Comprehensive geriatric assessment of elderly highlanders in Qinghai, China II: the association of polycythemia with lifestyle-related diseases among the three ethnicities.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study is to disclose the association of polycythemia with lifestyle-related diseases (hypertension, obesity and glucose intolerance) among the three ethnicities in Qinghai, China.


METHODS
The subjects were 393 elderly people (247 Han, 97 Tibetan and 49 Mongolian) aged 60 years and more living in Qinghai (3000 m a.s.l.) in China. The associated factors with polycythemia were analyzed in the subjects. Excessive polycythemia was defined as hemoglobin concentration over 20 mg/dL.


RESULTS
Polycythemia was associated with men, hypoxemia, obesity and high diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in the elderly in Qinghai. Male sex was associated with polycythemia in all ethnicities. Obesity was associated with Han and Tibetan men. Glucose intolerance and activities of daily living were not directly associated with polycythemia after adjustment for sex. There were 7.9% with excessive polycythemia. Independently-associated factors for excessive polycythemia were male sex, body mass index of 25 or more, SpO(2) of less than 85%, DBP of 85 mmHg or more and Han ethnicity (vs Tibetan) by multiple logistic regression.


CONCLUSIONS
There was a close association of polycythemia with diastolic hypertension and obesity in lifestyle-related diseases in high-altitude elderly people. Han people had a higher hemoglobin concentration after adjustment of lifestyle-related diseases compared with Tibetan people. The difference of hemoglobin concentration may be due to Tibetans undergoing a much longer period of adaptation than Han people. Further study is needed to disclose the association between the difference of hypoxic adaptation, lifestyle-related diseases and chronic mountain sickness for their prevention.
Okumiya
Kiyohito
K
Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8047, Japan. okumiyak@chikyu.ac.jp
Sakamoto
Ryota
R
Kimura
Yumi
Y
Ishine
Masayuki
M
Kosaka
Yasuyuki
Y
Wada
Taizo
T
Wada
Chizu
C
Nakatsuka
Masahiro
M
Ishimoto
Yasuko
Y
Hirosaki
Mayumi
M
Kasahara
Yoriko
Y
Konno
Akiko
A
Chen
Wingling
W
Fujisawa
Michiko
M
Otsuka
Kuniaki
K
Nakashima
Michiro
M
Wang
Hongxin
H
Dai
Qingxiang
Q
Yang
Airong
A
Qiao
Haisheng
H
Gao
Jidong
J
Li
Zhanquan
Z
Zhang
Yongshou
Y
Ge
Ri-Li
RL
Matsubayashi
Kozo
K
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000368:Aged; D000532:Altitude Sickness / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D018149:Glucose Intolerance / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology; D011086:Polycythemia / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D018609:Tibet / Q000453:epidemiology