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 language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 2525-2530 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology |
Volume | 32 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 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