An Assessment of the Paediatric Cardiovascular Risk Profile in San Nicola da Crissa, a Village in the Calabria Region (Southern Italy): A Cross-Sectional Study

Background. Atherosclerosis is a long-standing process that starts in childhood and leads to a number of major adverse cardiovascular events in adulthood. It is therefore crucial that children at potential risk of atherosclerosis-related harmful consequences are identified. Nevertheless, relatively few studies have focused on primary prevention in paediatric patients. Methods. Fifty-four children (mean age 9.0 ± 2.8 years) and 72 parents (mean age 44.0 ± 8.2 years) were recruited. Blood pressure (BP) was measured and lipid panel was checked, together with carotid intima–media thickness (IMT) and several indexes of carotid stiffness. Results. No statistically significant differences in IMT and indexes of carotid stiffness were detected between children and parents, with the exception of the alpha index (p < 0.05). In children, IMT was correlated with the alpha index (p = 0.01). Seventeen children (31%) had a pathological IMT. The diastolic BP difference between children with normal and pathological IMT was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Parents’ total, LDL and HDL cholesterol, as well as triglyceride levels, differed statistically from those of children with both physiological and pathological IMT: p < 0.05 for all differences. Children with hypercholesterolemia had a three-fold higher likelihood of having a pathological IMT than children with normal cholesterol (p < 0.01). Among children with pathological IMT, 59 percent had one and 41 percent had two parents who were affected by pathological IMT. Conclusions. Carotid stiffness was similar in children and their parents, suggesting early familial influences on vascular properties. Many children had a pathological carotid IMT, highlighting how subclinical atherosclerosis is diffuse even at a young age. IMT in children was associated with cholesterol levels, underscoring the importance of early lipid screening and management. The strong association between pathological IMT in both children and their parents supports the hypothesis of a shared genetic or environmental predisposition to early vascular alterations.