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Inflammatory markers and blood pressure: sex differences and the effect of fat mass in the CoLaus Study

Journal of Human Hypertension volume 27, pages 169–175 (2013)Cite this article

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Abstract

Several studies have reported high levels of inflammatory biomarkers in hypertension, but data coming from the general population are sparse, and sex differences have been little explored. The CoLaus Study is a cross-sectional examination survey in a random sample of 6067 Caucasians aged 35–75 years in Lausanne, Switzerland. Blood pressure (BP) was assessed using a validated oscillometric device. Anthropometric parameters were also measured, including body composition, using electrical bioimpedance. Crude serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) and ultrasensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were positively and IL-1β (IL-1β) negatively (P<0.001 for all values), associated with BP. For IL-6, IL-1β and TNF-α, the association disappeared in multivariable analysis, largely explained by differences in age and body mass index, in particular fat mass. On the contrary, hsCRP remained independently and positively associated with systolic (β (95% confidence interval): 1.15 (0.64; 1.65); P<0.001) and diastolic (0.75 (0.42; 1.08); P<0.001) BP. Relationships of hsCRP, IL-6 and TNF-α with BP tended to be stronger in women than in men, partly related to the difference in fat mass, yet the interaction between sex and IL-6 persisted after correction for all tested confounders. In the general population, the associations between inflammatory biomarkers and rising levels of BP are mainly driven by age and fat mass. The stronger associations in women suggest that sex differences might exist in the complex interplay between BP and inflammation.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the participants in the Lausanne CoLaus Study and to the investigators who have contributed to the recruitment, in particular Yolande Barreau, Anne-Lise Bastian, Binasa Ramic, Martine Moranville, Martine Baumer, Marcy Sagette, Jeanne Ecoffey and Sylvie Mermoud for data collection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nephrology, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland

    M Pruijm & M Burnier

  2. Department of Internal Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland

    P Vollenweider

  3. Department of Clinical Chemistry, Division of Laboratory Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland

    V Mooser & G Waeber

  4. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland

    F Paccaud, P Marques-Vidal & M Bochud

  5. Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland

    M Preisig

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  1. M Pruijm
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Correspondence to M Bochud.

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Competing interests

The CoLaus Study (primary investigators: Peter Vollenweider, Gérard Waeber, Martin Preisig, Vincent Mooser and Pedro Marques-Vidal) was supported by research grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant no. 33CSCO-122661) from GlaxoSmithKline and the Faculty of Biology and Medicine of Lausanne, Switzerland. Menno Pruijm is supported by a SPUM grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation (33CM30-124087). M Bochud is supported by the Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+).

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Pruijm, M., Vollenweider, P., Mooser, V. et al. Inflammatory markers and blood pressure: sex differences and the effect of fat mass in the CoLaus Study. J Hum Hypertens 27, 169–175 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/jhh.2012.12

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