Figure 1. LBC1936 cohort: Diagram of measurement models for the VRF and LAD constructs.

Standardized loadings and residual correlations are shown. Numbers adjacent to paths may be squared to obtain the shared variance between adjacent variables. Double-headed arrows are correlations; single-headed arrows are hypothesized causal pathways. The convention used represents manifest (measured) variables as rectangles and constructed variables (VRFs or LAD) as circles. Model fit parameters are shown adjacent to the constructed variable: a nonsignificant χ² is a sign of a well-fitting model; the Max MI (which indicates the degree of greatest local strain within the model in terms of a potential reduction in model χ²); the CFI (≥0.90 indicates acceptable fit); and the RMSEA (<0.06 indicates acceptable fit). CFI = comparative fit index; HbA1c = hemoglobin A1c; LAD = large-artery atheromatous disease; LBC1936 = Lothian Birth Cohort 1936; Max MI = maximum modification index; RMSEA = root mean square error of approximation; VRF = vascular risk factor.