectin values have sporadically been reported in these patients.


METHODS
We cross-sectionally compared blood pressure categories with cardiovascular risk factors in an adult population-based cohort (n = 1658) and evaluated the relationships between C-reactive-protein, nitrotyrosine, total antioxidant status, E-selectin, vascular adhesion molecule-1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1, resistin, adiponectin values and blood pressure categories in a subgroup of healthy lean individuals from this cohort (n = 107) in order to exclude the impact of obesity/insulin resistance on these variables.


RESULTS
Glucose, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, alanine aminotranferase, gamma-glutamyl transferase values, and diabetes and metabolic syndrome prevalence were significantly higher in high-normal compared with the optimal blood pressure category. In the healthy subgroup, adiponectin (beta = - 4315.3; 95% confidence interval - 5916.4 -2654.2), total antioxidant status (-0.15; -0.3 -0.04) were significantly lower, and nitrotyrosine (1.2; 0.3 2.1), E-selectin (11.7; 1.8 21.6), vascular adhesion molecule-1 (0.3; 0.1 0.5), and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (0.3; 0.1 0.5) were higher in high-normal compared with the optimal blood pressure category, at multiple regression analyses.


CONCLUSIONS
Individuals with high-normal blood pressure had a higher prevalence of cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors than those with optimal, and, even if healthy, they showed reduced adiponectin values, early signs of endothelial dysfunction, and oxidative stress. Further research is needed to determine whether they will benefit from blood pressure reduction.
Bo
Simona
S
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Turin, Turin, Italy. sbo@molinette.piemonte.it
Gambino
Roberto
R
Gentile
Luigi
L
Pagano
Gianfranco
G
Rosato
Rosalba
R
Saracco
Giorgio Maria
GM
Cassader
Maurizio
M
Durazzo
Marilena
M
Cavallo-Perin
Paolo
P
D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000209:etiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D005723:gamma-Glutamyltransferase / Q000097:blood
D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D005723:gamma-Glutamyltransferase; D000410:Alanine Transaminase