Search

Objective: The evidence regarding the associations of circulating metabolic biomarkers with hypertension risk is scarce. We aimed to examine the associations between circulating metabolites and risk of hypertension., Methods: We included 49 422 individuals free of hypertension at baseline with a mean (SD) age of 53.5 (8.0) years from the UK Biobank. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to quantify 143 individual metabolites. Multivariable-adjusted Cox regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CIs)., Results: During a mean (SD) follow-up of 11.2 (1.8) years, 2686 incident hypertension cases occurred. Out of 143 metabolites, 76 were associated with incident hypertension, among which phenylalanine (hazard ratio: 1.40; 95% CI: 1.24-1.58) and apolipoprotein A1 (hazard ratio: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.66-0.87) had the strongest association when comparing the highest to the lowest quintile. In general, very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) particles were positively, whereas high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles were inversely associated with risk of hypertension. Similar patterns of cholesterol, phospholipids, and total lipids within VLDL and HDL particles were observed. Triglycerides within all lipoproteins were positively associated with hypertension risk. Other metabolites showed significant associations with risk of hypertension included amino acids, fatty acids, ketone bodies, fluid balance and inflammation markers. Adding 10 selected metabolic biomarkers to the traditional hypertension risk model modestly improved discrimination (C-statistic from 0.745 to 0.752, P < 0.001) for prediction of 10-year hypertension incidence., Conclusion: Among UK adults, disturbances in metabolic biomarkers are associated with incident hypertension. Comprehensive metabolomic profiling may provide potential novel biomarkers to identify high-risk individuals., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: In 2009, a workplace-based hypertension management program was launched among men with hypertension in the Kailuan study. This program involved monitoring blood pressure semimonthly, providing free antihypertensive medications, and offering personalized health consultations. However, the cost-effectiveness of this program remains unclear., Methods and Results: This analysis included 12 240 participants, with 6120 in each of the management and control groups. Using a microsimulation model derived from 10-year follow-up data, we estimated costs, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), life-years, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for workplace-based management compared with routine care in both the study period and over a lifetime. Analyses are conducted from the societal perspective. Over the 10-year follow-up, patients in the management group experienced an average gain of 0.06 QALYs with associated incremental costs of $633.17 (4366.85 RMB). Projecting over a lifetime, the management group was estimated to increase by 0.88 QALYs or 0.92 life-years compared with the control group, with an incremental cost of $1638.64 (11 301.37 RMB). This results in an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $1855.47 per QALY gained and $1780.27 per life-year gained, respectively, when comparing workplace-based management with routine care. In probabilistic sensitivity analyses, with a threshold willingness-to-pay of $30 765 per QALY (3 times 2019 gross domestic product per capita), the management group showed a 100% likelihood of being cost-effective in 10 000 samples., Conclusions: Workplace-based management, compared with routine care for Chinese men with hypertension, could be cost-effective both during the study period and over a lifetime, and might be considered in working populations in China and elsewhere.

Background: Drug treatment was recommended for stage 1 hypertensive patients (blood pressure of 130-139 / 80-89 millimetres of mercury (mmHg)) with high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in the 2017 Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines, 2018 Chinese guidelines and 2021 World Health Organization guidelines, but not in other guidelines. However, evidence on the cost-effectiveness of drug treatment among young and middle-aged patients remains scarce. This study aimed to compare the cost-effectiveness of drug treatment vs. non-drug treatment for stage 1 hypertensive patients aged <60 years with high CVD risk., Methods: A microsimulation model projected quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), health care costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for drug treatment from a societal perspective. Transition probabilities were estimated from the Kailuan study with a sample size of 34 093 patients aged <60 years with high CVD risk. Costs and health utilities were obtained from the Kailuan study, national statistics reports and published literature., Results: Over a 15-year time horizon, the model predicted that drug treatment generated QALY of 9.36 and was associated with expected costs of 3735 US dollars ($) compared with 9.07 and $3923 produced by non-drug treatment among stage 1 hypertensive patients, resulting in a cost-saving for drug treatment. At a willingness-to-pay threshold of $10439/QALY (one gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in 2020), drug treatment had a 99.99% probability of being cost-effective for 10 000 samples of probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Sensitivity analyses by different values of transition probability, cost, utility and discount rate did not appreciably change the results. Shortening the time horizon to the average follow-up period of eight years resulted in ICER of $189/QALY for drug treatment (<1 × GDP/QALY)., Conclusions: Our results suggested that drug treatment was a dominant strategy for stage 1 hypertensive patients aged <60 years with high CVD risk in China, which may provide evidence for policymakers and clinicians when weighing the pros and cons of drug treatment for young and middle-aged stage 1 hypertensive patients., Competing Interests: Disclosure of interest: The authors completed the ICMJE Disclosure of Interest Form (available upon request from the corresponding author) and disclose no relevant interests., (Copyright © 2023 by the Journal of Global Health. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Very high levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) have been paradoxically linked to increased mortality risk. The present study aimed to examine associations of HDL-C and varied sizes of the HDL particle (HDL-P) with mortality risk stratified by hypertension., Methods and Results: This prospective cohort study included 429 792 participants (244 866 with hypertension and 184 926 without hypertension) from the UK Biobank. During a median follow-up of 12.7 years, 23 993 (9.8%) and 8142 (4.4%) deaths occurred among individuals with and without hypertension, respectively. A U-shaped association of HDL-C with all-cause mortality was observed in individuals with hypertension after multivariable adjustment, whereas an L-shape was observed in individuals without hypertension. Compared with individuals with normal HDL-C of 50-70 mg/dL, those with very high HDL-C levels (>90 mg/dL) had a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality among individuals with hypertension (hazard ratio, 1.47; 95% confidence interval, 1.35-1.61), but not among those without hypertension (1.05, 0.91-1.22). As for HDL-P, among individuals with hypertension, a larger size of HDL-P was positively whereas smaller HDL-P was negatively associated with all-cause mortality. After additional adjustment for larger HDL-P in the model, the U-shaped association between HDL-C and mortality risk was altered to an L-shape among individuals with hypertension., Conclusions: The increased risk of mortality associated with very high HDL-C existed only in individuals with hypertension, but not in those without hypertension. Moreover, the increased risk at high HDL-C levels in hypertension was likely driven by larger HDL-P., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: None declared., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Limited studies had investigated the potential benefits of workplace-based hypertension management programs on long-term blood pressure (BP) control and health outcomes. This study used the propensity score matching to examine the effectiveness of a workplace-based hypertension management program on BP control and risks of major adverse cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality. Within the Kailuan study, a workplace-based hypertension management program was initiated in 2009 among men with hypertension, which included regular BP measuring (twice a month), free antihypertensive medications, and individualized health consultation. Participants were followed until loss to follow-up, death, or December 31, 2019. Among 17 724 male hypertensives aged 18 to 60 years, 6400 participated in the program. The propensity score matching yielded 6120 participants in the management group and 6120 participants in the control group. Both systolic and diastolic BPs were significantly lower in the management group than in the control group over follow-up, and the mean between-group difference at the 10th year was -7.83 (95% CI, -9.06 to -6.62) mm Hg for systolic BP and -4.72 (95% CI, -5.46 to -3.97) mm Hg for diastolic BP. Participants in the program were more likely to achieve BP control (odds ratio, 1.70 [95% CI, 1.41-2.06]) and had significantly lower risks of major adverse cardiovascular events (hazard ratio, 0.83 [95% CI, 0.72-0.94]) and all-cause mortality (hazard ratio, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.58-0.86]), compared with those who were not in the program. A workplace-based hypertension management program was related to reduced BP levels and lower risks of major adverse cardiovascular events and mortality in Chinese men with hypertension.

Systolic/diastolic blood pressure of 130 to 139/80 to 89 mm Hg has been defined as stage I hypertension by the 2017 Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines. Drug treatment is recommended for stage I hypertensive patients aged ≥65 years without cardiovascular disease in the 2017 Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines but not in the 2018 Chinese guidelines. However, the cost-effectiveness of drug treatment among this subgroup of Chinese patients is unclear. This study developed a microsimulation model to compare costs and effectiveness of drug treatment and nondrug treatment for the subgroup of stage I hypertensive patients over a lifetime horizon from a government affordability perspective. Event rates of mortality and cardiovascular complications were estimated from 3 cohorts in the Chinese population. Costs and health utilities were obtained from the national statistics report and published literature. The model predicted that drug treatment generated quality-adjusted life-years of 13.52 and associated with expected costs of $6825 in comparison with 13.81 and $7328 produced by nondrug treatment over a lifetime horizon among stage I hypertensive patients aged ≥65 years without cardiovascular disease. At a willingness-to-pay threshold of $8836/quality-adjusted life-year (the GDP per capita in 2017), drug treatment only had a 1.8% probability of being cost-effective compared with nondrug treatment after 10 000 probabilistic simulations. Sensitivity analysis of treatment costs, benefits expected from treatment, health utilities, and discount rates did not change the results. Our results suggested that drug treatment was not cost-effective compared with nondrug treatment for stage I hypertensive patients aged ≥65 years without cardiovascular disease in China.

Context Younger onset of type 2 diabetes (T2D) was associated with higher risks of vascular complications and mortality. Objective To prospectively assess risk profiles for incident T2D stratified by age at onset. Methods A total of 471 269 participants free of T2D at baseline were included from the UK Biobank. Approximately 70 clinical, lipid, lipoprotein, inflammatory, and metabolic markers, and genetic risk scores (GRSs) were analyzed. Stratified Cox proportional-hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for T2D with age of diagnosis divided into 4 groups (≤50.0, 50.1-60.0, 60.1-70.0, and >70.0 years). Results During 11 years of follow-up, 15 805 incident T2D were identified. Among clinical risk factors, obesity had the highest HR at any age, ranging from 13.16 (95% CI, 9.67-17.91) for 50.0 years and younger to 4.13 (3.78-4.51) for older than 70.0 years. Other risks associated with T2D onset at age 50.0 years and younger included dyslipidemia (3.50, 2.91-4.20), hypertension (3.21, 2.71-3.80), cardiovascular disease (2.87, 2.13-3.87), parental history of diabetes (2.42, 2.04-2.86), education lower than college (1.89, 1.57-2.27), physical inactivity (1.73, 1.43-2.10), smoking (1.38, 1.13-1.68), several lipoprotein particles, inflammatory markers, liver enzymes, fatty acids, amino acids, as well as GRS. Associations of most risk factors and biomarkers were markedly attenuated with increasing age at onset (P interaction <.05), and some were not significant for onset at age older than 70.0 years, such as smoking, systolic blood pressure, and apolipoprotein B. Conclusion Most risk factors or biomarkers had stronger relative risks for T2D at younger ages, which emphasizes the necessity of promoting primary prevention among younger individuals. Moreover, obesity should be prioritized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]