Table 1.
Major Characteristics of the Cohort of Young Adults in the Bogalusa Heart Study in Louisiana at Baseline (1995–1996) and Follow-up (2001–2006) Examinationsa
| Parameter | Whites (n = 450) | African Americans (n = 185) | All (n = 635) | P Value (Race)b |
| Baseline examination | ||||
| Age, years | 31.4 (5.0) | 31.4 (5.3) | 31.4 (5.1) | 0.7904 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 27.1 (6.4) | 30.5 (8.4) | 28.1 (5.1) | <0.0001 |
| Smokers, % | 32.4 | 36.8 | 33.7 | 0.2962 |
| LTLB, bp | 7,288 (735) | 7,847 (734) | 7,451 (777) | <0.0001 |
| Follow-up examination | ||||
| Age, years | 37.4 (4.4) | 37.0 (4.7) | 37.3 (4.5) | 0.5823 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 28.3 (6.6) | 32.0 (8.9) | 29.4 (7.5) | <0.0001 |
| Smokers, % | 30.7 | 30.8 | 30.7 | 0.9715 |
| LTLFU, bp | 7,076 (721) | 7,603 (767) | 7,230 (772) | <0.0001 |
| Change in LTLc | ||||
| Follow-up, years | 6.0 (2.4) | 5.7 (2.5) | 5.9 (2.4) | 0.1180 |
| LTL, bp/year | −37.8 (41.3) | −47.7 (55.3) | −40.7 (46.0) | 0.0181 |
Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index; bp, base pairs; LTL, leukocyte telomere length (expressed in bp); LTLB, baseline LTL; LTLFU, follow-up LTL.
a
Unless otherwise specified, data are presented as mean (standard deviation).
b
P values for race difference in LTL and change in LTL were adjusted for age, sex, and BMI.
c
Rate of change in LTL (bp/year) = (LTLFU – LTLB)/follow-up years.