title: Relationship between serum osteocalcin level and carotid intima-media thickness in a metabolically healthy Chinese population.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The relationship between osteocalcin and atherosclerosis remains unclear. This might be due to different degrees of confounding from factors that are associated with serum osteocalcin level, such as metabolic-related variables. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between serum osteocalcin level and carotid intima-media thickness (C-IMT) in a metabolically healthy population.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 476 subjects with normal values for weight, glucose tolerance, blood pressure, and lipids (age range, 20-75 years; 155 men, 201 premenopausal women, 120 postmenopausal women) from the Shanghai Obesity Study were recruited for this cross-sectional study. Subjects with a history of cardiovascular disease or carotid plaque were excluded. C-IMT was measured by ultrasonography. Serum osteocalcin level was assessed by an electrochemiluminescence immunoassay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median C-IMT in the entire study population was 0.55 mm with an interquartile range of 0.50-0.60 mm. C-IMT in premenopausal women was significantly lower than that in men and postmenopausal women (all P < 0.001). The median (interquartile range) of serum osteocalcin level in the entire population was 17.02 (13.31-21.47) ng/mL. Serum osteocalcin level in postmenopausal women was significantly higher than that in men and premenopausal women (all P < 0.001), while the level of serum osteocalcin in men was also significantly higher than that in premenopausal women (P < 0.001). No significant correlation was found between C-IMT and serum osteocalcin level in either men or postmenopausal women. There was a significant, inverse correlations between C-IMT and serum osteocalcin level in premenopausal women after adjustment of age, but this association was eliminated after adjustment for other confounding factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum osteocalcin level was not independently associated with C-IMT in a metabolically healthy Chinese population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Yuqi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Xiaojing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Yaping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Yiting
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China. byq522@163.com.
authors.forename: Yuqian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bao
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital; Shanghai Clinical Center for Diabetes; Shanghai Key Clinical Center for Metabolic Disease; Shanghai Diabetes Institute; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Diabetes Mellitus, 600 Yishan Road, Shanghai, 200233, China.
authors.forename: Weiping
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jia
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D059168:Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015675:Osteocalcin / Q000097:blood*; D017698:Postmenopause; D017697:Premenopause; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015675:Osteocalcin