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Clarifying the Link Between the Blood Lactate Concentration and Cardiovascular Risk
Christoph Ahlgrim1,2,3, Manfred W Baumstark2,3, Kai Roecker4,2,3
1University Heart Center Freiburg, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Bad Krozingen, Germany.
Insights
Resting blood lactate (Lacrest) is not a reliable predictor of cardiovascular risk in healthy individuals. While associated with lipids and exercise type, its high variability limits its use as an individual risk factor.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Sports Medicine
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Resting blood lactate (Lacrest) is associated with cardiovascular outcomes.
- The link between Lacrest and cardiometabolic disease in healthy young individuals is not well understood.
- Pathophysiological mechanisms require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To clarify the association between Lacrest and cardiovascular risk in healthy patient-athletes.
- To identify factors influencing Lacrest variance, including metabolism and physical activity.
- To evaluate Lacrest as a potential individual cardiovascular risk marker.
Main Methods:
- Assessed Lacrest distribution and intra-individual variability using 9051 samples.
- Approximated 10-year cardiovascular risk with the Framingham risk score in 1315 patient-athletes.
- Employed cross-validated linear regression to analyze explanatory variables for Lacrest and cardiovascular risk.
Main Results:
- Lacrest showed a weak association with the Framingham risk score, which disappeared after adjusting for blood lipids.
- Endurance athletes exhibited higher Lacrest levels, indicating a link to exercise type.
- Lacrest did not independently predict cardiovascular risk but correlated with lipid parameters.
Conclusions:
- Resting blood lactate is not an independent predictor of estimated cardiovascular risk in healthy patient-athletes.
- High intra-individual variability in Lacrest suggests it is not feasible as a standalone individual risk factor.
- Lacrest is associated with lipid profiles and exercise modality, warranting further research into its metabolic role.
Abstract:
The blood lactate value at rest (Lacrest) is linked to cardiovascular outcomes. It is unclear whether this association holds true in younger, healthy subjects, especially as the pathophysiological connection between Lacrest and cardiometabolic disease is not well understood. The aim of this study is clarifying the link between Lacrest and cardiovascular risk, and to study explanatory factors for the variance of Lacrest concerning metabolism and physical activity in a population of healthy patient-athletes. The distribution and intra-individual variability of Lacrest was assessed based on 9051 samples. The 10-year cardiovascular risk was then approximated using the Framingham risk score in a group of 1315 samples from patient-athletes. Cross-validated linear regression was used to analyze explanatory variables for Lacrest and 10-year cardiovascular risk. Lacrest is weakly associated with the Framingham score. This association disappears when adjusting for blood lipids. Lacrest is also linked to the predominant type of exercise with endurance athletes featuring a higher Lacrest. Lacrest does not independently predict the estimated cardiovascular risk but is associated with lipid parameters. Moreover, the intra-individual variability of Lacrest is high in a relevant number of subjects, which does not point towards the feasibility to use Lacrest as an individual risk factor.
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