Objectives: To assess the relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and arterial stiffness in nondiabetic, nonhypertensive individuals with and without metabolic syndrome (MetS). Methods: Hepatic ultrasound and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) were investigated in 4,467 individuals. The subjects were classified into normal PWV and increased PWV (≥1,366 cm/s) groups, and divided into 2 groups (non-NAFLD vs. NAFLD groups) and 3 groups (non-, mild and moderate-to-severe NAFLD groups), respectively. Results: The overall prevalence of NAFLD was 37.3% and the NAFLD group had higher levels of baPWV (control vs. NAFLD, 1,363 ± 210.3 vs. 1,388 ± 235.9 cm/s, p < 0.001). On multivariate regression analysis, NAFLD was independently associated with increased baPWV (≥1,366 cm/s), irrespective of multiple covariates (OR 1.237 and 95% CI 1.050–1.458). Subgroup analyses revealed that there was a significant association between NAFLD and baPWV only in individuals without MetS (OR 1.267 and 95% CI 1.065–1.507). The multivariate linear regression models for the overall study population and for individuals without MetS also revealed a significant association between NAFLD and the absolute value of baPWV; however, the result for individuals with MetS did not. Conclusions: Our results indicate that the presence and the degree of NAFLD are associated with arterial stiffness in nonhypertensive, nondiabetic individuals, especially in those individuals without MetS.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated the incidence of the metabolic syndrome and assessed the effect of smoking status and weight change on incident metabolic syndrome. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This study included 4,542 men without metabolic syndrome at baseline who were followed for an average of 3 years. Subjects were divided into four categories according to smoking status at baseline and at the 3-year follow-up. RESULTS: The overall incidence of metabolic syndrome was 10.6%: 8.0% in nonsmokers, 7.1% in new smokers, 17.1% in ex-smokers, and 13.9% in sustained smokers (P < 0.001). In a multivariate regression model, ex-smokers had significantly increased odds for incident metabolic syndrome with a mean 1.45 (95% CI 1.06–1.98) compared with sustained smokers. This was no longer significant after including weight change. CONCLUSIONS: Smoking cessation within 3 years may be a higher risk factor for incident metabolic syndrome than sustained smoking, indicating that weight control in ex-smokers is critical to attenuate the additional risk for incident metabolic syndrome.

Few studies have investigated the association between coronary artery calcium (CAC) progression and arterial stiffness measured by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV). We examined the influence of the severity of baseline baPWV on CAC progression in a large prospective cohort. A total of 1600 subjects who voluntarily participated in a comprehensive health-screening program between March 2010 and December 2013 and had baseline baPWV as well as CAC on baseline and serial follow-up computed tomography performed approximately 2.7 ± 0.5 years apart were enrolled in the study. A total of 1124 subjects were included in the analysis (1067 men; mean age, 43.6 ± 5.1 years). An increased CAC score was found in 318 subjects (28.3 %) during the follow-up period. Baseline higher baPWV was significantly correlated with CAC progression, especially in subjects with third- and fourth-quartile values (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 2.04; 95 % confidence interval [CI] 1.33–3.15 and OR 2.14; 95 % CI 1.34–3.41, respectively) compared with the lowest-quartile values (P for trend 0 was associated with male sex, diabetes, and higher baPWV. However, among the 289 individuals with a baseline CAC score >0, only the presence of CAC itself was predictive of CAC progression. Higher arterial stiffness measured by baPWV could be significantly associated with CAC progression.