Early life determinants of cardiovascular disease

Abstract

Purpose: The purposes of this study were to primarily investigate whether determinants measured in adolescence could predict carotid intima-media thickness in adolescents aged 12-16 years. And secondly to determine whether predictors measured in childhood could predict cIMT in adolescents in addition to these measurements in adolescence. Methods: For this study, data was used from a Dutch birth cohort initiated for the Wheezing Illnesses study Leidsche Rijn, in which healthy children were included at birth and follow-up was obtained until the age of 12-16 years for 232 children. Data from physical measurements combined with questionnaires at the age of 5 and 12-16 was included. With this, univariable and multivariable linear regression analyses were performed for the determinants and predictors separately. Results: As for the determinants, no statistically significant associations were found with carotid intima-media thickness in adolescence, neither in univariable, nor multivariable linear regression analyses. Regarding the predictors, carotid intima-media thickness in childhood was found to be associated with carotid intima-media thickness in adolescence in univariable linear regression analysis (unstandardized beta 0.337 [95% CI 0.032-0.642]) and multivariable linear regression analysis (unstandardized beta 0.412 [95% CI 0.094-0.729]). The other predictors showed no statistically significant association with cIMT in adolescence. Conclusion: Carotid intima-media thickness in childhood is found to be a significant predictor for carotid intima-media thickness in adolescence. Apart from this, none of the investigated determinants or predictors showed a significant association with carotid intima-media thickness in adolescence.