title: Carotid Artery IMT, Blood Pressure, and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Males and Females.
abstract: Previous studies have investigated carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and blood pressure and found a direct correlation between the two. It is known that adult females have better cardiovascular health than males until a certain stage of life, yet limited research has examined gender differences in vascular function. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate vascular structure and function, blood pressure, and blood glucose/cholesterol levels in relation to gender differences in young healthy adults. On three separate days, 44 adults (26.30 ± 11.9yrs; 24M, 20F) completed a carotid IMT ultrasound, a flow-mediated dilation (FMD), a fasted glucose and cholesterol test, a 24hr ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, a VO2maxtest, and a body composition measurement. Females had lower systolic blood pressure, lower diastolic blood pressure, lower LDL/HDL ratios, lower body mass index, a higher HDL count, and lower plasma glucose levels than males (p < 0.05 for all), all of which suggest better cardiovascular health. However, we found no gender differences in vascular health measures, IMT and FMD. Our results suggest that while young adult females have better cardiovascular health than males, endothelial function may not yet be affected in the young adult years.
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Christina M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Cromwell
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Kristin R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Aichele
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Joyann E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Oakman
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Michael P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Neal
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Jessica M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lenzo
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Avery N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Naomi L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Bye
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Erica L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Santaniello
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Jessica A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Rachel C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Karla A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Thiele
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Lauren N
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Chavis
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Allyson K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Getty
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Tia R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Wisdo
authors.affiliation: The HEART (Hypertension and Endothelial function with Aerobic and Resistance Training) Laboratory, Health & Exercise Physiology Department, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Deborah L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Feairheller
keywords: Blood pressure; cardiovascular; cholesterol; glucose; intima-media thickness; vascular health