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. 2018 Feb 1;187(2):199-205.
doi: 10.1093/aje/kwx232.

Blood Pressure and Arterial Stiffness in Kenyan Adolescents With the Sickle Cell Trait

Anthony O Etyang  1   2 , Christopher K Wandabwa  3 , Sailoki Kapesa  1 , Esther Muthumbi  1 , Emily Odipo  1 , Marylene Wamukoya  3 , Nicholas Ngomi  3 , Tilahun Haregu  3 , Catherine Kyobutungi  3 , Thomas N Williams  1   4 , Johnstone Makale  1 , Alex Macharia  1 , J Kennedy Cruickshank  5 , Liam Smeeth  2 , J Anthony G Scott  1   2
Affiliations

Blood Pressure and Arterial Stiffness in Kenyan Adolescents With the Sickle Cell Trait

Anthony O Etyang et al. Am J Epidemiol. .

Abstract

The potential association between sickle cell trait (SCT) and increased arterial stiffness/blood pressure (BP) has not been evaluated in detail despite its association with stroke, sudden death, and renal disease. We performed 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring and arterial stiffness measurements in adolescents raised in a malaria-free environment in Kenya. Between December 2015 and June 2016, 938 randomly selected adolescents (ages 11-17 years) who had been continuous residents of Nairobi from birth were invited to participate in the study. Standard clinic BP measurement was performed, followed by 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring and arterial stiffness measurement using an Arteriograph24 (TensioMed Ltd., Budapest, Hungary) device. SCT status was determined using DNA genotyping in contemporaneously collected blood samples. Of the 938 adolescents invited to participate, 609 (65%) provided complete data for analysis. SCT was present in 103 (15%). Mean 24-hour systolic and diastolic BPs were 116 (standard deviation (SD), 11.5) mm Hg and 64 (SD, 7) mm Hg, respectively, in children with SCT and 117 (SD, 11.4) mm Hg and 64 (SD, 6.8) mm Hg, respectively, in non-SCT children. Mean pulse wave velocity (PWV) was 7.1 (SD, 0.8) m/second and 7.0 (SD, 0.8) m/second in SCT and non-SCT children, respectively. We observed no differences in PWV or in any clinic or ambulatory BP-derived measures between adolescents with and without SCT. These data suggest that SCT does not independently influence BP or PWV.

Keywords: arterial stiffness; blood pressure; hypertension; sickle cell trait.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Selection of adolescent participants (ages 11–17 years) for a study of the association between sickle cell trait and blood pressure, Nairobi, Kenya, 2015–2016. ABPM, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring measurements among adolescents aged 11–17 years according to sickle cell trait (SCT) carrier status, Nairobi, Kenya, 2015–2016. For each set of 24-hour, daytime (08:00–20:00 hours (8 am–8 pm)), and nighttime (00:00–06:00 hours (12 am–6 am)) measures, the plots on the left are for systolic blood pressure and those on the right are for diastolic blood pressure. Bars, 95% confidence intervals.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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