Humans ; Vascular Stiffness ; Coal Mining ; Occupational Diseases/epidemiology* ; Risk Factors ; Coal ; Miners

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the association between fruit and vegetable intake and arterial stiffness. METHODS: We conducted a cohort-based study comprising 6,628 participants with arterial stiffness information in the Prediction for Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Risk in China (China-PAR) project. A semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire was used to assess baseline (2007-2008) and recent (2018-2021) fruit and vegetable intake. We assessed changes in fruit and vegetable intake from 2007-2008 to 2018-2021 in 6,481 participants. Arterial stiffness was measured using the arterial velocity-pulse index (AVI) and arterial pressure-volume index (API). Elevated AVI and API values were defined according to diverse age reference ranges. RESULTS: Multivariable-adjusted linear regression models revealed that every 100 g/d increment in fruit and vegetable intake was associated with a 0.11 decrease in AVI ( B= -0.11; 95% confidence interval [ CI]: -0.20, -0.02) on average, rather than API ( B = 0.02; 95% CI: -0.09, 0.13). The risk of elevated AVI (odds ratio [ OR] = 0.82; 95% CI: 0.70, 0.97) is 18% lower in individuals with high intake (≥ 500 g/d) than in those with low intake (< 500 g/d). Furthermore, maintaining a high intake in the past median of 11.5 years of follow-up was associated with an even lower risk of elevated AVI compared with a low intake at both baseline and follow-up ( OR = 0.64; 95% CI: 0.49, 0.83). CONCLUSION Fruit and vegetable intake was negatively associated with arterial stiffness, emphasizing recommendations for adherence to fruit and vegetable intake for the prevention of arterial stiffness.
Humans ; Vascular Stiffness ; Fruit ; Vegetables ; Atherosclerosis ; China

OBJECTIVE: To utilized the baseline data of the Beijing Fangshan Family Cohort Study, and to estimate whether the association between a healthy lifestyle and arterial stiffness might be modified by genetic effects. METHODS: Probands and their relatives from 9 rural areas in Fangshan district, Beijing were included in this study. We developed a healthy lifestyle score based on five lifestyle behaviors: smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index (BMI), dietary pattern, and physical activity. The measurements of arterial stiffness were brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and ankle-brachial index (ABI). A variance component model was used to determine the heritability of arterial stiffness. Genotype-environment interaction effects were performed by the maximum likelihood methods. Subsequently, 45 candidate single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located in the glycolipid metabolism pathway were selected, and generalized estimated equations were used to assess the gene-environment interaction effects between particular genetic loci and healthy lifestyles. RESULTS: A total of 6 302 study subjects across 3 225 pedigrees were enrolled in this study, with a mean age of 56.9 years and 45.1% male. Heritability of baPWV and ABI was 0.360 (95%CI: 0.302-0.418) and 0.243 (95%CI: 0.175-0.311), respectively. Significant genotype-healthy diet interaction on baPWV and genotype-BMI interaction on ABI were observed. Following the findings of genotype-environment interaction analysis, we further identified two SNPs located in ADAMTS9-AS2 and CDH13 might modify the association between healthy dietary pattern and arterial stiffness, indicating that adherence to a healthy dietary pattern might attenuate the genetic risk on arterial stiffness. Three SNPs in CDKAL1, ATP8B2 and SLC30A8 were shown to interact with BMI, implying that maintaining BMI within a healthy range might decrease the genetic risk of arterial stiffness. CONCLUSION The current study discovered that genotype-healthy dietary pattern and genotype-BMI interactions might affect the risk of arterial stiffness. Furthermore, we identified five genetic loci that might modify the relationship between healthy dietary pattern and BMI with arterial stiffness. Our findings suggested that a healthy lifestyle may reduce the genetic risk of arterial stiffness. This study has laid the groundwork for future research exploring mechanisms of arterial stiffness.
Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Female ; Ankle Brachial Index ; Cohort Studies ; Gene-Environment Interaction ; Vascular Stiffness/genetics* ; Pedigree ; Pulse Wave Analysis/methods* ; Genotype

Objective: To evaluate the impact of individual and combined assessment of age- and sex-specific brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and pulse pressure (PP) on all-cause mortality. Methods: This study is a prospective cohort study. Individuals participated in the Kailuan Study and completed baPWV measurements between 2010 and 2016 were included in this study. After stratifying by sex, 75th percentile baPWV and PP values for different age group were calculated at five years interval. BaPWV and PP values below the 75th percentile were defined as normal, and those above or equal to the 75th percentile were defined as increased. The participants were allocated to four groups according to their PP and baPWV status: normal baPWV/PP group, high baPWV/normal PP group, normal baPWV/high PP group and high baPWV/PP group. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality during the follow-up period. Cox proportional hazards models were used to explore the impact of individual and combined assessment of baPWV and PP on all-cause mortality events. Results: A total of 39 339 participants were enrolled in this study, aged (49.3±12.8) years, of which 28 731 (73.03%) were males. There were 23 268, 6 025, 6 210 and 3 836 cases in the normal baPWV/PP group, high baPWV/normal PP group, normal baPWV/high PP group and high baPWV/PP group, respectively. The average follow-up duration was (4.98±2.53) years. During the follow-up period, all-cause mortality occurred in 998 individuals. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed increased risk of all-cause mortality in the high baPWV/normal PP group (HR=1.27, 95%CI 1.07-1.50), and in the high baPWV/PP group (HR=1.33, 95%CI 1.08-1.65) compared to the normal baPWV/PP group. Increased pulse pressure alone had no impcat on all-cause death (HR=1.06, 95%CI 0.87-1.29). Conclusions: The risk of all-cause mortality significantly increases with increased age-and sex-specific baPWV and PP values. BaPWV may be a better predictor of all-cause mortality than PP in this cohort.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Blood Pressure ; Ankle Brachial Index ; Prospective Studies ; Pulse Wave Analysis ; Ankle ; Vascular Stiffness ; Risk Factors

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for 48.0% of all deaths in Europe and 34.3% in the United States. Studies have shown that arterial stiffness takes precedence over vascular structural changes and is therefore considered to be an independent predictor of many cardiovascular diseases. At the same time, the characteristics of Korotkoff signal is related to vascular compliance. The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of detecting vascular stiffness based on the characteristics of Korotkoff signal. First, the Korotkoff signals of normal and stiff vessels were collected and preprocessed. Then the scattering features of Korotkoff signal were extracted by wavelet scattering network. Next, the long short-term memory (LSTM) network was established as a classification model to classify the normal and stiff vessels according to the scattering features. Finally, the performance of the classification model was evaluated by some parameters, such as accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity. In this study, 97 cases of Korotkoff signal were collected, including 47 cases from normal vessels and 50 cases from stiff vessels, which were divided into training set and test set according to the ratio of 8 : 2. The accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of the final classification model was 86.4%, 92.3% and 77.8%, respectively. At present, non-invasive screening method for vascular stiffness is very limited. The results of this study show that the characteristics of Korotkoff signal are affected by vascular compliance, and it is feasible to use the characteristics of Korotkoff signal to detect vascular stiffness. This study might be providing a new idea for non-invasive detection of vascular stiffness.
Humans ; Vascular Stiffness ; Neural Networks, Computer ; Cardiovascular Diseases/diagnosis* ; Sensitivity and Specificity

Objective: This study aimed to analyze clinical factors related to arterial stiffening and establish a risk prediction nomogram of arterial stiffening in the octogenarian(≥80 years). Methods: This study was a retrospective cross-sectional study, which enrolled the octogenarian elderly who underwent physical examination and secondary prevention intervention in the outpatient department of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital from April 2022 to August 2022. Clinical data including demographics, biochemical indicators and medical history were collected. Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) was detected during the clinical visit. Participants were divided into the control group (baPWV≤1 800 cm/s) and vascular sclerosis group (baPWV>1 800 cm/s). The risk factors of arterial stiffness were analyzed by univariate and logistic regression analysis, and the nomogram model was constructed by R programming language. The predictive effect of the nomogram model was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC). Results: The median age of the 525 participants was 87.0 (82.0, 92.0) years, 504 (96.0%) were male, 82 in the control group, 443 in the vascular sclerosis group. The baPWV, age, systolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure and diastolic blood pressure were significantly lower in the control group than those in the vascular sclerosis group (all P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, alanine aminotransferase and amylase were protective factors, and alkaline phosphatase and creatinine were risk factors of arterial stiffening (all P<0.05). The combined nomogram model scores including age, mean arterial pressure and the above five laboratory indicators indicated that mean arterial pressure and serum creatinine levels were strongly correlated with vascular sclerosis. The ROC curve suggested that the nomogram model had good prediction ability. Conclusions: Age, mean arterial pressure, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, amylase and creatinine are independently determinants for increased vascular stiffness. The combined prediction model in this study can provide reference for individualized clinical risk prediction of vascular sclerosis in the octogenarian elderly.
Aged, 80 and over ; Humans ; Male ; Aged ; Female ; Ankle Brachial Index ; Vascular Stiffness/physiology* ; Octogenarians ; Retrospective Studies ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Alanine Transaminase ; Alkaline Phosphatase ; Creatinine ; Sclerosis ; Pulse Wave Analysis ; Risk Factors ; Amylases ; Lipoproteins, HDL ; Cholesterol

Objective: To investigate the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), apnea hypopnea index (AHI) and vascular injury in hypertensive patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled patients admitted to the Hypertension Department of TEDA International Cardiovascular Hospital from April 2020 to April 2023, who finished portable sleep monitoring. Sleep monitoring indicators, flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), carotid artery ultrasound, carotid intima-media thickness, cervical and femoral pulse wave conduction velocity (cfPWV), brachial and ankle pulse wave conduction velocity (baPWV) were analyzed. OSA was classified into mild (5 times/h≤AHI<15 times/h), moderate (15≤AHI<30 times/h), and severe (AHI≥30 times/h) based on AHI levels. FMD<6.0% was defined as vascular endothelial injury, and cfPWV>10 m/s and/or baPWV>18 m/s was defined as arterial stiffness. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to explore the correlation between AHI, OSA severity and vascular injury, and subgroup analysis was performed in young (age≤45 years) and middle-to-old patients (age>45 years). Sensitivity analysis was performed by excluding patients with diabetes, cerebrovascular disease and coronary heart disease. The correlation between AHI and vascular injury index was analyzed by restricted cubic spline. Results: A total of 555 adult hypertensive patients were included, the mean age was (39.7±9.2) years, 422 were males (76.0%), and the prevalence of OSA was 66.7% (370/555). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that moderate OSA (OR=2.83, P=0.019) and severe OSA (OR=3.40, P=0.016) were positively correlated with vascular endothelial injury after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index and mean arterial pressure. Subgroup analysis showed that log AHI (OR=1.99, P=0.035), moderate OSA (OR=4.83, P=0.010) and severe OSA (OR=4.64, P=0.015) were associated with vascular endothelial injury in young hypertensive patients. The results of sensitivity analysis were similar to the above results. The results of restricted cubic spline analysis showed that AHI was correlated with FMD (P=0.022), and the slope of the curve was the largest when AHI was between 0 and 10 times/h. There was no correlation between log AHI and OSA severity and carotid intima-media thickening and arterial stiffness (all P<0.05). Conclusions: OSA is associated with vascular endothelial injury in hypertensive patients, especially in young patients.
Male ; Humans ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Female ; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness ; Vascular System Injuries ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Hypertension/complications* ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive/complications* ; Carotid Arteries ; Vascular Stiffness

Objective: This study aimed to analyze clinical factors related to arterial stiffening and establish a risk prediction nomogram of arterial stiffening in the octogenarian(≥80 years). Methods: This study was a retrospective cross-sectional study, which enrolled the octogenarian elderly who underwent physical examination and secondary prevention intervention in the outpatient department of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital from April 2022 to August 2022. Clinical data including demographics, biochemical indicators and medical history were collected. Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) was detected during the clinical visit. Participants were divided into the control group (baPWV≤1 800 cm/s) and vascular sclerosis group (baPWV>1 800 cm/s). The risk factors of arterial stiffness were analyzed by univariate and logistic regression analysis, and the nomogram model was constructed by R programming language. The predictive effect of the nomogram model was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC). Results: The median age of the 525 participants was 87.0 (82.0, 92.0) years, 504 (96.0%) were male, 82 in the control group, 443 in the vascular sclerosis group. The baPWV, age, systolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure and diastolic blood pressure were significantly lower in the control group than those in the vascular sclerosis group (all P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, alanine aminotransferase and amylase were protective factors, and alkaline phosphatase and creatinine were risk factors of arterial stiffening (all P<0.05). The combined nomogram model scores including age, mean arterial pressure and the above five laboratory indicators indicated that mean arterial pressure and serum creatinine levels were strongly correlated with vascular sclerosis. The ROC curve suggested that the nomogram model had good prediction ability. Conclusions: Age, mean arterial pressure, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, amylase and creatinine are independently determinants for increased vascular stiffness. The combined prediction model in this study can provide reference for individualized clinical risk prediction of vascular sclerosis in the octogenarian elderly.
Aged, 80 and over ; Humans ; Male ; Aged ; Female ; Ankle Brachial Index ; Vascular Stiffness/physiology* ; Octogenarians ; Retrospective Studies ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Alanine Transaminase ; Alkaline Phosphatase ; Creatinine ; Sclerosis ; Pulse Wave Analysis ; Risk Factors ; Amylases ; Lipoproteins, HDL ; Cholesterol

Objective: To investigate the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), apnea hypopnea index (AHI) and vascular injury in hypertensive patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled patients admitted to the Hypertension Department of TEDA International Cardiovascular Hospital from April 2020 to April 2023, who finished portable sleep monitoring. Sleep monitoring indicators, flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), carotid artery ultrasound, carotid intima-media thickness, cervical and femoral pulse wave conduction velocity (cfPWV), brachial and ankle pulse wave conduction velocity (baPWV) were analyzed. OSA was classified into mild (5 times/h≤AHI<15 times/h), moderate (15≤AHI<30 times/h), and severe (AHI≥30 times/h) based on AHI levels. FMD<6.0% was defined as vascular endothelial injury, and cfPWV>10 m/s and/or baPWV>18 m/s was defined as arterial stiffness. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to explore the correlation between AHI, OSA severity and vascular injury, and subgroup analysis was performed in young (age≤45 years) and middle-to-old patients (age>45 years). Sensitivity analysis was performed by excluding patients with diabetes, cerebrovascular disease and coronary heart disease. The correlation between AHI and vascular injury index was analyzed by restricted cubic spline. Results: A total of 555 adult hypertensive patients were included, the mean age was (39.7±9.2) years, 422 were males (76.0%), and the prevalence of OSA was 66.7% (370/555). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that moderate OSA (OR=2.83, P=0.019) and severe OSA (OR=3.40, P=0.016) were positively correlated with vascular endothelial injury after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index and mean arterial pressure. Subgroup analysis showed that log AHI (OR=1.99, P=0.035), moderate OSA (OR=4.83, P=0.010) and severe OSA (OR=4.64, P=0.015) were associated with vascular endothelial injury in young hypertensive patients. The results of sensitivity analysis were similar to the above results. The results of restricted cubic spline analysis showed that AHI was correlated with FMD (P=0.022), and the slope of the curve was the largest when AHI was between 0 and 10 times/h. There was no correlation between log AHI and OSA severity and carotid intima-media thickening and arterial stiffness (all P<0.05). Conclusions: OSA is associated with vascular endothelial injury in hypertensive patients, especially in young patients.
Male ; Humans ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Female ; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness ; Vascular System Injuries ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Hypertension/complications* ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive/complications* ; Carotid Arteries ; Vascular Stiffness

Cardiovascular homeostasis is regulated by both physical and chemical factors. Vascular stiffness, a physical property of vessel, is crucial in maintaining the physiological function of vasculature. Vascular stiffness has been indicated to be correlated with hypertension, heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases. It has been the most widely accepted clinical index for assessment of vascular function and dysfunction. This paper reviews the commonly used experimental and clinical techniques for evaluating vascular stiffness including direct detection of the Young's modulus and indirect detection method that is based on ultrasound technique and others. Principles of these methodologies, as well as their advantages and disadvantages, are also presented here. Researchers and clinical staff are encouraged to choose the most suitable methods for detecting vascular stiffness according to their purposes and objects, so as to effectively evaluate vascular function.
Humans ; Vascular Stiffness ; Elastic Modulus ; Hypertension/diagnosis* ; Cardiovascular Diseases/diagnosis* ; Heart Failure