THE INTERACTION BETWEEN GENDER AND HEIGHT IN THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CENTRAL BLOOD PRESSURE AND BRACHIAL ANKLE PULSE WAVE VELOCITY

Abstract

Objective: It has been reported that pulse pressure amplification (PPa) in elderly hypertensive subjects is larger in females than in males. Because the gender difference in heights remains, while other biological differences between genders decrease in the elderly, the gender difference in PPa may be confounded by heights. Therefore, we investigated the influence of heights on the PPa and brachial ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV).

Design and Method: A cross-sectional study was performed with a general population in two rural areas of South Korea. PPa was defined as the difference between brachial systolic blood pressure (BSBP) and central systolic blood pressure (CSBP).

Results: A total of 473 (292 females; the mean age, 58.1 ± 11.8 years) subjects were analyzed. Male subjects were taller than female subjects (166.8 ± 6.1 cm vs. 154.1 ± 5.7 cm, p < 0.001). BSBPs were higher in male subjects, whereas there were no differences in CSBPs between genders. PPa was larger in male subjects than in female subjects (−3.8 ± 7.9 mmHg vs. −8.2 ± 4.6 mmHg, p < 0.0001). baPWVs were marginally higher in male subjects than in female subjects (1525.8 ± 315.8 cm/s vs. 1468.9 ± 319.9 cm/s, p = 0.0597). Stepwise general linear modeling showed that height (adjusted R2 [adjR2] = 0.1738), age (adjR2 = 0.1984), the product of gender and height (adjR2 = 0.2090), gender (adjR2 = 0.2242) and drinking (adjR2 = 0.2329) were included in the model for PPa, and that age (adjR2 = 0.3455), metabolic syndrome (adjR2 = 0.3539), the product of gender and height (adjR2 = 0.3615) and gender (adjR2 = 0.3679) were included in the model for baPWV, in the orders appeared.

Conclusions: The association of heights with PPa and arterial stiffness was stronger than that of gender, and the interaction between height and gender should be considered in studies for gender differences in vascular aging.