Increased pulse wave velocity reflecting arterial stiffness in patients with colorectal adenomas

The obese patients with diabetes or cardiovascular risk factors are associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer as well as adenomas under the shared pathogenesis related to atherosclerosis. Here we determined the association between increased arterial stiffness and colorectal adenomas incorporating parameters including age, gender, waist circumference, body mass index, lipid profiles, fasting glucose, and blood pressure. Subjects who simultaneously underwent colonoscopies and pulse wave velocity (PWV) determinations between July 2005 and September 2006 were analyzed, based on which the subjects were classified into two groups as patients group with colorectal adenomas (n = 49) and control group (n = 200) with normal, non-polypoid benign lesions or hyperplastic polyps. Uni- and multi-variate analyses were performed to calculate the odd ratio for colon adenomas. Based on uni-variate analysis, age, waist circumference, body mass index, heart-femoral PWV (hfPWV), and brachial-ankle PWV were significantly associated with adenomas (p<0.05) and multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the heart-femoral PWV, waist circumference, and the levels of LDL-C were significant risk factor for colorectal adenoma. However, arterial stiffness did not affect the progression of colon adenoma. The finding that hfPWV, reflecting aortic stiffness, was increased in patients with colorectal adenomas lead to conclusion that patients who have prominently increased arterial stiffness can be recommended to undergo colonoscopic examinations and at the same time we also recommend counseling about the risk for atherosclerosis in those who have colorectal adenomas.