Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Original Article
  • Published:

The effect of feto-maternal size and childhood growth on left ventricular mass and arterial stiffness in Afro-Caribbean children

Abstract

We hypothesized that maternal size, fetal size and childhood growth are associated with childhood blood pressure, left ventricular mass (LVM) and arterial stiffness. The Vulnerable Windows Cohort is a longitudinal study of 569 mothers and their offspring. Anthropometry was measured on each child at birth, at 6 weeks, once in 3 months upto 2 years and then every 6 months. Blood pressure and body composition were assessed in 185 children (age 11.5 years) and echocardiography performed. LVM was not associated with maternal size after adjustment for child's weight. LVM was significantly associated with faster growth in childhood and with current weight, fat mass and lean mass. Systolic blood pressure was not related to maternal, fetal or newborn anthropometry, but was positively associated with infant and childhood growth, as well as current body size and fat mass. The pulse pressure/stroke volume ratio (an index of arterial stiffness) was inversely associated with maternal size, placental volume at 20 weeks, fetal size at 35 weeks and childhood growth even after adjustment for current weight. In conclusion, LVM in childhood is positively associated with maternal height, child's current size and rate of growth. Arterial stiffness is inversely related to maternal, fetal and placental size as well as growth throughout childhood.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Ahuja P, Sdek P, MacLellan WR . Cardiac myocyte cell cycle control in development, disease, and regeneration. Physiol Rev 2007; 87 (2): 521–544.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Geelhoed JJ, van Osch-Gevers L, Verburg BO, Steegers EA, Hofman A, Helbing W et al. Maternal anthropometrics in pregnancy are associated with left ventricular mass in infancy. The generation R study. Pediatr Res 2008; 63 (1): 62–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Battista MC, Calvo E, Chorvatova A, Comte B, Corbeil J, Brochu M . Intra-uterine growth restriction and the programming of left ventricular remodelling in female rats. J Physiol 2005; 565 (Part 1): 197–205.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. de Simone G, Pasanisi F, Contaldo F . Link of nonhemodynamic factors to hemodynamic determinants of left ventricular hypertrophy. Hypertension 2001; 38 (1): 13–18.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Kawamura M, Itoh H, Yura S, Mogami H, Suga S, Makino H et al. Undernutrition in utero augments systolic blood pressure and cardiac remodeling in adult mouse offspring: possible involvement of local cardiac angiotensin system in developmental origins of cardiovascular disease. Endocrinology 2007; 148 (3): 1218–1225.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Vonnahme KA, Hess BW, Hansen TR, McCormick RJ, Rule DC, Moss GE et al. Maternal undernutrition from early- to mid-gestation leads to growth retardation, cardiac ventricular hypertrophy, and increased liver weight in the fetal sheep. Biol Reprod 2003; 69 (1): 133–140.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Gradman AH, Alfayoumi F . From left ventricular hypertrophy to congestive heart failure: management of hypertensive heart disease. Prog Cardiovasc Dis 2006; 48 (5): 326–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Barker DJ, Osmond C, Kajantie E, Eriksson JG . Growth and chronic disease: findings in the Helsinki Birth Cohort. Ann Hum Biol 2009; 36 (5): 445–458.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Adair LS, Martorell R, Stein AD, Hallal PC, Sachdev HS, Prabhakaran D et al. Size at birth, weight gain in infancy and childhood, and adult blood pressure in 5 low- and middle-income-country cohorts: when does weight gain matter? Am J Clin Nutr 2009; 89 (5): 1383–1392.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Opie LH, Commerford PJ, Gersh BJ, Pfeffer MA . Controversies in ventricular remodelling. Lancet 2006; 367 (9507): 356–367.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Segers P, Rietzschel ER, De Buyzere ML, Vermeersch SJ, De Bacquer D, Van Bortel LM et al. Noninvasive (input) impedance, pulse wave velocity, and wave reflection in healthy middle-aged men and women. Hypertension 2007; 49 (6): 1248–1255.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. de Simone G, Roman MJ, Koren MJ, Mensah GA, Ganau A, Devereux RB . Stroke volume/pulse pressure ratio and cardiovascular risk in arterial hypertension. Hypertension 1999; 33 (3): 800–805.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Amar J, Ruidavets JB, Chamontin B, Drouet L, Ferrieres J . Arterial stiffness and cardiovascular risk factors in a population-based study. J Hypertens 2001; 19 (3): 381–387.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Kajantie E, Barker DJ, Osmond C, Forsen T, Eriksson JG . Growth before 2 years of age and serum lipids 60 years later: the Helsinki Birth Cohort study. Int J Epidemiol 2008; 37 (2): 280–289.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Painter RC, Osmond C, Gluckman P, Hanson M, Phillips DI, Roseboom TJ . Transgenerational effects of prenatal exposure to the Dutch famine on neonatal adiposity and health in later life. Bjog 2008; 115 (10): 1243–1249.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Thame M, Osmond C, Wilks RJ, Bennett FI, McFarlane-Anderson N, Forrester TE . Blood pressure is related to placental volume and birth weight. Hypertension 2000; 35 (2): 662–667.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Marshall WA, Tanner JM . Variations in pattern of pubertal changes in girls. Arch Dis Child 1969; 44 (235): 291–303.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Marshall WA, Tanner JM . Variations in the pattern of pubertal changes in boys. Arch Dis Child 1970; 45 (239): 13–23.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Park SH, Shub C, Nobrega TP, Bailey KR, Seward JB . Two-dimensional echocardiographic calculation of left ventricular mass as recommended by the American Society of Echocardiography: correlation with autopsy and M-mode echocardiography. J Am Soc Echocardiogr 1996; 9 (2): 119–128.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Palmieri V, Bella JN, Roman MJ, Gerdts E, Papademetriou V, Wachtell K et al. Pulse pressure/stroke index and left ventricular geometry and function: the LIFE Study. J Hypertens 2003; 21 (4): 781–787.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Lind L, Andren B, Sundstrom J . The stroke volume/pulse pressure ratio predicts coronary heart disease mortality in a population of elderly men. J Hypertens 2004; 22 (5): 899–905.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Boyne MS, Thame M, Osmond C, Fraser RA, Gabay L, Reid M et al. Growth, body composition, and the onset of puberty: longitudinal observations in Afro-Caribbean Children. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2010; 95 (7): 3194–3200.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Randall OS, Westerhof N, van den Bos GC, Alexander B . Reliability of stroke volume to pulse pressure ratio for estimating and detecting changes in arterial compliance. J Hypertens Suppl 1986; 4 (5): S293–S296.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Vijayakumar M, Fall CH, Osmond C, Barker DJ . Birth weight, weight at one year, and left ventricular mass in adult life. Br Heart J 1995; 73 (4): 363–367.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Zureik M, Bonithon-Kopp C, Lecomte E, Siest G, Ducimetiere P . Weights at birth and in early infancy, systolic pressure, and left ventricular structure in subjects aged 8 to 24 years. Hypertension 1996; 27 (3 Part 1): 339–345.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Mikkola K, Leipala J, Boldt T, Fellman V . Fetal growth restriction in preterm infants and cardiovascular function at five years of age. J Pediatr 2007; 151 (5): 494–499, 499, e491-492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Dekkers C, Treiber FA, Kapuku G, Van Den Oord EJ, Snieder H . Growth of left ventricular mass in African American and European American youth. Hypertension 2002; 39 (5): 943–951.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Kumaran K, Fall CH, Martyn CN, Vijayakumar M, Stein C, Shier R . Blood pressure, arterial compliance, and left ventricular mass: no relation to small size at birth in south Indian adults. Heart 2000; 83 (3): 272–277.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Dai S, Harrist RB, Rosenthal GL, Labarthe DR . Effects of body size and body fatness on left ventricular mass in children and adolescents: Project HeartBeat!. Am J Prev Med 2009; 37 (1 Suppl): S97–S104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Daniels SR, Kimball TR, Morrison JA, Khoury P, Witt S, Meyer RA . Effect of lean body mass, fat mass, blood pressure, and sexual maturation on left ventricular mass in children and adolescents. Statistical, biological, and clinical significance. Circulation 1995; 92 (11): 3249–3254.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Levent E, Atik T, Darcan S, Ulger Z, Goksen D, Ozyurek AR . The relation of arterial stiffness with intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR). Pediatr Int 2009, 807–811.

  32. Bradley TJ, Potts JE, Lee SK, Potts MT, De Souza AM, Sandor GG . Early changes in the biophysical properties of the aorta in pre-adolescent children born small for gestational age. J Pediatr 2009, 388–392.

  33. Sakuragi S, Abhayaratna K, Gravenmaker KJ, O’Reilly C, Srikusalanukul W, Budge MM et al. Influence of adiposity and physical activity on arterial stiffness in healthy children: the lifestyle of our kids study. Hypertension 2009; 53 (4): 611–616.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Mimoun E, Aggoun Y, Pousset M, Dubern B, Bougle D, Girardet JP et al. Association of arterial stiffness and endothelial dysfunction with metabolic syndrome in obese children. J Pediatr 2008; 153 (1): 65–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Iannuzzi A, Licenziati MR, Acampora C, Salvatore V, De Marco D, Mayer MC et al. Preclinical changes in the mechanical properties of abdominal aorta in obese children. Metabolism 2004; 53 (9): 1243–1246.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Collins RT, Somes GW, Alpert BS . Arterial stiffness is increased in American adolescents compared to Japanese counterparts. Pediatr Cardiol 2009; 30 (6): 794–799.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Collins RT, Somes GW, Alpert BS . Differences in arterial compliance among normotensive adolescent groups: collins arterial compliance in adolescents. Pediatr Cardiol 2008; 29 (5): 929–934.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Gluckman PD, Hanson MA, Cooper C, Thornburg KL . Effect of in utero and early-life conditions on adult health and disease. N Engl J Med 2008; 359 (1): 61–73.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Giraud GD, Louey S, Jonker S, Schultz J, Thornburg KL . Cortisol stimulates cell cycle activity in the cardiomyocyte of the sheep fetus. Endocrinology 2006; 147 (8): 3643–3649.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Barbera A, Giraud GD, Reller MD, Maylie J, Morton MJ, Thornburg KL . Right ventricular systolic pressure load alters myocyte maturation in fetal sheep. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2000; 279 (4): R1157–R1164.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Martyn CN, Greenwald SE . Impaired synthesis of elastin in walls of aorta and large conduit arteries during early development as an initiating event in pathogenesis of systemic hypertension. Lancet 1997; 350 (9082): 953–955.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Martyn CN, Greenwald SE . A hypothesis about a mechanism for the programming of blood pressure and vascular disease in early life. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol 2001; 28 (11): 948–951.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  43. Chung AW, Yang HH, Sigrist MK, Brin G, Chum E, Gourlay WA et al. Matrix metalloproteinase-2 and -9 exacerbate arterial stiffening and angiogenesis in diabetes and chronic kidney disease. Cardiovasc Res 2009; 84 (3): 494–504.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. Jiang B, Godfrey KM, Martyn CN, Gale CR . Birth weight and cardiac structure in children. Pediatrics 2006; 117 (2): e257–e261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Geelhoed JJ, Steegers EA, van Osch-Gevers L, Verburg BO, Hofman A, Witteman JC et al. Cardiac structures track during the first 2 years of life and are associated with fetal growth and hemodynamics: the Generation R Study. Am Heart J 2009; 158 (1): 71–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Schieken RM, Schwartz PF, Goble MM . Tracking of left ventricular mass in children: race and sex comparisons: the MCV Twin Study. Medical College of Virginia. Circulation 1998; 97 (19): 1901–1906.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  47. de Simone G, Devereux RB, Daniels SR, Koren MJ, Meyer RA, Laragh JH . Effect of growth on variability of left ventricular mass: assessment of allometric signals in adults and children and their capacity to predict cardiovascular risk. J Am Coll Cardiol 1995; 25 (5): 1056–1062.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. Schack-Nielsen L, Molgaard C, Larsen D, Martyn C, Michaelsen KF . Arterial stiffness in 10-year-old children: current and early determinants. Br J Nutr 2005; 94 (6): 1004–1011.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. Farpour-Lambert NJ, Aggoun Y, Marchand LM, Martin XE, Herrmann FR, Beghetti M . Physical activity reduces systemic blood pressure and improves early markers of atherosclerosis in pre-pubertal obese children. J Am Coll Cardiol 2009; 54 (25): 2396–2406.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  50. Cruickshank JK, Rezailashkajani M, Goudot G . Arterial stiffness, fatness, and physical fitness: ready for intervention in childhood and across the life course? Hypertension 2009; 53 (4): 602–604.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. Fernhall B, Agiovlasitis S . Arterial function in youth: window into cardiovascular risk. J Appl Physiol 2008; 105 (1): 325–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  52. Sherva R, Miller MB, Lynch AI, Devereux RB, Rao DC, Oberman A et al. A whole genome scan for pulse pressure/stroke volume ratio in African Americans: the HyperGEN study. Am J Hypertens 2007; 20 (4): 398–402.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Pavlopoulos H, Nihoyannopoulos P . Pulse pressure/stroke volume: a surrogate index of arterial stiffness and the relation to segmental relaxation and longitudinal systolic deformation in hypertensive disease. Eur J Echocardiogr 2009; 10 (4): 519–526.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study was supported by a grant from the Wellcome Trust, 183 Euston Road, London, England, and funding from the University of the West Indies.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to T E Forrester.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Lawrence-Wright, M., Boyne, M., Osmond, C. et al. The effect of feto-maternal size and childhood growth on left ventricular mass and arterial stiffness in Afro-Caribbean children. J Hum Hypertens 25, 457–464 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/jhh.2010.84

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/jhh.2010.84

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links