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(Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 1999;19:1998-2006.)
© 1999 American Heart Association, Inc.

Atherosclerosis and Lipoproteins

Identifying Cloninger's Temperament Profiles as Related to the Early Development of the Metabolic Cardiovascular Syndrome in Young Men

Liisa Keltikangas-Järvinen; Niklas Ravaja; Jorma Viikari

From the Department of Psychology (L.K.-J., N.R.), University of Helsinki, Helsinki; and the Department of Medicine (J.V.), University of Turku, Turku, Finland.

Correspondence to Niklas Ravaja, Department of Psychology, PO Box 4, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland. E-mail Niklas.Ravaja{at}Helsinki.FI

Abstract—Our aim in this study was to (1) identify naturally occurring temperament profiles in young adulthood by using Cloninger's temperament dimensions and (2) examine the relationship of these profiles with the coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors of the metabolic cardiovascular syndrome (insulin resistance syndrome, IRS) measured during adolescence and young adulthood. A randomly selected sample of 190 healthy, young adult men was divided into 4 temperament groups by cluster analysis. Physiological parameters studied were serum insulin, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, systolic blood pressure, body-mass index, subscapular skinfold thickness, and the IRS factor. The results showed that a temperament profile characterized by a high level of persistence and reward dependence, an average level of novelty seeking, and a low level of harm avoidance was related to a high level of physiological CHD risk factors; in 3 study phases over a 6-year period, the subjects belonging to that cluster in adulthood were shown to have always belonged to the highest risk group in terms of the physiological risk factors in adolescence and young adulthood. The findings suggest that the temperament profile in question may predispose an individual to the development of the IRS and CHD.

Key Words: temperament • cluster analysis • coronary heart disease risk • insulin resistance syndrome

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