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Hyperuricemia predicts the risk for developing hypertension independent of alcohol drinking status in men and women: the Saku study

Hypertension Research volume 43, pages 442–449 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

Hyperuricemia has been reported to be a risk factor for hypertension, but this association may be affected by alcohol consumption. This study aimed to investigate whether hyperuricemia remains a risk factor for hypertension after eliminating the effect of alcohol consumption. This study comprised 7848 participants (4247 men and 3601 women) aged 30–74 years without hypertension who had undergone a medical checkup between April 2008 and March 2009 at Saku Central Hospital, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Hyperuricemia was defined as uric acid >7.0 mg/dl in men, ≥6.0 mg/dl in women, and/or receiving treatment for hyperuricemia or gout. The incidence of hypertension was defined as the first diagnoses of blood pressure ≥140/≥ 90 mmHg and/or initiations of antihypertensive drug treatment. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) of hyperuricemia for the incidence of hypertension after adjustment for and classification by alcohol consumption were estimated using the Cox proportional hazard model. During a mean of 4.0 years of follow-up, 1679 individuals developed hypertension. After adjustment for alcohol consumption, the HRs (95% confidence interval) associated with hyperuricemia were 1.37 (1.19–1.58) in men and 1.54 (1.14–2.06) in women. Among nondrinkers, the HR was 1.29 (0.94–1.78) in men with hyperuricemia compared with men without, and the corresponding HR was 1.57 (1.11–2.22) in women. The corresponding HR was 1.88 (1.27–2.86) in all participants with baseline blood pressure <120/80 mmHg. The interactions between hyperuricemia and sex (P = 0.534) and between drinking and sex (P = 0.713) were not significant. In conclusion, hyperuricemia predicts the risk for developing hypertension independent of alcohol drinking status.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all of the researchers and coworkers at Saku Central Hospital for their excellent medical examinations and follow-up surveys.

Funding

This work was supported by a grant-in-aid for Young Scientists from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (18K17396).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Hygiene and Public Health, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Itabashi, Japan

    Yukako Tatsumi, Kei Asayama & Takayoshi Ohkubo

  2. Department of Preventive Cardiology, National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center, Suita, Japan

    Yukako Tatsumi & Yoshihiro Miyamoto

  3. Department of Clinical Nursing, Shiga University of Medical Science, Otsu, Japan

    Yukako Tatsumi & Naomi Miyamatsu

  4. Tohoku Institute for Management of Blood Pressure, Sendai, Japan

    Kei Asayama & Takayoshi Ohkubo

  5. Department of Fundamental Nursing, Graduate School of Nursing, Osaka Prefecture University, Habikino, Japan

    Akiko Morimoto & Nao Sonoda

  6. Division of Public Health, Hygiene and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Sendai, Japan

    Michihiro Satoh

  7. Department of Mathematical Health Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan

    Yuko Ohno

  8. Saku Central Hospital, Saku, Japan

    Satoshi Izawa

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  1. Yukako Tatsumi
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Correspondence to Yukako Tatsumi.

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Tatsumi, Y., Asayama, K., Morimoto, A. et al. Hyperuricemia predicts the risk for developing hypertension independent of alcohol drinking status in men and women: the Saku study. Hypertens Res 43, 442–449 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41440-019-0361-0

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Keywords

  • Alcohol
  • hypertension
  • hyperuricemia
  • cohort study

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