Ideal cardiovascular health and the subclinical impairments of cardiovascular diseases: a cross-sectional study in central south China

BACKGROUND: Ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) is related to a low cardiovascular disease risk profile. This study aimed to investigate CVH metrics with both the biomarkers and markers of subclinical impairments of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in subjects from central south China. METHODS: The ideal CVH score (non-smoking status; ideal body mass index; regular physical activity; healthy diet; and an optimal serum cholesterol, blood pressure, and glucose profile; 1 point for each; total score: 0–7) was collected from 3009 participants without a history of CVDs. Subclinical biomarkers were assessed using C-reactive protein, homocysteine, and microalbuminuria. The presence of subclinical disease markers was defined as having at least one of the following: increased carotid intima-media thickness, carotid plaque, left ventricular hypertrophy, left ventricular systolic dysfunction, or a reduced ankle-brachial index. The association of biomarkers and markers with the CVH score was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression and linear regression analyses. RESULTS: Only 0.2% of the study participants met all 7 ideal CVH metrics (CVH score = 7). Compared to the female participants, the male participants had poorer CVH profiles and a higher incidence of subclinical lesions (P < 0.05). In the fully adjusted models, per 1-unit increase in the CVH score was inversely associated with the biomarker levels (β = -0.092 – -0.224, P < 0.05 for all) and the odds of the presence of markers (odds ratio, 0.808; 95% confidence interval, 0.755–0.865). Similar relationships were observed in the gender subgroups and were stronger in the females. CONCLUSION: A clear inverse association was observed between the biomarkers or markers of subclinical impairments and the CVH score in a central south Chinese population, implying the importance of ideal CVH for the primordial prevention of CVDs. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12872-017-0697-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.