Table 1.
Demographic, somatometric, and clinical data of study subjects grouped according to age quartiles
| Whole group (n = 1,025) | Age quartiles | P for trend | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First (<69 years) (n = 288) | Second (69–74 years) (n = 270) | Third (74–79 years) (n = 217) | Fourth (>79 years) (n = 250) | |||
| Age (years) | 75 ± 7 | 67 ± 1 | 72 ± 1 | 77 ± 1 | 86 ± 4 | <0.001 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 27.5 ± 3.9 | 28 ± 4 | 28 ± 4 | 27 ± 4 | 26 ± 4 | <0.001 |
| Male sex, n (%) | 452 (44) | 137 (48) | 129 (48) | 96 (44) | 90 (36) | 0.01 |
| Smokers, n (%) | 419 (41) | 132 (46) | 133 (49) | 90 (41) | 64 (26) | <0.001 |
| Diabetics, n (%) | 130 (13) | 34 (12) | 40 (15) | 24 (11) | 32 (13) | 0.97 |
| Systolic BP (mmHg) | 151 ± 20 | 147 ± 19 | 148 ± 19 | 154 ± 18 | 156 ± 20 | <0.001 |
| Diastolic BP (mmHg) | 84 ± 8 | 84 ± 9 | 84 ± 8 | 84 ± 8.0 | 84 ± 8 | 0.34 |
| Heart rate (beats/min) | 70 ± 12 | 69 ± 12 | 70 ± 12 | 69 ± 11 | 71 ± 12 | 0.09 |
| Calcium (mg/dL) | 9.4 ± 0.5 | 9.5 ± 0.4 | 9.5 ± 0.5 | 9.4 ± 0.4 | 9.3 ± 0.5 | <0.001 |
| Glucose (mg/dL) | 89 (81–100) | 89 (82–99) | 90 (83–103) | 81 (88–99) | 87 (80–100) | 0.68 |
| HOMA index (UI/L)/(mmol/L) | 2.27 (1.56–3.31) | 2.33(1.61–3.22) | 2.44 (1.71–3.39) | 2.34(1.64–3.46) | 1.99 (1.34–2.97) | <0.001 |
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 13.7 ± 1.4 | 14.1 ± 1.2 | 14.0 ± 1.3 | 13.7 ± 1.3 | 12.9 ± 1.5 | <0.001 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dL) | 217 ± 40 | 225 ± 40 | 215 ± 35 | 216 ± 41 | 211 ± 43 | <0.001 |
| Triglycerides (mg/dL) | 128 ± 71 | 130 ± 72 | 126 ± 73 | 129 ± 68 | 126 ± 68 | 0.61 |
| Homocysteine (μMol/L) | 16.1 ± 7.1 | 13.9 ± 4.6 | 14.9 ± 6.6 | 16.6 ± 6.0 | 19.6 ± 9.3 | <0.001 |
| ADMA (μMol/L) | 0.50 ± 0.07 | 0.48 ± 0.07 | 0.49 ± 0.07 | 0.50 ± 0.07 | 0.52 ± 0.08 | <0.001 |
| l-arginine (μMol/L) | 40.4 ± 16.1 | 38.4 ± 16.8 | 41.0 ± 15.7 | 40.3 ± 15.7 | 42.1 ± 15.7 | 0.02 |
| CRP (mg/L) | 2.8 (1.3–5.9) | 2.3 (1.2–5.1) | 2.7 (1.1–5.8) | 2.8 (1.5–5.4) | 3.4 (1.5–8.9) | <0.001 |
| Creatinine clearance (mL/min/1.73 m2) | 76 ± 26 | 88 ± 24 | 79 ± 24 | 74 ± 24 | 57 ± 23 | <0.001 |
| Albuminuria, >5 mg/dL (%) | 69 (7) | 13 (5) | 13 (5) | 19 (10) | 24 (12) | 0.001 |
| Cardiovascular comorbidities, n (%) | 444 (43) | 78 (27) | 94 (35) | 112 (52) | 160 (64) | <0.001 |
| On anti-hypertensive therapy, n (%) | 438 (43) | 101 (35) | 104 (38) | 97 (45) | 136 (54) | <0.001 |
Data are expressed as mean ± SD, median, and inter-quartile range or as percent frequency, as appropriate; comparisons among groups were made by P for trend