PREMIO Karger-Hormone Research, otorgado en el XXVI Congreso de la Sociedad Latinoamericana de Endocrinología Pediátricia (SLEP), Buenos Aires, 2016.

Cardiometabolic Health Is Associated with the Chances of High School Completion in a Chilean Birth Cohort. Correa, P⁽¹⁾; Rodriguez, Y⁽¹⁾; Blanco, E⁽²⁾; Gahagan, S⁽²⁾; Burrows, R⁽¹⁾ (1)Instituto de Nutrición y Tecnología de los Alimentos, Universidad de Chile. Santiago, Chile (2)Division of Child Development and Community Health, University of California San Diego. San Diego, United States

ABSTRACT

Background: The Metabolic Syndrome (MetS), a clustering of risk factors for type-2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease, is known to affect cognition and raise the risk for dementia in adults. Positive cognitive changes have been seen with some interventions targeting individual MetS components. Very few studies have explored these relationships in younger age populations and even few have investigated the impact on educational outcomes.

Aim: We explored the association between a number of cardiometabolic markers and the rates of high school (HS) completion in adolescents from a Chilean birth cohort.

Methods: Of 678 16 years-old participants, 633 (93%; 52% males) entered HS and, thus, met criteria for the study. At 16 yearsold, waist circumference (WC), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP&DBP), triglycerides (TG), HDL-cholesterol and glucose.

HOMA-IR was estimated. A continuous score (zMetS) representing a composite metabolic risk factor profile was computed with gender-specific z-scores of WC, SBP, Gli, TG and HDL; lower values denotes a healthier cardiometabolic profile. MetS was diagnosed with the NHBLI/AHA/IDF criteria. HS graduation data were collected from administrative records. Data were analyzed with multiple linear and logistic regressions, controlling for sociodemographic, lifestyle and educational confounders.

Results: In the sample, 90% completed the HS diploma. Seventy-nine percent had at least one CDV risk factor and 8.1% had MetS. The association of zMetS, WC, and TG at 16 y with the odds of completing HS was negative and significant, even after controlling other influences. Notably, for a one-unit increase in the zMetS, we found 43% reduction in the odds of getting the HS diploma (OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.41–0.79). Conversely, HDL levels were positive and significantly related with the odds of HS completion. Finally, the chances of HS completion in participants diagnosed with MetS were 10% (95% CI: 0.02–0.36) that of participants with no cardiometabolic risk factors.

Conclusions: In adolescents, cardiometabolic health appears to be associated with the chances of high school completion. Funding: NHLBI/NIH (grant R01HL088530)