Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children

Background Adults who were born prematurely (<37 weeks’ gestation) are at increased cardiovascular disease risk, but it is unclear when in the life course this risk emerges. Our aim was to compare trajectories of multiple cardiometabolic risk factors from childhood to early adulthood between thos...

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Main Authors: Gemma L. Clayton, Laura D. Howe, Linda M. O'Keeffe, Adam J. Lewandowski, Deborah A. Lawlor, Abigail Fraser
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-02-01
Series:Journal of the American Heart Association: Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease
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Online Access:https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.123.030823
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author Gemma L. Clayton
Laura D. Howe
Linda M. O'Keeffe
Adam J. Lewandowski
Deborah A. Lawlor
Abigail Fraser
author_facet Gemma L. Clayton
Laura D. Howe
Linda M. O'Keeffe
Adam J. Lewandowski
Deborah A. Lawlor
Abigail Fraser
author_sort Gemma L. Clayton
collection DOAJ
description Background Adults who were born prematurely (<37 weeks’ gestation) are at increased cardiovascular disease risk, but it is unclear when in the life course this risk emerges. Our aim was to compare trajectories of multiple cardiometabolic risk factors from childhood to early adulthood between those who had and had not been born preterm. Methods and Results Multilevel models were used to compare trajectories from early childhood (<9 years) to age 25 years of body mass index, fat and lean mass, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, lipids, glucose, and insulin, between individuals born preterm (N=311–676; range, 25–36 weeks’ gestation) and term (N=4973–10 534) in a UK birth cohort study. We also investigated gestational age as a continuum. In children born preterm (versus term), systolic and diastolic blood pressures were higher at age 7 years (mean predicted differences, 0.7 [95% CI, −0.2 to 1.6] mm Hg and 0.6 [95% CI, −0.04 to 1.3] mm Hg, respectively). By age 18 years, the difference in systolic blood pressure persisted (1.9 [95% CI, 0.8–3.1] mm Hg) and in diastolic blood pressure (0.1 [95% CI, −0.7 to 1.0 mm Hg]) disappeared. By age 25 years, this difference in systolic blood pressure began to attenuate towards the null (0.9 [95% CI, −0.5 to 2.3] mm Hg). Participants born preterm (versus term) had lower body mass index between ages 7 and 18 years, but by age 25 years, there was no difference. Fat and lean mass trajectories were consistent with body mass index. High‐density lipoprotein cholesterol was higher and triglycerides lower at birth, in those born preterm, but this difference also disappeared by age 25 years. There was no evidence of differences in glucose and insulin. Conclusions Few, modest differences in cardiometabolic health were found in those born preterm versus term. All disappeared by age 25 years, except the small difference in systolic blood pressure. Longer follow‐up is needed to establish if and when cardiometabolic health trajectories diverge between these 2 groups.
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spelling doaj-art-579c630288b24975969ca6520aee439b2025-02-04T11:00:01ZengWileyJournal of the American Heart Association: Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease2047-99802025-02-0114310.1161/JAHA.123.030823Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and ChildrenGemma L. Clayton0Laura D. Howe1Linda M. O'Keeffe2Adam J. Lewandowski3Deborah A. Lawlor4Abigail Fraser5Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol Bristol UKMedical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol Bristol UKMedical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol Bristol UKNuffield Department of Population Health University of Oxford Oxford UKMedical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol Bristol UKMedical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol Bristol UKBackground Adults who were born prematurely (<37 weeks’ gestation) are at increased cardiovascular disease risk, but it is unclear when in the life course this risk emerges. Our aim was to compare trajectories of multiple cardiometabolic risk factors from childhood to early adulthood between those who had and had not been born preterm. Methods and Results Multilevel models were used to compare trajectories from early childhood (<9 years) to age 25 years of body mass index, fat and lean mass, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, lipids, glucose, and insulin, between individuals born preterm (N=311–676; range, 25–36 weeks’ gestation) and term (N=4973–10 534) in a UK birth cohort study. We also investigated gestational age as a continuum. In children born preterm (versus term), systolic and diastolic blood pressures were higher at age 7 years (mean predicted differences, 0.7 [95% CI, −0.2 to 1.6] mm Hg and 0.6 [95% CI, −0.04 to 1.3] mm Hg, respectively). By age 18 years, the difference in systolic blood pressure persisted (1.9 [95% CI, 0.8–3.1] mm Hg) and in diastolic blood pressure (0.1 [95% CI, −0.7 to 1.0 mm Hg]) disappeared. By age 25 years, this difference in systolic blood pressure began to attenuate towards the null (0.9 [95% CI, −0.5 to 2.3] mm Hg). Participants born preterm (versus term) had lower body mass index between ages 7 and 18 years, but by age 25 years, there was no difference. Fat and lean mass trajectories were consistent with body mass index. High‐density lipoprotein cholesterol was higher and triglycerides lower at birth, in those born preterm, but this difference also disappeared by age 25 years. There was no evidence of differences in glucose and insulin. Conclusions Few, modest differences in cardiometabolic health were found in those born preterm versus term. All disappeared by age 25 years, except the small difference in systolic blood pressure. Longer follow‐up is needed to establish if and when cardiometabolic health trajectories diverge between these 2 groups.https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.123.030823ALSPACbirth weightcardiometaboliccardiovascularpreterm
spellingShingle Gemma L. Clayton
Laura D. Howe
Linda M. O'Keeffe
Adam J. Lewandowski
Deborah A. Lawlor
Abigail Fraser
Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
Journal of the American Heart Association: Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease
ALSPAC
birth weight
cardiometabolic
cardiovascular
preterm
title Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
title_full Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
title_fullStr Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
title_full_unstemmed Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
title_short Preterm Birth and Cardiometabolic Health Trajectories From Birth to Adulthood: The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
title_sort preterm birth and cardiometabolic health trajectories from birth to adulthood the avon longitudinal study of parents and children
topic ALSPAC
birth weight
cardiometabolic
cardiovascular
preterm
url https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.123.030823
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