Are serum adiponectin concentrations in a population sample of 64-year-old Caucasian women with varying glucose tolerance associated with ultrasound-assessed atherosclerosis?

Objective. To examine whether serum adiponectin concentrations were associated with subclinical atherosclerosis assessed as intima media thickness (IMT) in the carotid arteries in Caucasian women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance. Research design and methods. From a population-based cohort of 64-year-old Swedish women, 533 subjects with type 2 diabetes (DM2, n = 177), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT; n = 178) or normal glucose tolerance (NGT, n = 178) were recruited. Anthropometrics, usual cardiovascular risk factors were examined and ultrasound examination of the carotid arteries was performed. Results. Women with low adiponectin concentrations were characterized by thick IMT, higher prevalence of DM2, history of previous myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, anti-hypertensive treatment and high body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, plasma insulin, serum triglycerides, fasting glucose, HbA1c, and low serum HDL cholesterol levels. Carotid IMT correlated with HbA1c (r = 0.24, P < 0.001), waist circumference (r = 0.22, P < 0.001), plasma insulin (r = 0.19, P < 0.001), BMI (r = 0.18, P < 0.001), DM2 (r = 0.16, P < 0.001), systolic blood pressure (r = 0.16, P < 0.001), blood glucose (r = 0.16, P < 0.001), triglycerides (r = 0.15, P < 0.001), and reversely to adiponectin (r = -0.11, P = 0.01), HDL cholesterol (r = -0.13, P = 0.004), and alcohol intake (r = -0.087, P < 0.05). A more detailed analysis of underlying associations was difficult due to a high co-linearity between these variable. Conclusions. Low serum adiponectin concentrations were associated with increased carotid artery IMT, and several risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, mainly those constituting the metabolic syndrome.