SHORT STATURE AND RISK OF MORTALITY AND CARDIOVASCULAR-DISEASE - NEGATIVE FINDINGS FROM THE NHANES-I EPIDEMIOLOGIC FOLLOW-UP-STUDY

Objectives. This study sought to examine the relation between body hei ght and incidence of myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease, ov erall mortality and mortality from cardiovascular disease. Background. An association between short stature and increased risk of fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular disease has been observed in several studies, attracting considerable attention, Methods. We used data from the Firs t National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) Epidemio logic Follow-Up Study, a prospective study of a large random sample of the U.S. population, to examine the association between height and ri sk of four end points. Results. Baseline data were collected from 1971 to 1975 for 13,031 respondents (5,296 men, 7,735 women), and the aver age follow up period was 13 years, through 1987. Height was inversely associated with risk of all four of the end points studied in both men and women. However, after adjustment for age and years of education i n Cox proportional hazards analyses, the relation no longer existed. U sing the same adjustment procedures, persons in the lowest height quin tile had no increase in risk compared with those in the highest catego ry. The findings were consistent for men and women, blacks and whites and different age groups. Conclusions. Data from this study in a natio nal sample do not support the hypothesis of an inverse height-heart di sease relation.