Abstract 14735: Volatile Organic Compounds Are Associated With Lower Ankle-Brachial Indexes in African Americans of the Jackson Heart Study

Introduction: Cigarette smoking is associated with peripheral artery disease (PAD) in African Americans (AA), but the association between cigarette constituents and PAD remain inadequately studied. We evaluated the effect of volatile organic compounds (VOC) acrolein and crotonaldehyde on ankle-brachial index (ABI) as well as related biomarkers in AA participants of the Jackson Heart Study. Methods: Urinary VOC concentrations were measured in a subset of participants at baseline including 345 self-reported current smokers and 718 never smokers. Multivariable linear regression assessed the association between ABI and VOC concentrations after adjustment for acute (cotinine) and chronic (pack-years) smoking measures in models 1 and 2, respectively. The degree of association was assessed after adjusting for possible mediation (Baron & Kenny procedure) by C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen, and homocysteine (HCY) concentrations. VOC concentrations were natural log transformed for normal distribution and all models adjusted for relevant covariates. Results: The mean age of included participants was 52 years and 49% women. Individuals who smoked were more likely to be men, less educated, have prevalent cardiovascular disease, and lower mean ABI. In model 1, ABI was inversely associated with urinary acrolein and crotonaldehyde concentrations. Model 2 retained the inverse ABI association for both VOC. Crotonaldehyde was directly associated with CRP and HCY in models 1 and 2. In model 1, acrolein was associated with HCY (Table). Biomarker mediation of the VOC-ABI relationship was insignificant. Conclusions: Acrolein and crotonaldehyde concentrations are associated with lower ABI and higher measures of inflammation and thrombosis in a community-based sample of AA. These findings suggest reduction in VOC exposure may reduce the risk of PAD in AA who smoke cigarettes.