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Cardiovascular risk factors and electrographical characteristics and abnormalities in middle‐aged males
Author(s) -
LIND L.,
SUNDSTRÖM J.,
LITHELL H.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of internal medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.625
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1365-2796
pISSN - 0954-6820
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2796.1997.85109000.x
Subject(s) - medicine , metabolic syndrome , cardiology , insulin resistance , blood pressure , qrs complex , risk factor , electrocardiography , heart rate , diastole , insulin , obesity
Objectives. To evaluate if characteristics and abnormalities found at the electrocardiogram (ECG) are related to common cardiovascular risk factors included in the insulin‐resistance metabolic syndrome. Design. Cross‐sectional. Setting. Tertiary university hospital. Subjects. Over 2000 middle‐aged males in whom ECG abnormalities were recorded, together with ECG characteristics measured in a random sample of men with no ECG abnormalities ( n =113). Interventions. None. Results. All three components of the metabolic syndrome; elevated blood pressure, dyslipidaemia and hyperinsulinaemia were found to be related to the heart rate ( P <0.002) and the QRS ‐duration ( P <0.01) and inversely to the Q o T ‐interval ( P <0.05), the early diastolic phase ( P <0.05) and the T‐wave amplitude ( P <0.02). The components of the metabolic syndrome was furthermore found to be associated with the occurrence of T‐wave abnormalities ( n =64, P <0.01) and to a lesser degree also to the occurrence of Q‐waves ( n =21). Conclusions. The components of the insulin‐resistance metabolic syndrome were related both to certain ECG characteristics in subjects with a normal ECG and to some ECG abnormalities. A raised sympathetic activity is likely to be the link between some of the described associations, whilst coronary heart diseases may explain others.