Associations between estimated and measured carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity in older Black and White adults: the atherosclerosis risk in communities (ARIC) study

Introduction: Aortic stiffness offers important insight into vascular aging and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The referent measure of aortic stiffness is carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV). cfPWV can be estimated (ePWV) from age and mean arterial pressure. Few studies have directly compared the association of ePWV to measured cfPWV, particularly in non-White adults. Moreover, whether ePWV and cfPWV correlate similarly with CVD risk remains unexplored. Aim: (1) To estimate the strength of the agreement between ePWV and cfPWV in both Black and White older adults; and (2) to compare the associations of ePWV and cfPWV with CVD risk factors and determine whether these associations were consistent across races. Methods and Results: We evaluated 4478 [75.2 (SD 5.0) years] Black and White older adults in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. cfPWV was measured using an automated pulse waveform analyzer. ePWV was derived from an equation based on age and mean arterial pressure. Association and agreement between the two measurements were determined using Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r), standard error of estimate (SEE), and Bland-Altman analysis. Associations between traditional risk factors with ePWV and cfPWV were evaluated using linear mixed regression models. We observed weak correlations between ePWV and cfPWV within White adults (r = 0.36) and Black adults (r = 0.31). The mean bias for Bland-Altman analysis was low at -0.17 m/s (95%CI: -0.25 to -0.09). However, the inspection of the Bland-Altman plots indicated systematic bias (P < 0.001), which was consistent across race strata. The SEE, or typical absolute error, was 2.8 m/s suggesting high variability across measures. In models adjusted for sex, prevalent diabetes, the number of prevalent cardiovascular diseases, and medication count, both cfPWV and ePWV were positively associated with heart rate, triglycerides, and fasting glucose, and negatively associated with body mass index (BMI) and smoking status in White adults (P < 0.05). cfPWV and ePWV were not associated with heart rate, triglycerides, and fasting glucose in Black adults, while both measures were negatively associated with BMI in Black adults. Conclusions: Findings suggest a weak association between ePWV and cfPWV in older White and Black adults from ARIC. There were similar weak associations between CVD risk factors with ePWV and cfPWV in White adults with subtle differences in associations in Black adults. One sentence summary: Estimated pulse wave velocity is weakly associated with measured carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity in older Black and White adults in ARIC.

Associations of Central Auditory Processing With Brain Volumes

We investigated the cross-sectional associations of speech-in-noise performance with magnetic resonance imaging brain volumes among 588 cognitively normal participants (77±4 years, 56% female) from the Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders Study (randomized trial embedded in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study) baseline in 2018-19 (N=427, with hearing loss) and ARIC (N=161, normal hearing) Visit 6/7 in 2016-17/2018-19. Central auditory processing was measured by Quick Speech-in-Noise (QuickSIN) test; range: 0 to 30, lower scores=worse performance. In models adjusted for demographic and disease covariates, every 5-point decrease in QuickSIN score was associated with smaller volumes of the temporal lobe overall (-0.07SD, 95% CI:-0.13,-0.01) as well as subregions including but not limited to those important for auditory processing (amygdala:-0.13SD, 95% CI:-0.21,-0.04; middle temporal gyrus:-0.08SD, 95% CI:-0.15,-0.00; superior temporal gyrus:-0.08SD, 95% CI:-0.15,-0.01). Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying these observed associations.

Lung Function and Dementia Risk in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Poor lung function has been linked with adverse neurocognitive outcomes including dementia, but evidence from well-designed prospective studies is limited. We therefore examined the association between lung function, as measured by forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC), and dementia risk in 12,688 participants of the ARIC study, a prospective study of adults aged 46-70 years (at index visit, mean age =57y, 45% male, 76% White) from four US communities. Lung function was assessed in 1991-1992 (index visit, 76% normal, 16% obstructive, and 8% restrictive lung function), and dementia was ascertained through 2019 via in-person assessments, telephone interviews, and medical record surveillance, with adjudication of dementia with all in-person exams. A total of 2452 developed dementia over 30 years of follow-up. We used Cox proportional hazards model to estimate hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), adjusting for potential confounders (socio-demographics, behavioral factors, cardiovascular risk factors, APOE ε4). Higher FEV1 and FVC were associated with reduced dementia risk [(HR: 0.86, 95%CI: 0.78-0.98, per 1L increase in FEV1) and (HR: 0.86, 95%CI: 0.80-0.93 per 1L increase in FVC)]. Compared to normal lung function, restrictive disease was associated with elevated dementia risk [(HR: 1.19, 95%CI: 1.01-1.41), n=168 dementia cases]; HR for obstructive disease, though modestly elevated (1.09, 95%CI: 0.96-1.24, n=713 dementia cases), was not statistically significant. Our findings of decreased dementia risk with better lung function may have important implications in reducing burden of dementia that is attributable to environmental exposures and associated lung function impairment.

Loneliness and its predictors among older adults prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional and longitudinal survey findings from participants of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study cohort in the USA

ObjectivesWe aimed to ascertain the prevalence of perceived loneliness among older adults following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and to examine factors contributing to the perception of loneliness.DesignCross-sectional and longitudinal data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study cohort.SettingThe ARIC Study cohort, a prospective cohort that recruited (1987–1989) participants from four distinct communities in the USA.Participants2984 ARIC cohort members.Primary and secondary outcomesPerceived loneliness assessed using the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) UCLA three-item Loneliness Scale telephone interviews conducted May–October 2020 and prior to March 2020.ResultsOf the total 5037 participants alive in 2020, 2984 (56.2%) responded to the UCLA three-item questionnaire (mean age 82.6 (SD 4.6) years, 586 (19.6%) black participants, 1081 (36.2%) men), of which 66 (2.2%) reported having had a COVID-19 infection during the observation period. The proportion of participants reporting feeling lonely was 56.3% (n=1680). Among participants with repeat measures of loneliness (n=516), 35.2% (n=182) reported feeling more lonely following pandemic onset. Self-rated health and emotional resilience were strongly associated with self-perceived loneliness. The burden of COVID-19 infections, concern about the pandemic and decreased self-reported physical activity were greater among black as compared with white participants and among those with an educational attainment of less than high school as compared with high school or more.ConclusionFindings from this study document the increase in perceived loneliness among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic in the USA.