Carotid Artery IMT, Blood Pressure, and Fasted Glucose and Cholesterol Levels in Males and Females

Previous studies have investigated carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and blood pressure (BP) and found a direct correlation between the two. Also, studies have examined IMT and blood glucose and cholesterol levels. It is known that young adult females have better cardiovascular health than males. To the best of our knowledge, no prior study has investigated the carotid artery IMT, BP, and blood glucose/cholesterol levels in relation to gender differences in young healthy adults. On three separate days, 37 adults (25.35 ±10.9yrs; 22M, 15F) underwent carotid IMT ultrasound, flow-mediated dilation (FMD), fasted glucose and cholesterol test, 24hr ambulatory BP monitoring, VO2max test, and body composition measurement (bioelectrical impedance). We found that females have lower systolic BP, lower LDL/HDL ratios, lower body mass index and a higher HDL count than males (p \u3c 0.01 for all), all of which are markers of increased cardiovascular health. However, we found no gender differences in vascular health measures, IMT and FMD (p \u3e0.05) Our results suggest that while adult females have better cardiovascular health than males, endothelial function may not yet be affected in the young adult years