Postmenopausal hypertension, abdominal obesity, apolipoprotein and insulin resistance

Clin Exp Hypertens. 2016;38(4):370-4. doi: 10.3109/10641963.2015.1131286. Epub 2016 May 5.

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the association of abdominal obesity, apolipoprotein and insulin resistance (IR) with the risk of hypertension in postmenopausal women. We analyzed a total of 242 women aged between 35 and 70 years. Blood pressure (BP), anthropometric indices, lipid profile, fasting glucose, insulin, C-reactive protein (CRP) and apolipoprotein concentrations were measured. Homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) was used to assess IR. Hypertension was defined as a systolic BP (SBP) ≥140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP (DBP) ≥90 mmHg or current treatment with antihypertensive drugs. Women with hypertension showed significantly higher mean values of age, SBP and DBP, waist circumference (WC), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), insulin, HOMAIR and the apolipoprotein B (apoB). When analyses were done according to the menopausal status, higher prevalence of hypertension was observed in postmenopausal women (72.8% vs. 26.0%, p < 0.001) compared to their premenopausal counterparts. Postmenopausal women showed also significantly higher mean values of SBP and DBP, WC, HOMAIR and apoB. Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that SBP was significantly affected by WC (p = 0.034), apoB (p = 0.038) and log HOMAIR (p = 0.007) in postmenopausal women. The interaction models revealed significant interaction between WC, apoB and log HOMAIR (WC×apoB×log HOMAIR) on SBP (p = 0.001) adjusted for age. In a multivariate logistic regression, adjusting for age and apoB, WC (p = 0.001), log HOMAIR (p = 0.007) and menopause (p = 0.008) were significantly associated with higher risk for hypertension. These results suggest that changes in WC, apoB and IR accompanying menopause lead to a greater prevalence of hypertension in postmenopausal women.

Keywords: Abdominal obesity; apolipoprotein; hypertension; insulin resistance; menopause.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Anthropometry / methods
  • Apolipoproteins B / metabolism*
  • Blood Pressure Determination
  • C-Reactive Protein / metabolism
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Hypertension* / diagnosis
  • Hypertension* / epidemiology
  • Hypertension* / metabolism
  • Insulin Resistance / physiology*
  • Logistic Models
  • Middle Aged
  • Obesity, Abdominal* / diagnosis
  • Obesity, Abdominal* / epidemiology
  • Obesity, Abdominal* / metabolism
  • Postmenopause / physiology*
  • Prevalence
  • Risk Factors
  • Tunisia / epidemiology
  • Waist Circumference

Substances

  • Apolipoproteins B
  • C-Reactive Protein