on May 10, 2007
Published online before print May 10, 2007, doi: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.107.145524
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Submitted on December 15, 2006
Accepted on April 25, 2007
Type A Eagerness-Energy Across Developmental Periods Predicts Adulthood Carotid Intima-Media Thickness. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study
Liisa Keltikangas-Järvinen *;
From the Department of Psychology (L.K.-J., T.H., S.P.), University of Helsinki, Finland; the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (M.K.), University College London, UK; and The Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine (J.J.) and the Departments of Medicine (J.S.A.V.) and Clinical Physiology (O.T.R.), University of Turku, Finland.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: Liisa.Keltikangas-Jarvinen{at}helsinki.fi.
Objective--We examined the Type A behavior across developmental periods as a predictor of adult carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT).
Methods and Results--In this prospective cohort study of 408 men and 606 women, socioeconomic background and biological risk factors of participants were assessed at baseline at age 6 to 18 years of age, Type A behavior (Hunter-Wolf A-B Rating Scale) at the 6-, 9-, and 21-year follow-ups (subjects being 12 to 24, 15 to 27, and 27 to 39 years, respectively), and carotid IMT, adulthood socioeconomic situation, and biological risk factors at the 21-year follow-up when participants were at age 27 to 39 years of age. In men, the eagerness-energy component of Type A behavior, measured at any time point, was associated with thicker carotid IMT (P<0.008, P<0.04, P<0.03, and P<0.02 for the first, second, and third assessment, and for the average score, respectively), and this association was independent of early and adult risk factors. In women, the hard-driving component at baseline (P<0.04) but not later was independently related to thinner carotid IMT. The other components of Type A behavior (impatience-aggression and leadership) were not associated with IMT.
Conclusions--Eagerness-energy component of Type A behavior over different developmental transitions seems to be a robust predictor of IMT in men.
Key words: atherosclerosis • carotid arteries • coronary artery disease • type A • eagerness-energy
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  O. T Raitakari, M. Juonala, T. Ronnemaa, L. Keltikangas-Jarvinen, L. Rasanen, M. Pietikainen, N. Hutri-Kahonen, L. Taittonen, E. Jokinen, J. Marniemi, et al. Cohort Profile: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study Int. J. Epidemiol., February 8, 2008; (2008) dym225v1. [Full Text] [PDF]
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