Table 3.
Associations Between Race, Ethnicity and Brain MRI Measures in MESA from Multivariable Models
| Model 1* | Model 2 † | Model 3 ‡ | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coef. (95% CI) | Coef. (95% CI) | Coef. (95% CI) | ||
| Total brain volume, mL | White | Ref. | Ref. | Ref. |
| Black | 9.5 (3.0 to 15.9) ‖ | 12.4 (5.5 to 19.4) ‖ | 11.9 (4.8 to 19.1) ‖ | |
| Chinese‐American | −1.6 (−9.5 to 6.3) | −0.8 (−8.9 to 7.3) | −2.5 (−11.4 to 6.3) | |
| Hispanic | 5.9 (−1.4 to 13.1) | 7.8 (0.4 to 15.2) ‖ | 4.7 (−3.2 to 12.6) | |
| Total gray matter volume, mL | White | Ref. | Ref. | Ref. |
| Black | −4.0 (−9.3 to 1.3) | −1.8 (−7.5 to 3.8) | −1.8 (−7.6 to 3.9) | |
| Chinese‐American | −3.9 (−9.7 to 1.8) | −3.1 (−9.1 to 2.8) | −3.8 (−10.3 to 2.7) | |
| Hispanic | 0.8 (−4.7 to 6.2) | 1.6 (−3.9 to 7.2) | 0.0 (−5.9 to 6.0) | |
| Total white matter volume, mL | White | Ref. | Ref. | Ref. |
| Black | 13.5 (9.8 to 17.2) ‖ | 14.3 (10.4 to 18.1) ‖ | 13.8 (9.8 to 17.8) ‖ | |
| Chinese‐American | 2.3 (−2.1 to 6.8) | 2.3 (−2.4 to 7.0) | 1.2 (−3.8 to 6.3) | |
| Hispanic | 5.1 (0.9 to 9.3) ‖ | 6.2 (1.9 to 10.5) ‖ | 4.7 (−0.0 to 9.4) ‖ | |
| Total white matter hyperintensity volume, % difference | White | Ref. | Ref. | Ref. |
| Black | 46.2 (18.5 to 80.4) ‖ | 29.4 (4.0 to 61.0) ‖ | 21.3 (−3.2 to 52.0) | |
| Chinese‐American | 2.1 (−20.9 to 31.9) | −0.1 (−22.9 to 29.4) | −4.8 (−27.2 to 24.4) | |
| Hispanic | 0.7 (−18.7 to 24.6) | 0.1 (−19.6 to 24.7) | −10.4 (−29.2 to 13.5) | |
| White matter fractional anisotropy (SD) § | White | Ref. | Ref. | Ref. |
| Black | −0.19 (−0.34 to −0.05) ‖ | −0.06 (−0.21 to 0.09) | −0.03 (−0.19 to 0.13) | |
| Chinese‐American | 0.01 (−0.17 to 0.20) | 0.04 (−0.15 to 0.23) | 0.05 (−0.14 to 0.25) | |
| Hispanic | 0.06 (−0.10 to 0.22) | 0.12 (−0.04 to 0.28) | 0.14 (−0.03 to 0.31) |
MESA indicates Multi‐Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; and WM, white matter.
Model 1 adjusted for age, sex, MESA site, and total intracranial volume (for MRI volumes).
Model 2 adjusted for Model 1 variables and body mass index, smoking status, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, estimated glomerular filtration rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, use of antihypertensive medication, and diabetes status.
Model 3 adjusted for Model 2 variables, family income, highest attained education, and neighborhood‐level socioeconomic status.
Fractional anisotropy presented as Z scores; low WM fractional anisotropy is interpreted as indicating poor WM integrity.
Represent those results that reach statistical significance (P≤0.05).