Adult height associates with angiographic extent of coronary artery disease

Abstract

Background and aimsShorter stature is an established risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD), but less is known about its association with extent of the disease. MethodsWe assessed the relationship between self-reported height and angiographic findings in 7706 men and 3572 women identified from a nationwide coronary angiography registry in Iceland. ResultsAfter adjustment for traditional cardiovascular risk factors, a standard deviation decrease in height associated with a greater likelihood of significant CAD (defined as ≥50% luminal diameter stenosis) both in men (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj]: 1.24, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18, 1.31; p = 3.2 × 10−16) and women (ORadj = 1.10, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.18; p = 0.012). In partial proportional odds logistic regression models, a standard deviation decrease in height was associated with higher odds of having greater extent of CAD in men (ORadj = 1.19, 95% CI: 1.15, 1.25; p = 1.5 × 10−16) and women (ORadj = 1.09, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.16; p = 0.014). When limited to patients with significant CAD, the association was statistically significant in men (ORadj = 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.14; p = 0.0022) but not in women (p = 0.56). ConclusionsOur findings show that shorter stature is associated with greater extent of coronary atherosclerosis in a large unselected population of individuals undergoing coronary angiography. This relationship appears to be sex-dependent, with stronger effects in men than in women.