The Associations of Perceived and Oxidative Stress with Hypertension in a Cohort of Police Officers

PURPOSE: Associations between perceived stress and oxidative stress marker and metabolic syndrome (MetS) components were investigated in a cohort of police officers. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from a cohort of non-diabetic subjects (n=233; 19F), median [interquartile range] age 50 [37–44] years, were analysed. MetS was construed in line with International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria and perceived stress with Cohen’s 10-item Perceived Stress Scale. Plasma oxidative stress marker (free 8-iso-prostaglandin F(2α); 8-iso-PGF(2α)), presence of coronary plaque, carotid artery intima-media thickness (cIMT), and physical activity level were also determined. RESULTS: Obesity was established in 100 (42.92%), hypertension in 111 (47.64), whereas MetS was identified in 104 (44.63%) of the study subjects. A significant difference (p=0.003) in plasma 8-iso-PGF(2α) level, depending on the MetS components status, was noted. The associations of perceived stress with plasma 8-iso-PGF(2α) level and the select study variables were gender-specific. In multivariate analysis (adjusted for age and current smoking), positive associations of plasma 8-iso-PGF(2α) levels with PSS score (B=0.108, 95% CI [0.008, 0.209], p=0.03) and systolic blood pressure (B=0.029, 95% CI [0.003, 0.057], p=0.02) in men only were established. Both the perceived stress (OR 1.101, 95% CI [1.001–1.202], p=0.03) and plasma 8-iso-PGF(2α) levels (OR 1.223, 95% CI [1.046–1.432], p=0.01) impacted the prevalence of hypertension. Out of the MetS components, the effect of waist circumference (OR=1.138, 95% CI [1.064–1.218], p=0.0001) and glucose (B=2.696, 95% CI [1.081–6.725], p=0.03) were also encountered. No such associations were noted in women, though, neither in univariate nor in multivariate analyses. The prevalence of coronary plaque (0.001), obesity (p<0.001), hypertension (p<0.001) and median cIMT value (p=0.005), as well as leisure-time (p=0.04) and total walking physical activity (p=0.03), differed significantly between the subgroups stratified by MetS components status. CONCLUSION: Both the perceived and oxidative stress were found instrumental in promoting hypertension in a cohort of police officers under study, whereas all study outcomes were conclusively gender-related.