Anthropometric and physiologic correlates of mitral valve prolapse in a biethnic cohort of young adults: The CARDIA study

Objective To describe the epidemiology of echocardiographic mitral valve pr olapse (MVP) and its anthropometric, physiologic, and psychobehavioral corr elates with a cross-sectional analysis at 4 urban clinical centers. Patients A biethnic, community-based sample of 4136 young (aged 23 to 35 ye ars) adult participants in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Ad ults (CARDIA) study who had echocardiograms during their third examination between 1990 and 1991. Measurements Echocardiographic mitral valve prolapse, Doppler mitral regurg itation, blood pressure, anthropometry, and 4 psychobehavioral scales. Results Definite echocardiographic MVP prevalence was 0.6% overall and was similar across the 4 ethnicity/sex groups. Most participants (21 of 26, 80% ) with definite echocardiographic MVP were unaware of their condition. Rela tive to persons with normal echocardiograms, those with echocardiographic M VP were taller (174.6 cm vs 171.0 cm, P < .01), leaner (26.7 mm vs 37.4 mm sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds, P < .01), had lower body mass ind ex (22.0 kg/m(2) vs 26.2 kg/m(2), P < .01), and more often has Doppler mitr al regurgitation (34.8% vs 11.8%, P < .01). Women with echocardiographic MV P had higher ethnicity-adjusted hostility scores (19.9 vs 16.1, P < .05) th an women with no MVP. Among 111 (2.7%) of 4136 participants reporting prior physician diagnosis of MVP, only 5 (0.45%) of 111 had definite echocardiog raphic MVP. Conclusions These data document a low prevalence of definite echocardiograp hic MVP and suggest a constellation of anthropometric, physiologic, and psy chobehavioral characteristics in young adults with echocardiographic MVP. M ost definite echocardiographic MVP diagnoses were discordant with self-repo rted MVP status, and false-positive diagnoses of echocardiographic MVP were made more often in women and whites.