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Association Between Alcohol Consumption and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and All-Cause Mortality in Patients With Hypertension: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies

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  • YITU healthcare

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Objective: To conduct a meta-analysis summarizing the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and all-cause mortality (ACM) in relation to alcohol consumption in patients with hypertension, focusing on clarifying dose-response associations. Patients and methods: PubMed and EMBASE were searched for eligible prospective cohort studies from December 3, 1949, through January 18, 2014. The semi-parameter method and dose-response analysis were used. Results: Nine studies (11 cohorts) were included in the meta-analysis. Compared with the lowest alcohol level (abstainers/occasional drinkers), the pooled relative risk (RR) was 0.72 (95% CI, 0.68-0.77) for the third highest category (median, 10 g/d), 0.81 (95% CI, 0.71-0.93) for the second highest category (median, 20 g/d), and 0.60 (95% CI, 0.54-0.67) for the highest category (median, 30 g/d). A J-shaped relationship between alcohol use and ACM was observed, and the nadir (RR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.76-0.88) was found to be at a dose of 8 to 10 g of alcohol consumption per day. Conclusion: Findings of this meta-analysis suggest that low-to-moderate alcohol consumption was inversely significantly associated with the risk of CVD and ACM in patients with hypertension.
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... There are four additional meta-analyses with relevance to alcohol and CVD published after the NNR2012 (25)(26)(27)(28). They differ slightly concerning study designs and population characteristics. ...
... The review by Huang et al. included nine studies (11 cohorts) that focused on specific effects of alcohol consumption among hypertensive subjects (28). They assessed the effect of alcohol on CVD comprising both fatal and non-fatal MI, heart failure and stroke and ACM or total mortality in hypertensive subjects. ...
... The four additional meta-analyses added further support for a protective effect of alcohol on the risk of MI (25)(26)(27)(28). The findings are pointing at a potential causal protective association between light to moderate alcohol intake and coronary artery disease, but the pattern is influenced by socio-economic status, suggesting unmeasured confounding influence. ...
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The objective of this scoping review is to evaluate the updated evidence on the consumption of alcohol and health outcomes regarded as relevant for the Nordic and Baltic countries, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and all-cause mortality. It is based on the previous Nordic Nutrition Recommendations of 2012 and relevant papers published until 31 May 2021. Current evidence from mainly observational epidemiological studies suggests that regular, moderate alcohol consumption may confer protective effects against myocardial infarction (MI) and type 2 diabetes. Mendelian randomization analyses do not fully support these findings, possibly because these analyses may fail to identify low alcohol intake. For several cancers, it is not possible to set any safe limit. All-cause mortality is not increased with light to moderate alcohol intake in middle-aged and older adults who do not engage in binge drinking. Total abstinence is associated with the lowest risk of mortality in young adults. Observational studies on alcohol consumption are hampered by a number of inherent methodological issues such as ascertainment of alcohol intake, selection of appropriate exposure groups, and insufficient control of confounding variables, colliders, and mediators. It should also be emphasized that there is a socio-economic contribution to the alcohol-health axis with a stronger detrimental effect of alcohol in the lower social classes. The above issues contribute to the complexity of unravelling the causal web between alcohol, mediators, confounders, and health outcome.
... In addition, at which levels of alcohol consumption this threshold occurs and how strong the effects of alcohol consumption on MVD are may differ by background levels of oxidative stress (which are presumably higher in e.g. individuals with, versus without, a history of cardiovascular disease) [10][11][12] and by sex [13,14]. ...
... We tested for interaction by history of cardiovascular disease and sex. We a priori hypothesized that the shape of the association may differ between individuals with and without a history of cardiovascular disease [10][11][12] and between men and women [13,14]. We used a likelihood ratio test to test for interaction. ...
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Background Microvascular dysfunction (MVD) is an important contributor to major clinical disease such as stroke, dementia, depression, retinopathy, and chronic kidney disease. Alcohol consumption may be a determinant of MVD. Objective Main objectives were (1) to study whether alcohol consumption was associated with MVD as assessed in the brain, retina, skin, kidney and in the blood; and (2) to investigate whether associations differed by history of cardiovascular disease or sex. Design We used cross-sectional data from The Maastricht Study (N = 3,120 participants, 50.9% men, mean age 60 years, and 27.5% with type 2 diabetes [the latter oversampled by design]). We used regression analyses to study the association between total alcohol (per unit and in the categories, i.e. none, light, moderate, high) and MVD, where all measures of MVD were combined into a total MVD composite score (expressed in SD). We adjusted all associations for potential confounders; and tested for interaction by sex, and history of cardiovascular disease. Additionally we tested for interaction with glucose metabolism status. Results The association between total alcohol consumption and MVD was non-linear, i.e. J-shaped. Moderate versus light total alcohol consumption was significantly associated with less MVD, after full adjustment (beta [95% confidence interval], -0.10 [-0.19; -0.01]). The shape of the curve differed with sex (Pinteraction = 0.03), history of cardiovascular disease (Pinteraction < 0.001), and glucose metabolism status (Pinteraction = 0.02). Conclusions The present cross-sectional, population-based study found evidence that alcohol consumption may have an effect on MVD. Hence, although increasing alcohol consumption cannot be recommended as a policy, this study suggests that prevention of MVD may be possible through dietary interventions.
... Alcohol consumption is prevalent in vast populations [1,2]. Although many health effects of alcohol consumption or alcohol addiction, such as alcoholic liver, have been assessed [3][4][5][6][7], the impact on the absorption of a metal(loid) across the intestinal barrier, its entry into the bloodstream and organ sites (i.e., oral bioavailability), and its toxicity has rarely been investigated. ...
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Alcohol consumption alters gut microflora and damages intestinal tight junction barriers, which may affect arsenic (As) oral bioavailability. In this study, mice were exposed to arsenate in the diet (6 μg/g) over a 3-week period and gavaged daily with Chinese liquor (0.05 or 0.10 mL per mouse per day). Following ingestion, 78.0% and 72.9% of the total As intake was absorbed and excreted via urine when co-exposed with liquor at daily doses of 0.05 or 0.10 mL, significantly greater than when As was supplied alone (44.7%). Alcohol co-exposure significantly altered gut microbiota but did not significantly alter As biotransformation in the intestinal tract or tissue. Significantly lower relative mRNA expression was observed for genes encoding for tight junctions in the ileum of liquor co-exposed mice, contributing to greater As bioavailability attributable to enhanced As absorption via the intestinal paracellular pathway. However, As concentration in the liver, kidney, and intestinal tissue of liquor-treated mice was decreased by 24.4%–42.6%, 27.5%–38.1%, and 28.1%–48.9% compared to control mice. This was likely due to greater renal glomerular filtration rate induced by alcohol, as suggested by significantly lower expression of genes encoding for renal tight junctions. In addition, in mice gavaged daily with 0.05 mL liquor, the serum antidiuretic hormone level was significantly lower than control mice (2.83 ± 0.59 vs. 5.40 ± 1.10 pg/mL), suggesting the diuretic function of alcohol consumption, which may facilitate As elimination via urine. These results highlight that alcohol consumption has a significant impact on the bioavailability and accumulation of As.
... 6,7 On the other hand, a meta-analysis has observed that low to moderate alcohol consumption is inversely and signicantly associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality in patients with SAH. 8 erefore, early detection and appropriate treatment are warranted, and control of SAH produce important individual and collective health and economic benets. Conventional treatment of its complications includes pharmacological therapy and costly interventions to contain the damage such as coronary revascularization surgery, carotid endarterectomy, or dialysis that consume government budgets. ...
... Generally, reduction of alcohol consumption for the prevention of hypertension is controversial [49][50][51]. Alcohol consumption in patients with hypertension is reportedly inversely associated with cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality [52]; our findings were inconsistent with this, possibly due to the assessment of alcohol consumption, the outcomes of interest, and the large proportion of Caucasian patients in our study. Overall, our results highlighted the importance of smoking cessation, a comparatively feasible and economical measure for promoting population health and reducing the disease burden. ...
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Background Cardiometabolic multimorbidity (CMM) is becoming increasingly common in patients with hypertension, and it is well established that healthy lifestyle plays a key role in the prevention of hypertension. However, the association between combined lifestyle factors and CMM in patients with hypertension is uncertain. Methods This prospective analysis included the data (obtained from the UK biobank) of participants with hypertension who did not have coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, or diabetes. The outcome was the occurrence of CMM, defined as ≥ 1 disease of CHD, stroke, and diabetes that occurred in participants with hypertension. Four lifestyle factors (smoking, alcohol consumption, diet, and physical activity) were assessed using a weighted healthy lifestyle score, and participants were divided into four groups: the very unhealthy, unhealthy, healthy, and very healthy groups. The flexible parameter Royston-Parmar proportional hazard model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) between lifestyles and CMM, as well as the difference in CMM-free life expectancy. Results During a median follow-up of 12.2 years, 9812 (18.4%) of the 53,397 hypertensive patients occurred CMM. Compared with the very unhealthy group, the very healthy group had a 41% reduction in the risk for CMM in hypertensive patients and a 32–50% reduction in the risk for specific cardiometabolic diseases such as CHD, stroke, and diabetes. For each lifestyle factor, non-smoking had the greatest protective effect against CMM (HR: 0.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.60–0.68). A lifestyle combining multiple healthy factors extended CMM-free life expectancy (e.g., six years longer at age 45 years for participants in the very healthy group). Conclusions Combined healthy lifestyle factors were associated with a lower risk for CMM in hypertensive patients. This suggests that combined healthy lifestyle should be supported to decrease disease burden.
... In the present chapter, there was no increase in risk of mortality and subsequent events among patients with higher alcohol intake. This accords with the 2010 meta-analysis and another meta-analysis of hypertensive individuals [120,179], but contradicts some research reports from general populations [27,34]. The discordance between findings from the present chapter and those of general population studies may be partly explained by CVD patients' advancing age. ...
Thesis
Moderate alcohol consumption has been reported to be cardio-protective among apparently healthy individuals, but it remains unclear if this association is also present in those with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Inconsistency exists across guidelines regarding the recommended drinking limits for CVD patients. This thesis consists of three studies aiming to better understand alcohol consumption in this patient population and its association with long-term prognosis. By pooling the results from de novo analyses of three cohorts and 12 published studies identified through a systematic review, meta-analyses of 48423 CVD patients (Study 1) found lower risk of mortality and subsequent cardiovascular events for an alcohol consumption up to 105 grams per week compared to current non-drinking. These effects, however, were significantly attenuated or absent after distinguishing former drinkers from non-drinkers. Meanwhile, little is known about the longitudinal dynamics of alcohol consumption in CVD patients and the associated health risks. With repeated-measures data from two cohorts (n=12502), Study 2 plotted CVD patients’ mean trajectory of weekly alcohol consumption as a function of time, centred on the date of diagnosis and spanning up to 30 years before and after the diagnosis. For male patients, mean consumption increased over time, peaked at eight years before diagnosis at 95 grams per week, and declined afterwards. A flatter trajectory was seen in female patients, which remained stable at around 30 grams per week and started to decline after diagnosis. In Study 3, alcohol consumption trajectory was further differentiated into six distinct groups in an inception cohort of 1306 patients with incident CVD and related to their subsequent mortality risk from all causes. Patients who consistently drank moderately (within 112 grams per week) had a similar risk of mortality as those who were continuous non-drinkers. While increases in risk were found among patients who stopped drinking compared to continuous moderate drinkers, former drinkers also had the worst self-rated health. Temporal variability in alcohol consumption highlights the importance of taking a longitudinal approach to examine alcohol health relations. Findings indicating protective effects of baseline moderate drinking in CVD patients may be largely explained by a referent group contaminated by less healthy former drinkers and are not seen when considering long-term drinking trajectories. This thesis provides novel knowledge about alcohol’s relation to cardiovascular health, which could be used to inform CVD patient care and low-risk drinking guidelines.
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Document Reviewers Luis Alcocer (Mexico), Christina Antza (Greece), Mustafa Arici (Turkey), Eduardo Barbosa (Brazil), Adel Berbari (Lebanon), Luís Bronze (Portugal), John Chalmers (Australia), Tine De Backer (Belgium), Alejandro de la Sierra (Spain), Kyriakos Dimitriadis (Greece), Dorota Drozdz (Poland), Béatrice Duly-Bouhanick (France), Brent M. Egan (USA), Serap Erdine (Turkey), Claudio Ferri (Italy), Slavomira Filipova (Slovak Republic), Anthony Heagerty (UK), Michael Hecht Olsen (Denmark), Dagmara Hering (Poland), Sang Hyun Ihm (South Korea), Uday Jadhav (India), Manolis Kallistratos (Greece), Kazuomi Kario (Japan), Vasilios Kotsis (Greece), Adi Leiba (Israel), Patricio López-Jaramillo (Colombia), Hans-Peter Marti (Norway), Terry McCormack (UK), Paolo Mulatero (Italy), Dike B. Ojji (Nigeria), Sungha Park (South Korea), Priit Pauklin (Estonia), Sabine Perl (Austria), Arman Postadzhian (Bulgaria), Aleksander Prejbisz (Poland), Venkata Ram (India), Ramiro Sanchez (Argentina), Markus Schlaich (Australia), Alta Schutte (Australia), Cristina Sierra (Spain), Sekib Sokolovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Jonas Spaak (Sweden), Dimitrios Terentes-Printzios (Greece), Bruno Trimarco (Italy), Thomas Unger (The Netherlands), Bert-Jan van den Born (The Netherlands), Anna Vachulova (Slovak Republic), Agostino Virdis (Italy), Jiguang Wang (China), Ulrich Wenzel (Germany), Paul Whelton (USA), Jiri Widimsky (Czech Republic), Jacek Wolf (Poland), Grégoire Wuerzner (Switzerland), Eugene Yang (USA), Yuqing Zhang (China).
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