Clustering and Interrelationships of Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors in Schoolchildren, Ages 6–19

Clustering and interrelationships of common and easily identifiable risk factors in 951 children (ages 6-19) from the Cincinnati Lipid Research Clinic's Princeton School of District Study were assessed. Several patterns of partial correlation coeffieients appeared after multiple regression analysis with adjustment for age, sex, Quetelet index, and race. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was positively correlated with plasma cholesterol and triglyceride, and with saturated fat intake. Plasma high density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-HDL) was positively associated with occupation of the head of the household and inversely associated with cigarette smoking and sucrose intake. Using multiple regression equations, from 29-41% of the variance for SBP and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) could be explained by the measured variables, with age, skinfold thickness, Quetelet, occupation, and education of the head of the household recurrently appearing in the regression equatons. Low density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-HDL) was the variable for which the lowest amount of variance could be explained in the four race-sex groups. Discriminant function analysis allowed an assessment of interrelationships of C-LDL-C-HDL aggregate groups to other risk factor mean residuals. The variables which contributed significantly to the discrimination between lipoprotein groups were Quetelet index, skinfold thickness, and DBP. Children in the highest C-LHL-lowest C-HDL quintile group had by far the highest residual Quetelet index and skinfold thickness, along with above average SBP, while those in The lowest C-LDL-highest C-HDL quintile group had the lowest residual Quetelet index, skinfold thickness, and SBP. Common risk and anti-risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD) in children cluster, allowing identification of groups of children putatively at relatively high and low CHD risk as adults.