The Association between Blood Pressure Trajectories and Risk of Cardiovascular Diseases among Non-Hypertensive Chinese Population: A Population-Based Cohort Study

Although previous studies have discussed the association between trajectories of blood pressure (BP) and risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the association among the non-hypertensive general population of youth and middle age has not been elucidated. We used the growth mixture model to explore the trajectories of BP among the non-hypertensive Chinese population and applied Cox regression to evaluate the association between trajectories of BP and the risk of stroke or myocardial infarction (MI). Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were categorized into three classes, respectively. Statistically significant associations were observed between SBP trajectories and stroke (range of adjusted hazard ratios (aHR): 1.369-3.837) or MI (rang of aHR = 6.047-13.017). Association between DBP trajectories and stroke (aHR: 3.685) or MI (range of aHR = 1.312-2.821) were also observed, although they did not reach statistical significance. Trajectories of SBP were more important risk factors than that of DBP in stroke and MI in our study population. BP management is important among pre-hypertensive adults to prevent stroke and MI when they age. Well-designed research with a larger sample size is required to confirm our findings and develop efficient methods to prevent CVDs.