Submission Date

4-27-2015

Document Type

Paper- Restricted to Campus Access

Department

Health & Exercise Physiology

Adviser

Dr. Deborah Feairheller

Committee Member

Dr. Tina Wailgum

Committee Member

Dr. Laura Borsdorf

Committee Member

Dr. Akshaye Dhawan

Department Chair

Dr. Del Engstrom

Project Description

Previous studies have investigated carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and blood pressure and found a direct correlation between the two. Also, studies have examined IMT and blood glucose and cholesterol levels. It is known that adult females have better cardiovascular health than males until a certain stage of life. To the best of our knowledge, no prior study has investigated the carotid artery IMT, blood pressure, and blood glucose/cholesterol levels in relation to gender differences in young healthy adults. On three separate days, 44 adults (26.30 ±11.9yrs; 24M, 20F) underwent carotid IMT ultrasound, flow-mediated dilation (FMD), fasted glucose and cholesterol test, 24hr ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, VO2max test, and body composition measurement (bioelectrical impedance). We found that females have lower systolic blood pressure, lower diastolic blood pressure, lower LDL/HDL ratios, lower body mass index, a higher HDL count, and lower plasma glucose levels than males (p < 0.05 for all), all of which suggest better cardiovascular health. However, we found no gender differences in vascular health measures, IMT and FMD (p >0.05) Our results suggest that while young adult females have better cardiovascular health than males, endothelial function may not yet be affected in the young adult years.

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