The impact of birth weight on cardiovascular disease risk in the Women's Health Initiative

Caitlin J Smith; K.K Ryckman; V.M Barnabei; B.V Howard; C.R Isasi; Gloria E Sarto; S.E Tom; L.V Van Horn; R.B Wallace; J.G Robinson

doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2015.10.015

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The impact of birth weight on cardiovascular disease risk in the Women's Health Initiative

Journal article

Peer reviewed

The impact of birth weight on cardiovascular disease risk in the Women's Health Initiative

Caitlin J Smith, K.K Ryckman, V.M Barnabei, B.V Howard, C.R Isasi, Gloria E Sarto, S.E Tom, L.V Van Horn, R.B Wallace and J.G Robinson

Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases, Vol.26(3), pp.239-245

03/2016

DOI: 10.1016/j.numecd.2015.10.015

PMCID: PMC4788544

PMID: 26708645

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Abstract

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Traditional risk factors predict 75–80% of an individual's risk of incident CVD. However, the role of early life experiences in future disease risk is gaining attention. The Barker hypothesis proposes fetal origins of adult disease, with consistent evidence demonstrating the deleterious consequences of birth weight outside the normal range. In this study, we investigate the role of birth weight in CVD risk prediction. The Women's Health Initiative (WHI) represents a large national cohort of post-menopausal women with 63,815 participants included in this analysis. Univariable proportional hazards regression analyses evaluated the association of 4 self-reported birth weight categories against 3 CVD outcome definitions, which included indicators of coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke, coronary revascularization, carotid artery disease and peripheral arterial disease. The role of birth weight was also evaluated for prediction of CVD events in the presence of traditional risk factors using 3 existing CVD risk prediction equations: one body mass index (BMI)-based and two laboratory-based models. Low birth weight (LBW) (<6 lbs.) was significantly associated with all CVD outcome definitions in univariable analyses (HR = 1.086, p = 0.009). LBW was a significant covariate in the BMI-based model (HR = 1.128, p < 0.0001) but not in the lipid-based models. LBW (<6 lbs.) is independently associated with CVD outcomes in the WHI cohort. This finding supports the role of the prenatal and postnatal environment in contributing to the development of adult chronic disease. •Epidemiologic studies demonstrate an increased risk of CVD for LBW individuals.•We evaluate the predictive value of birth weight in CVD risk prediction among WHI participants.•Self-reported birth weight was analyzed for association with three composite CVD outcomes.•LBW (<6 lbs.) is independently associated with increased risk for CVD in the WHI population.•Low birth weight is a significant predictor of CVD risk in a model using BMI as a proxy for lipids.

Metabolic Syndrome

Risk prediction

Barker hypothesis

Self-reported birth weight

Life course epidemiology

Proportional hazards model

Details

Title: Subtitle: The impact of birth weight on cardiovascular disease risk in the Women's Health Initiative
Creators: Caitlin J Smith - University of Iowa
K.K Ryckman - University of Iowa Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, 145 N. Riverside Drive, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
V.M Barnabei - University at Buffalo, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 219 Bryant Street, Buffalo, NY, 14221, USA
B.V Howard - Medstar Health Research Institute, Hyattsville, MD, USA
C.R Isasi - Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Bronx, NY, USA
Gloria E Sarto - University of Wisconsin–Madison
S.E Tom - University of Maryland, School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD, USA
L.V Van Horn - Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
R.B Wallace - University of Iowa Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, 145 N. Riverside Drive, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
J.G Robinson - University of Iowa Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, 145 N. Riverside Drive, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases, Vol.26(3), pp.239-245
DOI: 10.1016/j.numecd.2015.10.015
PMID: 26708645
PMCID: PMC4788544
NLM abbreviation: Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis
ISSN: 0939-4753
eISSN: 1590-3729
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Grant note: DOI: 10.13039/100000050, name: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; DOI: 10.13039/100005895, name: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center; DOI: 10.13039/100005292, name: Brigham and Women's Hospital; DOI: 10.13039/100006691, name: Harvard Medical School; DOI: 10.13039/100006928, name: Ohio State University; DOI: 10.13039/100007154, name: Wake Forest University; DOI: 10.13039/100000050, name: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; DOI: 10.13039/100000002, name: National Institutes of Health; DOI: 10.13039/100000016, name: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, award: HHSN268201100046C, HHSN268201100001C, HHSN268201100002C, HHSN268201100003C, HHSN268201100004C
Language: English
Date published: 03/2016
Academic Unit: Stead Family Department of Pediatrics; Epidemiology; Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center; Injury Prevention Research Center; Internal Medicine
Record Identifier: 9983995161202771

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