Arterial stiffness precedes hypertension and metabolic risks in youth: a review

Arterial stiffness is a strong predictor of cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality in middle-aged and old adults. Arterial stiffness has been limited to being an intermediate marker of atherosclerotic cardiovascular events in adolescents and young adult studies. The paucity of normative longitudinal data and repeated gold-standard assessments of arterial stiffness among the young population has occasioned a huge knowledge gap in its clinical utility. This review summarizes recent longitudinal evidence in a large adolescent population, supporting the value of arterial stiffness as a novel risk factor for hypertension, overweight/obesity and insulin resistance. Preventing or decreasing arterial stiffness during adolescence may confer cardiometabolic health benefits in later life, but further pathological and mechanistic research is needed. The review also offers suggestions for incorporating arterial stiffness measures into routine paediatric and young adult clinical practice.

Automated summary

Arterial stiffness is a strong predictor of cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality in middle-aged and old adults. However, it has been limited to being an intermediate marker of atherosclerotic cardiovascular events in adolescents and young adult studies. The lack of normative longitudinal data and repeated gold-standard assessments in the young population has led to a significant knowledge gap in its clinical utility. This review summarizes recent evidence in a large adolescent population, supporting the value of arterial stiffness as a novel risk factor for hypertension, overweight/obesity, and insulin resistance, and provides suggestions for incorporating arterial stiffness measures into routine pediatric and young adult clinical practice.