Association between estimated pulse wave velocity and silent lacunar infarct in a Korean population

AIMS: Previous studies have proposed the estimated pulse wave velocity (ePWV) as a simple and cost-effective measure of arterial stiffness. Since arterial stiffness plays a role in the progression of silent lacunar infarct (SLI), our present work aims to evaluate the association between ePWV and the presence of SLI. METHODS: The present work was based on a cross-section study. Our study included 1,011 neurologically healthy Korean participants. The SLI was evaluated using brain magnetic resonance images (MRI). The ePWV was derived from a published equation using age and mean blood pressure (MBP). Logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate the association between ePWV and SLI. The linear relationship and robustness were evaluated using smooth curve fitting and subgroup analyses, respectively. RESULTS: The prevalence of SLI was 11.87%. After fully adjusting for covariates, per 1 m/s increase of ePWV casted 31% additional risk for SLI (P = 0.009). When dividing the ePWV into quartiles, the top quartile had 4.01 times risk compared with the bottom quartile. The increasing trend across the quartiles was statistically significant (P for trend < 0.001). Consistently, smooth curve fitting revealed that the risk of SLI elevated linearly with the increase of ePWV. Finally, subgroup analysis suggested that the association was robust in several sub-populations divided by age, sex, smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), coronary artery occlusive disease (CAOD), hyperlipidemia, and statin medication (all P for interaction > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The current study revealed an independent and positive association between ePWV and the presence of SLI in a neurologically healthy Korean population.