Table 1.
Baseline Characteristics of Participants in by Sex
| Characteristic | Males (n = 5 681) | Females (n = 6 653) |
|---|---|---|
| Age | 75.1 ± 4.6 | 75.2 ± 4.7 |
| Race/country | ||
| White Australian | 5 062 (89%) | 5 612 (84%) |
| White American | 216 (4%) | 462 (7%) |
| Non-White (Australia/U.S. combined) | 403 (7%) | 578 (9%) |
| Education | ||
| <12 years | 2 469 (43%) | 2 916 (44%) |
| ≥12 years | 3 212 (57%) | 3 737 (56%) |
| LDL cholesterol (mmol/L) | 3.2 ± 0.8 | 3.4 ± 0.8 |
| HDL cholesterol (mmol/L) | 1.4 ± 0.4 | 1.8 ± 0.5 |
| Triglycerides (mmol/L) | 1.3 ± 0.6 | 1.3 ± 0.6 |
| Smoking status | ||
| Nonsmoker | 2 552 (45%) | 4 346 (65%) |
| Ex-smoker | 2 869 (51%) | 2 092 (31%) |
| Current smoker | 260 (5%) | 215 (3%) |
| Drinking status | ||
| Never | 571 (10%) | 1 495 (22%) |
| Ex-drinker | 399 (7%) | 306 (5%) |
| Current drinker | 4 711 (83%) | 4 852 (73%) |
| Blood pressure | ||
| <140/90 and not on med | 1 596 (28%) | 2 045 (31%) |
| SBP/DBP < 140/90 mmHg, on med | 980 (17%) | 1 572 (24%) |
| SBP/DBP ≥ 140/90 mmHg, no med | 1 726 (30%) | 1 433 (22%) |
| SBP/DBP ≥ 140/90 mmHg, on med | 1 379 (24%) | 1 603 (24%) |
| Diabetes | ||
| No diabetes | 5 280 (93%) | 6 304 (95%) |
| Yes, on med | 176 (3%) | 145 (2%) |
| Yes, not on med | 225 (4%) | 204 (3%) |
| Chronic kidney disease | ||
| No | 4 049 (71%) | 4 691 (71%) |
| Yes | 1 262 (22%) | 1 531 (23%) |
| Uncertain | 370 (7%) | 431 (6%) |
| BMI categories | ||
| Under/normal weight (<25 kg/m2) | 1 408 (25%) | 2 212 (33%) |
| Overweight (25–29.9 kg/m2) | 2 951 (52%) | 2 517 (38%) |
| Obese (≥30 kg/m2) | 1 322 (23%) | 1 924 (29%) |
| Frailty | ||
| No | 3 501 (62%) | 3 860 (58%) |
| Prefrail | 2 092 (37%) | 2 633 (40%) |
| Frail | 88 (2%) | 160 (2%) |
| Randomized to aspirin | 2 822 (50%) | 3 302 (50%) |
Notes: Data are n (%) or mean ± SD. Non-White was comprised of Black, Hispanic/Latino, other race/ethnicities including Australian aborigine/Torres Strait islander, native American, more than 1 race, native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and those who were not Hispanic and who did not state their ethnicity/race. Hypertension was defined as “on treatment” for high BP or BP > 140/90 mmHg at study entry; diabetes mellitus was defined from self-report or fasting glucose ≥126 mg/dL or on treatment for diabetes. Chronic kidney disease was defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m2 or urinary albumin to creatinine ratio ≥30 mg/mmol; “Prefrail” included anyone with 1 or 2 criteria and “Frail” included anyone with 3 or more criteria of the adapted Fried frailty criteria. These included body weight (BMI < 20 kg/m2), strength (hand grip in lowest 20% of participants by sex and Fried-defined sex-specific BMI categories), exhaustion (taken from the self-reported CES-D-10 responses) walking speed (3 m gait speed in lowest 20% of participants by sex and Fried-defined sex-specific height categories) and physical activity (taken from the Self-Reported Life Questionnaire) (11). BMI = body mass index; BP = blood pressure; CES-D = Center for Epidemiologic Studies Short Depression Scale; DBP = diastolic blood pressure; HDL = high-density-lipoprotein; LDL = low-density-lipoprotein; SBP = systolic blood pressure.