title: Long-term effects of earthquake experience of young persons on cardiovascular disease risk factors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim of the study was to study the long-term effect on cardiovascular disease risk factors of stress from direct experience of an earthquake as a young person.
  
  
  METHODS
  We selected workers born between July 1, 1958 and July 1, 1976 who were examined at Kailuan General Hospital between May and October of 2013. Data on cardiovascular events were taken during the workers' annual health examination conducted between 2006 and 2007. All subjects were divided into three groups according to their experience of the Tangshan earthquake of July 28, 1976, as follows: control group; exposed group 1 and exposed group 2. We compared cardiovascular disease risk factors between the three groups as well as by gender and age.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One thousand one hundred and ninety-six workers were included in the final statistical analysis. Among all subjects, resting heart rate (p= 0.003), total cholesterol (p< 0.001), and fasting blood glucose (p< 0.001) were significantly higher among those who experienced the earthquake compared with unexposed controls, but were unrelated to loss of relatives. No significant difference in triglyceride levels was observed between the three groups (p= 0.900). Further refinement showed that the effects were restricted to males 40 years of age or older at the time of analysis, but were due primarily to age at the time of earthquake exposure (p= 0.002,p< 0.001 andp= 0.002).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Earthquake experience in the early years of life has long-term effects on adult resting heart rate, total cholesterol, and fasting plasma glucose, especially among men.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Yumei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Lulu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Mei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Chunpeng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health, the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Hebei Medical University Institute of Mental Health, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Xueyi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Kailuan General Hospital, Tangshan, China.
authors.forename: Shouling
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wu
keywords: cardiovascular disease; earthquake stress; long-term effect; risk factors