Childhood Psychosocial Factors and Coronary Artery Calcification in Adulthood

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Abstract
Atherosclerosis is a complex disease. While dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, and smoking are major risk determinants, there are several other causal and modifying factors.1 There has been increasing interest in the importance of psychosocial factors.2 For example, depression is associated with increased risk for incident clinical atherosclerotic disease and increased mortality rate in those with existing cardiovascular disease.3 In addition to longitudinal studies, case-control studies have demonstrated that psychosocial factors are powerful contributors to the population attributable risk for myocardial infarction.4 These factors include depression, general stress, financial stress, life events, and locus of control with a combined population attributable risk of 29%.4 Socioeconomic status, which is strongly correlated with psychological health,5 is also an important cardiovascular risk factor.6

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