Reproductive factors, intima media thickness and carotid plaques in a cross-sectional study of postmenopausal women enrolled in the population-based KORA F4 study

BMC Women's Health

Research Article

Wolfgang Koenig¹  Wolfgang Rathmann²  Annette Peters³  Barbara Thorand³  Margit Heier⁴  Christa Meisinger⁴  Doris Stöckl⁵  Joachim Thiery⁶  Jochen Seissler⁷ 

[1] Department of Internal Medicine II – Cardiology, University of Ulm Medical Center, Ulm, Germany;Institute of Biometrics and Epidemiology, German Diabetes Center, Leibniz Center for Diabetes Research at Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany;Institute of Epidemiology II, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany;Institute of Epidemiology II, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany;Central Hospital of Augsburg, MONICA/KORA Myocardial Infarction Registry, Augsburg, Germany;Institute of Epidemiology II, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany;Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Campus Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany;Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany;Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik IV, Diabetes Zentrum - Campus Innenstadt, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, München and Clinical Cooperation Group Diabetes, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and Helmholtz Zentrum München, Munich, Germany;

关键词: Intima media thickness;    Atherosclerosis;    Cardiovascular disease;    Women;    Reproductive factors;    Gender studies;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1472-6874-14-17

 received in 2013-08-12, accepted in 2014-01-18,  发布年份 2014

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundReproductive events may affect the onset of chronic diseases. We examined the possible association between reproductive parameters and intima media thickness (IMT) or carotid plaques in the common carotid artery in a population-based sample.MethodsThis cross-sectional study analysed data of 800 postmenopausal women aged 50 to 81 years of the population-based KORA F4 study, conducted between 2006 and 2008 in Southern Germany. Reproductive parameters were obtained by standardised interviews.ResultsAge at menarche below 12 years compared to 12-15 years was significantly associated with carotid plaques (age-adjusted OR 2.23, 95% CI 1.13-4.43, p-value 0.018, multivariable adjusted 2.11, 1.05-4.26, 0.037), but not with IMT. Ever use of hormone replacement therapy was inversely associated with carotid plaques (age-adjusted 0.60, 0.44-0.81, p = 0.001, multivariable-adjusted 0.62, 0.45-0.86, 0.003) and IMT in the age-adjusted model (mean 0.89, 95% CI 0.88-0.90, p = 0.033) but not in the multivariable-adjusted model (mean 0.89, 95% CI 0.88-0.90, p = 0.075). Parity, age at menopause, time since menopause, duration of fertile period, current use of hormone replacement therapy, ever use of oral contraceptives, hysterectomy, bilateral oophorectomy, hot flashes and depressive mood in relation to the menopausal transition were not associated with carotid plaques or IMT.ConclusionOur study showed, that there may be an independent association between the reproductive parameters age at menarche and ever use of hormone replacement therapy with carotid plaques in the common carotid artery, but not with IMT. Further research, especially in studies with prospective population-based study design, is necessary to assess in detail what events in women’s life lead to increased IMT or CP.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Stöckl et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014