Arterial Stiffness and Cardiometabolic-Based Chronic Disease: The Kardiovize Study.

Abstract Objective Arterial stiffness (ArSt) describes a loss of arterial wall elasticity and it is an independent predictor of cardiovascular events. A cardiometabolic-based chronic disease (CMBCD) model integrates concepts of adiposity-based chronic disease (ABCD), dysglycemia-based chronic disease (DBCD), and cardiovascular disease(CVD). We aimed to assess if ABCD and DBCD detect more people with high ArSt compared to traditional adiposity and dysglycemia classifiers, using the cardio-ankle vascular index(CAVI). Methods Subjects aged between 25 and 64 years from a random population-based sample were evaluated. Subjects with type 1 diabetes were excluded. ABCD and DBCD were defined, and risk was stratified based on American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) criteria. Results 2070 participants (45.4%males) were included, median age (interquartile range[IQR]) was 48.5(19) years. The highest prevalence of high CAVI was found in Stage 2 of ABCD(18.5%) and Stage 4 DBCD(31.8%); the lowest prevalence was detected in Stage 0 ABCD(2.2%). In univariate analysis, Stage 2 ABCD and all DBCD Stages increased the risk of having high CAVI, compared with traditional classifiers. After adjusting for age and gender, only an inverse association between obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) and CAVI remained significant. Nevertheless, BMI was responsible for only 0.3% of CAVI variability. Conclusion The ABCD and DBCD models showed better performance than traditional classifiers to detect subject with ArSt, however the association among these variables were not independently associated of age and gender. The lack of independent relationship might be explained by complexity and multifactoriality of the relationship of CAVI with ABCD/DBCD models, mediated by insulin resistance.