Abstract
Background: Elevated ferritin levels have been reported as a risk factor for coronary heart disease in Finnish and Italian studies. Studies in other populations have found no association between ferritin and cardiovascular disease raising the possibility of confounding with other cardiovascular risk factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum ferritin levels in relation to other cardiovascular risk factors in a large cohort of young men and women.
Methods: Non-fasting serum ferritin, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, apolipoprotein B, Lp(a) lipoprotein [Lp(a)], C-reactive protein (CRP), anthropometric measurements and blood pressure were determined in 815 men and women aged 26 years.
Results: Ferritin levels were 62.3 ± 46.8 µmol/l in women and 149.5 ± 73.2 µmol/l in men. In women, serum ferritin correlated with CRP, waist measurement, body mass index (BMI), and triglycerides. In multiple regression analysis, CRP alone was independently associated with serum ferritin. Serum ferritin in men correlated with waist measurement, BMI, triglycerides and HDL cholesterol. After adjustment for the other variables, waist measurement was the only independent predictor of ferritin.
Conclusions: Ferritin levels in young men and women are associated with obesity and serum triglycerides, HDL cholesterol in men and inflammation in women. Confounding may contribute to reports of associations between ferritin and cardiovascular disease.