Table 1.
Characteristics of MESA participants in 4 ethnic groups at visit 1. Median values (inter-quartile rage, IQR) are specified for continuous variables and (%) for categorical variables. Median values are shown for triglycerides and Lp(a).
| Blacks | Caucasians | Chinese Americans | Hispanics | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 1323 | 1677 | 548 | 1044 |
| Age (years) | 61 (52–70) | 62 (54–71) | 62 (53–71) | 61 (52–69) |
| Gender (male) | 621 (46.1%) | 813 (47.6%) | 217 (38.8%) | 517 (48.6%) |
| Smoker | 726 (53.9%) | 929 (54.4%) | 137 (24.5%) | 504 (47.4%) |
| Diabetes | 196 (14.6 %) | 86 (5.0 %) | 55 (9.8 %) | 171 (16.1%) |
| Hypertensive | 428 (31.8%) | 325 (19.0%) | 126 (22.5%) | 257 (24.2%) |
| On hypertension medicine | 613 (45.5%) | 493 (28.8%) | 138 (24.7%) | 305 (28.7%) |
| Non-Lp(a) LDL-C (mg/dL) | 113 (92–133) | 115 (97–136) | 114 (96–132) | 116 (97–137) |
| HDL-C (mg/dL) | 50 (41–61) | 50 (41–62) | 48 (40–58) * | 45 (38–54) * |
| Triglycerides (mg/dL) | 89 (66–122) * | 110 (75–160) * | 121 (85–169) * | 133 (94–189) * |
| Lp(a) (mg/dL) | 35.1 (20.4–61.6) * | 12.9 (5.8–29.6) | 12.9 (7.7–23.4) | 13.1 (6.3–28.8) |
*
indicates significantly different (P <0.05) from all 3 other ethnic groups.
Definitions: smoker = former or current; diabetic = treated or untreated; hypertensive = systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg; Lp(a) = lipoprotein(a); HDL-C = high density lipoprotein-cholesterol; LDL-C = low density lipoprotein-cholesterol.