Body mass index as a determinant of carotid intima-media thickness in Nigerian adults with primary hypertension.

Abstract

Long standing hypertension may result in thickening of arterial walls and is reportedly strongly correlated with body mass index (BMI). B-mode ultrasound is a reproducible method for evaluating adaptive vascular changes. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between body mass index and ultrasound measured carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) among adults with primary hypertension. One hundred and twenty adults of both genders diagnosed with primary hypertension at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan underwent B-mode ultrasound evaluation of the walls of the common and extracranial internal carotid arteries bilaterally. Participants' height and weight were measured and body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Study population had gender distribution of 50 (41.7%) and 70 (58.3%) for males and females, respectively; and a mean age of 50.61 ΁ 10.94 years. Mean height, weight, and BMI were 1.66 m, 69.36 kg, and 24.92 kg/m 2 for male subjects and 1.59 m, 65.6 kg, and 25.6 kg/m 2 for female subjects, respectively. Normal/underweight and overweight/obese male participants had mean CIMT of 0.744 and 0.820 mm (P < 0.05) on the right side of the neck and 0.740 and 0.816 mm (P < 0.05) on the left side, respectively. However, female participants showed no statistically significant variation in CIMT values for both BMI groups. B-mode ultrasound demonstrates statistically significant variation in CIMT values between normal/underweight and overweight/obese male adults diagnosed with primary hypertension.