Ferritin Is Independently Associated With the Presence of Coronary Artery Calcium in 12033 Men

Ki-Chul Sung*, Seok-Min Kang, Eun-Joo Cho, Jeong Bae Park, Sarah H. Wild, Christopher D. Byrne

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Objective
Ferritin concentrations are often increased in patients with metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes mellitus, but few reports have examined the associations between ferritin and atherosclerosis. We investigated whether any relationship between ferritin and coronary artery calcium score (CACS)>0 (as a marker of atherosclerosis) was independent of potential confounders, such as iron-binding capacity (transferrin), low-grade inflammation, and cardiovascular risk factors.

Methods and Results
Data were analyzed from a South Korean occupational cohort of 12 033 men who underwent a cardiac computed tomography estimation of CACS and measurements of multiple cardiovascular risk factors. One-thousand three-hundred-fifteen of 12 033 (11.2%) subjects had a CACS >0. For people with a CACS >0, median (interquartile range) ferritin concentration was 196.8 (136.3-291.9) compared with 182.2 (128.1-253.6) in people with a CACS=0; P0 compared with 9.7% (292/3010) in the lowest quartile (P10% (P0 as the outcome, ferritin but not transferrin was independently associated with CACS >0 (odds ratio for highest quartile versus lowest quartile, 1.66 [95% CI, 1.3-1.98]; P=0.0001).

Conclusion
Increased ferritin concentrations are associated with the presence of a marker of early coronary artery atherosclerosis, independently of traditional cardiovascular risk factors including Framingham risk score, transferrin, preexisting vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome factors, and low-grade inflammation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2525-2530
Number of pages6
JournalArteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology
Volume32
Issue number10
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2012

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • SERUM FERRITIN
  • RISK-FACTORS
  • IRON OVERLOAD
  • TYPE-2 DIABETIC-PATIENTS
  • atherosclerosis
  • METABOLIC SYNDROME
  • DEFICIENT MICE
  • type 2 diabetes mellitus
  • cardiovascular disease
  • metabolic syndrome
  • transferrin coronary artery calcium score
  • DIETARY IRON
  • ferritin
  • HEME OXYGENASE-1 GENE
  • COMPUTED-TOMOGRAPHY
  • DISEASE
  • cardiometabolic risk factors

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