A possible cross-sectional association of serum total bilirubin with coronary heart disease and stroke in a Japanese health screening population

Abstract

Bilirubin is a potent antioxidant, and serum total bilirubin (TB) is reported to be negatively associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD). There has been no report on the association between TB and CVD prevalence in Japanese. The aim of the study is to examine the association between TB and CVD prevalence in a Japanese health screening population. Prevalence of CVD was studied in 3,375 Japanese men and 2,069 Japanese women. Odds ratios (ORs) of each higher quintile of TB using the lowest quintile as the reference in men and of each higher tertile of TB using the lowest tertile as the reference in women were calculated for coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke adjusting for age, liver function tests, smoking, physical activity, and alcohol consumption. The ORs [95% confidence intervals (CIs)] for CHD and stroke of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th quintiles of TB were 0.63 (0.37-1.07) and 0.49 (0.24-1.00), 0.45 (0.22-0.90) and 0.65 (0.28-1.51), 0.69 (0.39-1.20) and 0.37 (0.15-0.87), and 0.61 (0.34-1.09) and 0.40 (0.18-0.92), respectively in men. The ORs (95% CIs) for CHD and stroke of the 2nd and 3rd tertiles of TB were 1.32 (0.49-3.54) and 0.35 (0.13-0.93), and 1.26 (0.44-3.62) and 0.34 (0.13-0.93), [corrected] respectively in women. Low TB was associated with the higher prevalence of CHD and stroke in men and with the higher prevalence of stroke in women among a Japanese health screening population.

Decreased Serum Bilirubin Is Associated With Silent Cerebral Infarction

“…25,26 Also, diminished TB is linked with diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, peripheral artery disease, and stroke, which all are relevant to chronic inflammation. 6,7,27,28 Our results revealed that dyslipidemia is associated with SCI. The results are in line with those of other groups.…”

Risk of Ischemic Stroke and Decreased Serum Bilirubin Levels

“…19,20 Collectively, the evidence from this 18 and other studies [11][12][13][14][15][16][17] supports the possibility that the early measurement of TB levels might be useful to assess the risk of silent cerebral infarction(s) and major stroke and that mildly elevated TB levels might protect from stroke events and from neurological damage in stroke.…”

Prediction of Cardiovascular Mortality in Functionally Disabled Elderly – A Possible New Score / Kardiovaskularni Mortalitet Kod Funkcionalno Zavisnih Starih Osoba - Mogući Prediktivni Skor

“…Low total serum bilirubin is associated with coronary artery calcification (CAC), and with the presence of angiographically documented coronary heart disease (CHD) after adjustment for the established risk factors (26). Men without atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) were shown to have higher total bilirubin levels than men with CVD (25).…”

“…Men without atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) were shown to have higher total bilirubin levels than men with CVD (25). Thus, bilirubin may be a novel negative risk factor of CVD (26).…”