Association between hyperuricemia and hypertension in hospital employees: a prospective cohort study / 中华健康管理学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the correlation between hyperuricemia and hypertension in hospital employees.Methods:A cohort was constructed from staff participating health checkups at the Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, baseline health examinations and questionnaires were conducted from February 1, 2011, to January 29, 2012; 502 participants were excluded according to the nadir criteria, and 3 525 participants were followed-up from February 1, 2012, to December 31, 2018, according to the results of annual employee checkups. The participants were divided into the normal uric acid (3 232 cases) and hyperuricemia groups (293 cases) according to the baseline examination results. The presence of hyperuricemia was used as an observation index and occurrence of hypertension within 7 years was used as an outcome indicator. Age, sex, body mass index, creatinine, LDL cholesterol, triacylglycerol, HDL cholesterol, fasting glucose, marriage, education, job position, smoking, alcohol consumption, and exercise status were used as confounding factors to construct five Cox regression models and calculate their HR values, adjusted HR values, and 95% CI to analyze the relationship between hyperuricemia and the occurrence of hypertension in the overall population and female and male populations. Results:The follow-up of the study participants was conducted for a period of (6.19±1.25) years, with a total of 21 831 person-years of follow-up. The 7-year cumulative prevalence of hypertension was 16.5% in the total population, 12.5% in the female population, 30.1% in the male population, 14.1% in the normal uric acid group, and 42.0% in the hyperuricemia group. The prevalence density of hypertension was 26.6, 19.6, 53.8, and 22.4 per 1 000 person-years in the total, female, male, and normouricemic groups, respectively. Without adjusting for any confounding variables, the risk of hypertension was higher in the total population, female population, and male population in the hyperuricemia group than in the normal uric acid group [ HR=3.86, 5.69, 1.60, (95% CI 3.17-4.72, 4.36-7.43, 1.18-2.16)] (all P<0.05); after gradually adjusting for confounders, this correlation was only manifested in the female population [adjusted HR=1.91 (95% CI 1.08-3.36)] (all P<0.05), and the difference was not statistically significant in the male population ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Among female hospital employees, hyperuricemia is an independent risk factor for the development of hypertension.