Erythrocyte fatty acid composition and twenty four-hour ambulatory blood pressure of hypertensive Korean: case-control study

Abstract

N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are well known to have anti-hypertensive properties, but the association between 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure and tissue content of n-3 PUFA remain controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that erythrocyte levels of n-3 PUFA inversely related with 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure of Korean adults after adjusting for the relevant confounders. Fifty one male and forty nine female were participated, and twenty seven of them were defined as a hypertensive, case. There were significant differences in age, BMI, marital status, and family history of hyperlipidemia, which were considered as confounding factors. Multivariate-adjusted regression analysis showed that erythrocyte fatty acids were not significantly associated with the risk of hypertension after adjusting confounders. However, Pearson’s correlation analysis showed that 24-hour ambulatory systolic blood pressure (SBP) was significantly and negatively correlated with n-3 PUFA (r=-0.228, p=0.027), eicosapentaenoic acid (r=-0.270, p=0.008), and docosapentaenoic acid (r=-0.210, p=0.042), but not with docosahexaenoic acid (r=-0.156, p=0.131). Multivariate-adjusted regression analysis also showed that intakes of protein, vitamin B2, vitamin E, and cholesterol increased the risk of hypertension after adjusting confounders. Additionally, Partial correlation analysis showed that intakes of fat and cholesterol were positively correlated with SBP, but carbohydrate intake was negatively correlated with SBP. In conclusion, erythrocyte levels of n-3 PUFA did not reduce the risk of hypertension but erythrocyte n-3 PUFA, EPA and DPA negatively correlated with 24-hour ambulatory SBP, suggesting that EPA and DPA may reduce SBP in this population.