Table 1.

Characteristics of 31 studies and baseline characteristics of individual study participants with linoleic acid (LA; 18:2n6) and arachidonic acid (AA; 20:4n6) biomarker measures and follow-up for cardiovascular disease incidence or mortality.^*

Study^†	Country	Study design^‡	Age, y (mean)	Sex (% male)	BMI, kg/m² (mean)	Biomarker compartment^§	Year of biomarker sampling	Outcome assessed^\|\|
AGES-Reykjavik	Iceland	PC	77	39	27.1	PP	2002–2006	All^#
ARIC	USA	PC	54	52	27.0	PP	1987–1989	All
CCCC	Taiwan	PC	61	55	23.3	TP	1992–2000	All
CHS	USA	PC	73	36	26.7	PP	1992–1993	All
CRS	Costa Rica	RCC	58	73	26.2	AT	1994–2004	Non-fatal MI
DCH	Denmark	PNC	57	61	26.6	AT^**	1993–1997	Total CHD
EPIC-Norfolk	UK	PCC	63	49	26.5	PP	1993–1997	All
EPIC-Potsdam	Germany	PC	50	37	26.0	RBC	1994–1998	Total CVD
FHS	USA	PC	66	43	28.2	RBC	2005–2008	All
HPFS	USA	PCC	65	100	25.8	RBC, TP	1993–1995	Total CVD, CHD, & stroke
HS	Japan	PC	61	42	23.1	TP	2002–2003	All
KIHD	Finland	PC	52	100	26.7	TP	1984–1989	All
MCCS	Australia	PC	56	46	27.2	PP	1990–1994	Fatal CVD, CHD, & ischemic stroke
MESA	USA	PC	62	47	28.3	PP	2000–2002	All
METSIM	Finland	PC	55	100	26.5	CE, PP, RBC	2006–2010	Total CVD
MORGEN (CHD)	Netherlands	PCC	52	79	26.2	CE	1993–1997	Fatal CHD
MORGEN (Stroke)	Netherlands	PCC	50	53	25.9	CE	1993–1997	Ischemic stroke
MPCDRF	Netherlands	PCC	51	70	25.9	CE	1987–1991	Fatal CHD
NHS	USA	PCC	60	0	25.6	RBC, TP	1989–1990	Total CVD, CHD & stroke
NSHDS I	Sweden	PCC	54	79	26.2	PP	1987–1994	Total CHD
NSHDS II	Sweden	PCC	54	76	26.4	PP	1987–1999	Total CHD
NSHDS III	Sweden	PCC	55	61	26.7	PP	1987–1995	Ischemic stroke
PHS	USA	PCC	69	100	25.7	RBC	1995–2001	Total CHD
PIVUS	Sweden	PC	70	47	26.9	CE, PP	2001–2004	All
SCHS	Singapore	PCC	66	65	23.0	TP	1994–2005	Total CHD
SHHEC	UK	PC	49	52	25.6	AT	1985–1986	All
60YO	Sweden	PC	60	48	26.8	CE	1997–1998	All
3C Study	France	PC	75	39	26.0	TP	1999–2000	All
ULSAM-50^††	Sweden	PC	50	100	25.0	CE	1970–1973	All
ULSAM-70^††	Sweden	PC	71	100	26.4	AT	1991–1995	All
WHIMS	USA	PC	70	0	28.2	RBC	1996	All

AA, arachidonic acid; BMI, body mass index; LA, linoleic acid.

^†

AGES-Reykjavik: Age, gene/environment susceptibility – Reykjavik Study; ARIC: Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities; CCCC: Chin-Shan Community Cardiovascular Cohort Study; CHS: Cardiovascular Health Study; CRS: Costa Rica study on adults; DCH: Diet, Cancer, and Health study; EPIC: European Prospective Investigation into Cancer; FHS: Framingham Heart Study; HPFS: Health Professionals Follow-up Study; HS: The Hisayama Study; KIHD: Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study; MCCS: Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study; MESA: Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis; METSIM: Metabolic syndrome in men study; MORGEN: Monitoring Project on Risk Factors for Chronic Diseases; MPCDRF: Monitoring Project on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors; NHS I: Nurses’ Health Study I; NSHDS I-III: Northern Sweden Health and Disease Study; PHS: Physicians’ Health Study; PIVUS: Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors; SCHS, Singapore Chinese Health Study; SHHEC, Scottish Heart Health Extended Cohort; 60YO, 60-year-old Swedish men and women; 3C Study: Three City Study; ULSAM-50 &−70: Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men investigations at ages 50 y and 70 y, respectively.

^‡

PC, prospective cohort; PCC, prospective nested case-control; PNC, prospective nested case-cohort; RCC, retrospective case-control.

^§

AT, adipose tissue; CE, cholesterol ester; PP, plasma phospholipid; RBC, erythrocyte phospholipid; TP, total plasma.

^||

CVD, cardiovascular disease; CHD, coronary heart disease; MI, myocardial infarction.

All specified outcomes (total CVD, CVD mortality, total CHD, and ischemic stroke) were assessed.

^**

In DCH, the association of adipose tissue arachidonic acid, but not linoleic acid, with total CHD was evaluated.

^††

Fatty acids were measured in cholesterol ester and adipose tissue at the first and third ULSAM investigation, respectively.