Higher Blood Pressure Partially Links Greater Adiposity to Reduced Brain White Matter Integrity.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Adiposity and elevated blood pressure (BP) are associated with brain structure abnormalities, but whether these effects are independent is unknown. We tested whether associations between adiposity and white matter integrity were explained by elevated BP.

Methods

A sample of 209 middle-aged adults underwent diffusion tensor imaging to quantify indirect metrics of white matter structural integrity. These included putative markers of global white matter integrity (fractional anisotropy (FA)), axonal integrity (axial diffusivity), and myelin integrity (radial diffusivity). Participants were either normotensive or prehypertensive.

Results

After adjusting for age and sex, regression analyses showed that waist circumference was associated with FA (β = -0.15, P < 0

SUBMITTER: Allen B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5661494 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature