Risk Predictors of Coronary Heart Disease in Men of Older Age Groups Living in the Conditions of Far North

Abstract

Permanent residence in extreme climatic and geographical conditions provides the stress of adaptation reserves of the whole human body and the work of homeostatic systems in the new conditions. The aim of the study was to analyze the frequency of atherosclerosis risk factors and their relationship with coronary heart disease (CHD) in elderly and senile men living in Far North. Methods. An analytical study of the frequency of metabolic risk factors of atherogenesis was conducted among men (n = 505) with verified coronary heart disease (case group, n = 244) and without signs of coronary heart disease (control group, n = 261) 60 years and older, living in Far North, taking into account age and ethnicity. To assess the results of the study, the odds ratio (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals for OR were calculated. Results. High cardiovascular risk was noted in the group of patients with coronary artery disease compared with the group of patients without coronary artery disease (p < 0.001). Patients with coronary artery disease haв higher body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, and blood pressure. In the absence of significant differences in the content of total cholesterol, the lipid profile in men with coronary heart disease haв more atherogenic nature (p < 0.001). When ethnicity was taken into account, a relationship was found between smoking, arterial hypertension, central type obesity and an increased risk of coronary heart disease among non-indigenous men (p < 0.001). A more favorable metabolic profile was noted in male indigenous ethnic groups (the Yakuts). Conclusions. A comparative analysis of the risk factors of coronary heart disease revealed high rates of hypertension and obesity in the group of patients with coronary heart disease living in extreme conditions of the Far North, in comparison with the control group without ethnicity, while hypercholesterolemia was more often observed in the Yakut group, and hypertriglyceridemia and smoking in a non-indigenous ethnic group (p < 0.001).

Geographic and Ethnic Variations in Serum Concentrations of Legacy Persistent Organic Pollutants among Men in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Arctic Russia

“…Our earlier research has demonstrated low levels of POPs in fish muscles and in the serum of women in the NAO, which is in line with the findings from other Arctic settings. Men living in Arctic Russia have significantly lower life expectancy, higher mortality and poorer general health compared to the national average [16]. Moreover, indigenous men in the Arctic have been reported to have poorer health and more health risks than indigenous women [17], warranting more research on both social and environmental determinants of health of men living in the Arctic.…”