title: Height indicates hematopoietic capacity in elderly Japanese men.
abstract: Previously, we reported that height is an indicator of the capacity of vascular repair in elderly men, especially hypertensive men. On the other hand, hemoglobin could act as a possible biochemical index of hypertension-induced vascular damage. However, no studies have clarified the correlation between height and hematopoietic activity. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 249 men aged 65-69 undergoing a general health check-up. Reticulocyte was used to evaluate hematopoietic activity. Because hemoglobin concentration should influence hematopoietic activity, analyses stratified by hemoglobin level were performed. Independent of known cardiovascular risk factors and other hematological parameters (white blood cell count), a significant positive correlation was seen between height and reticulocytes for total subjects and subjects with a high hemoglobin concentration (≥14.5 g/dL), but not in subjects with a low hemoglobin concentration (<14.5 g/dL). The standardized parameter estimates (β) were β=0.18, p=0.003 for total subjects, β=0.28, p=0.001 for subjects with a high hemoglobin concentration, and β=0.03, p=0.717 for subjects with low hemoglobin. Independently, height is significantly positively correlated with reticulocyte in elderly Japanese men, particularly in men with a high hemoglobin concentration. These results indicate that subjects with a short stature might have lower hematopoietic capacity than those with a high stature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.|Department of Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, Osaka Center for Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.affiliation: Research and Clinical Center for Yusho and Dioxin, Kyusyu University, Fukuoka, . Japan.
authors.forename: Shimpei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Department of Island and Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koyamatsu
authors.affiliation: Department of Island and Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirotomo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamanashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Mako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nagayoshi
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Koichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kadota
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.|Department of Island and Community Medicine, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maeda
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001827:Body Height / Q000502:physiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006410:Hematopoiesis / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: elderly men; height; hematopoiesis; reticulocyte