Abstract P305: Prospective Associations of Serum Ferritin Levels With Cardiovascular Disease Incidence Among African Americans: The Jackson Heart Study

Introduction: The role of inflammation in vascular endothelial remodeling initiating and propagating atherosclerosis has been well documented. There has been conflicting results regarding the role of ferritin, a nonspecific marker for systemic inflammation, in identifying high risk patients for cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence. We thus investigated the association of ferritin with CVD incidence and subclinical measures of atherosclerosis among African Americans (AA), with the hypothesis that there is a direct association between ferritin and incident CVD events, and a putative effect measure modification by cholesterol levels. Methods: We measured serum ferritin levels at baseline visit (2000 - 2004) in 4,679 AA participants enrolled in the Jackson Heart Study. Sex-specific, age-adjusted correlations, multivariable linear and proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of ferritin with carotid intima-media thickness, coronary artery ca...