Key result
Greater aortic stiffness and early, pulsatile hemodynamic load were independently associated with increased relative wall thickness in women, but not in men.
Why the study?
Do measures of arterial load associate with left ventricular hypertrophy and concentric remodeling differently in men and women?
Cross-Sectional (n=600)
No
Do measures of arterial load associate with left ventricular hypertrophy and concentric remodeling differently in men and women?
Effect estimate: β ± SE = 0.008 ± 0.004 for Zc; 0.003 ± 0.001 for cfPWV; -0.009 ± 0.003 for PAC
p-value: p=≤0.05
Greater aortic stiffness and pulsatile hemodynamic load are independently associated with increased relative wall thickness in women but not in men, suggesting a sex-specific mechanism for left ventricular concentric remodeling.
Sex-specific links between pulsatile load and concentric remodeling may guide targeted hypertension studies; leaves open whether these associations alter clinical risk stratification.
BACKGROUND: Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and concentric remodeling are associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes. We hypothesized that measures of arterial load are associated with LVH and concentric remodeling, and that associations differ by sex. METHODS: We studied 600 non-Hispanic whites (59% women) belonging to hypertensive sibships. By integrating arterial tonometry with echocardiography, we obtained the following hemodynamic measures: aortic characteristic impedance (Z c), proximal aortic compliance (PAC), systemic vascular resistance, augmentation index, and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV). LVH and concentric remodeling were assessed by left ventricular mass indexed to body surface area (LVMI) and relative wall thickness (RWT), respectively. LVMI was log-transformed to reduce skewness. Hemodynamic measures were indexed to body size. Sex-specific multivariable linear regression analyses adjusting for confounders were performed to assess the associations of measures of arterial load with log LVMI and RWT. RESULTS: None of the hemodynamic measures were associated with LVMI in either sex, or with RWT in men. However, in women, measures of aortic stiffness and early, pulsatile hemodynamic load were independently associated with increased RWT: β ± SE = 0.008 ± 0.004 for Z c; 0.003 ± 0.001 for cfPWV, and -0.009 ± 0.003 for PAC (P ≤ 0.05 for each). Female sex was a significant effect modifier of the associations of Z c, cfPWV, and PAC with RWT (P ≤ 0.03 for each of the interaction terms). CONCLUSIONS: Greater Z c and cfPWV and lower PAC are independently associated with increased RWT in women but not in men. Our findings suggest that aortic stiffness and greater early, pulsatile hemodynamic load affect left ventricular concentric remodeling in a sex-specific manner.
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Coutinho et al. (2015) conducted a cross-sectional in Hypertension and Left Ventricular Remodeling (n=600). Hemodynamic load (aortic characteristic impedance, proximal aortic compliance, carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity) vs. Men / Lower hemodynamic load was evaluated on Association of hemodynamic measures with relative wall thickness (RWT) in women (β ± SE = 0.008 ± 0.004 for Zc; 0.003 ± 0.001 for cfPWV; -0.009 ± 0.003 for PAC, p=≤0.05). Greater aortic stiffness and early, pulsatile hemodynamic load were independently associated with increased relative wall thickness in women, but not in men.
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