Table 3.
Baseline characteristics of the 4336 subjects of the Prevention of Renal and Vascular End-Stage Disease (PREVEND) study of the overall population and according to tertiles of betaine.
| Overall | Tertiles of betaine | p-Value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | T2 | T3 | |||
| Participants, n | 4336 | 1445 | 1446 | 1445 | |
| Betaine, µM | 36.9 (31.0–44.0) | 28.7 (25.3–31.0) | 36.9 (35.1–38.8) | 47.3 (44.0–52.6) | |
| Participants, n | 4236 | 1398 | 1418 | 1420 | |
| TMAO, µM | 4.6 ± 5.9 | 4.6 ± 5.1 | 4.7 ± 6.3 | 4.6 ± 6.4 | |
| General characteristics | |||||
| Age, years | 52.6 ± 11.5 | 51.3 ± 10.9 | 52.8 ± 11.4 | 53.7 ± 12.1 | <0.001 |
| Male sex, n (%) | 2159 (49.8) | 456 (31.6) | 750 (51.9) | 953 (66.0) | <0.001 |
| Ethnicity, Caucasian, n (%) | 4164 (96.0) | 1403 (97.1) | 1400 (96.8) | 1361 (94.2) | 0.001 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 26.4 ± 4.2 | 26.7 ± 4.3 | 26.6 ± 4.2 | 26.0 ± 4.1 | <0.001 |
| Smoking status, n (%) | 0.008 | ||||
| Never | 1286 (29.7) | 420 (29.1) | 424 (29.3) | 442 (30.6) | |
| Former | 1828 (42.2) | 574 (39.7) | 639 (44.2) | 615 (42.6) | |
| Current | 1165 (26.9) | 438 (30.3) | 358 (24.8) | 369 (25.5) | |
| Alcohol consumption, never, n (%) | 1004 (23.2) | 329 (22.8) | 351 (24.3) | 324 (22.4) | 0.26 |
| eGFR, mL/min/1.73m2 | 93.5 ± 16.3 | 94.5 ± 15.9 | 93.1 ± 16.7 | 93.0 ± 16.3 | 0.02 |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 1280 (29.5) | 406 (28.1) | 443 (30.6) | 431 (29.8) | 0.33 |
| Hypercholesterolemia, n (%) | 1235 (28.5) | 468 (32.4) | 390 (27.0) | 377 (26.1) | <0.001 |
| Parental history of CKD, n (%) | 20 (0.5) | 8 (0.6) | 7 (0.5) | 5 (0.3) | 0.70 |
| Circulation | |||||
| SBP, mmHg | 124.8 ± 18.1 | 123.9 ± 17.8 | 125.4 ± 18.2 | 125.1 ± 18.3 | 0.06 |
| DBP, mmHg | 73.0 ± 9.0 | 72.5 ± 9.1 | 73.4 ± 8.8 | 72.3 ± 9.0 | 0.02 |
| Laboratory parameters | |||||
| Total cholesterol, mmol/L | 5.4 ± 1.0 | 5.6 ± 1.1 | 5.4 ± 1.0 | 5.2 ± 1.0 | <0.001 |
| HDL cholesterol, mmol/L | 1.3 ± 0.3 | 1.2 ± 0.3 | 1.3 ± 0.3 | 1.2 ± 0.3 | <0.001 |
| Triglycerides, mmol/L | 1.1 (0.8–1.6) | 1.2 (0.8–1.7) | 1.1 (0.8–1.6) | 1.0 (0.8–1.5) | 0.005 |
| Fasting glucose, mmol/L | 4.7 (4.4–5.2) | 4.7 (4.4–5.2) | 4.7 (4.4–5.2) | 4.7 (4.4–5.2) | 0.34 |
| C-reactive protein, mg/L | 1.2 (0.6–2.8) | 1.4 (0.6–3.0) | 1.2 (0.5–2.6) | 1.1 (0.5–2.8) | 0.005 |
| Medication | |||||
| Antihypertensive drugs, n (%) | 716 (16.5) | 221 (15.3) | 239 (16.5) | 256 (17.7) | 0.12 |
| Lipid lowering drug use, n (%) | 304 (7.0) | 62 (4.3) | 94 (6.5) | 148 (10.2) | <0.001 |
Data are represented as mean ± SD, median (interquartile range) or n (%). Differences were tested by ANOVA or Kruskal Wallis for continuous variables and with χ2- test for categorical variables. The eGFR is based on the creatinine–cystatin C equation. Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; CKD, chronic kidney disease; SBP, systolic blood pressure; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; HDL, high-density lipoproteins.