Circulating levels of p,p'-DDE are related to prevalent hypertension in the elderly.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxin given to experimental animals increase the blood pressure. We therefore investigated if circulating levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were related to hypertension in a population-based sample of men and women.

METHODS:

One thousand and sixteen subjects aged 70 years were investigated in the Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors (PIVUS) study. Twenty-three POPs were analyzed using high-resolution gas chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS). Hypertension was defined as a systolic blood pressure ≥140mmHg or a diastolic blood pressure ≥90mmHg, and/or use of antihypertensive medication.

RESULTS:

Seven hundred and thirty-two subjects (72%) showed hypertension. When the POPs were treated as continuous variables and adjusted for gender only, two PCBs with a low number of chlorine atoms (PCB 105 and 118) were related to prevalent hypertension. Also the OC pesticide p,p'-DDE was related to hypertension. The strongest of these associations was seen for p,p'-DDE (OR 1.35 for a 1 SD change, 95% CI 1.17-1.56, p<0.0001). Following further adjustment also for BMI, smoking status, education level and exercise habits, only p,p'-DDE was still significantly related to hypertension (OR 1.23 for a 1 SD change, 95% CI 1.06-1.43, p=0.006).

CONCLUSION:

In this cross-sectional analysis of an elderly population, high levels of circulating levels of p,p'-DDE were associated with prevalent hypertension, further strengthening the experimental findings that POPs might influence blood pressure.

• Authors: P Monica Lind, Johanna Penell, Samira Salihovic, Bert van Bavel, Lars Lind
• Journal: Environmental research (Environ Res) Vol. 129 Pg. 27-31 (Feb 2014) ISSN: 1096-0953 [Electronic] Netherlands
• PMID: 24528999 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Environmental Pollutants
• Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene

Topics

• Aged
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Data Interpretation, Statistical
• Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene (blood, toxicity)
• Environmental Monitoring
• Environmental Pollutants (blood, toxicity)
• Female
• Humans
• Hypertension (blood, chemically induced, epidemiology)
• Male
• Prevalence
• Prospective Studies
• Surveys and Questionnaires
• Sweden (epidemiology)