Abstract
Objective:
Aortic stiffness and wave reflections are important markers and prognosticators of cardiovascular risk. Caffeine increases acutely aortic stiffness and wave reflections. Furthermore, chronic coffee consumption is associated with increased aortic stiffness and wave reflections in normotensive subjects. In the present study, we aimed to assess the association between chronic coffee consumption, and aortic stiffness and wave reflections in hypertensive patients.
Design:
Epidemiological survey.
Setting:
Hypertension Unit, University Hospital.
Subjects–methods:
We examined 259 never-treated hypertensives (age 50±12 years, 165 males) without diabetes mellitus, who were asked to describe in detail the type and amount of coffee they consumed. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index (AIx) were measured non-invasively as indices of aortic stiffness and wave reflections, respectively.
Results:
When controlled for gender, age, height, smoking status, heart rate, mean pressure, HDL cholesterol and hsCRP, AIx was found to be higher with increasing daily coffee consumption. Post hoc analysis revealed that all groups of coffee consumption had higher AIx compared to no-consumption. PWV did not differ among groups of daily coffee consumption. Each participant had 35% higher relative risk of having high AIx for each cup (150 ml) of coffee per day, and 40% higher relative risk for each 10 cup-years.
Conclusions:
Coffee consumption is associated with increased wave reflections, but not aortic stiffness in never-treated hypertensive patients. This finding may have important clinical implications for cardiovascular health in hypertensive subjects.
Sponsorship:
None.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1038%2Fsj.ejcn.1602577/MediaObjects/41430_2007_Article_BF1602577_Fig1_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1038%2Fsj.ejcn.1602577/MediaObjects/41430_2007_Article_BF1602577_Fig2_HTML.gif)
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Asmar R, Benetos A, Topouchian J, Laurent P, Pannier B, Brisac A-M et al. (1995). Assessment of arterial distensibility by automatic pulse wave velocity measurement: validation and clinical application studies. Hypertension 26, 485–490.
Brodmann M, Lischnig U, Lueger A, Pilger E, Stark G (2003). The effect of caffeine on peripheral vascular resistance in isolated perfused guinea pig hind limbs. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 42, 506–510.
Corti R, Binggeli C, Sudano I, Spieker L, Hanseler E, Ruschitzka F et al. (2002). Coffee acutely increases sympathetic nerve activity and blood pressure independently of caffeine content: role of habitual versus nonhabitual drinking. Circulation 106, 2935–2940.
Gallagher D, Adji A, O’Rourke MF (2004). Validation of the transfer function technique for generating central from peripheral upper limb pressure waveform. Am J Hypertens 17, 1059–1067.
Happonen P, Voutilainen S, Salonen JT (2004). Coffee drinking is dose-dependently related to the risk of acute coronary events in middle-aged men. J Nutr 134, 2381–2386.
Hartley TR, Sung BH, Pincomb GA, Whitsett TL, Wilson MF, Lovallo WR (2000). Hypertension risk status and effect of caffeine on blood pressure. Hypertension 36, 137–141.
Jee SH, He J, Whelton PK, Suh I, Klag MJ (1999). The effect of chronic coffee drinking on blood pressure. A meta-analysis of controlled clinical trials. Hypertension 33, 647–652.
Kampus P, Kals J, Ristimae T, Fischer K, Zilmer M, Teesalu R (2004). High sensitivity C-reactive protein affects central haemodynamics and augmentation index in apparently healthy persons. J Hypertens 22, 1133–1139.
Karatzis E, Papaioannou TG, Aznaouridis K, Karatzi K, Stamatelopoulos K, Zampelas A et al. (2005). Acute effects of caffeine on blood pressure and wave reflections in healthy subjects: should we consider monitoring central blood pressure? Int J Cardiol 98, 425–430.
Katsouyanni K, Rimm EB, Gnardellis C, Trichopoulos D, Polychronopoulos E, Trichopoulou A (1997). Reproducibility and relative validity of an extensive semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire using dietary records and biochemical markers among Greek schoolteachers. Int J Epidemiol 26, S118–S127.
Klag MJ, Wang NY, Meoni LA, Brancati FL, Cooper LA, Liang KY et al. (2002). Coffee intake and risk of hypertension. The Johns Hopkins Precursors Study. Arch Intern Med 162, 657–662.
Kleemola P, Jousilahti P, Pietinen P, Vartiainen E, Tuomilehto J (2000). Coffee consumption and the risk of coronary heart disease and death. Arch Intern Med 160, 3393–3400.
Kullo I, Seward J, Bailey K, Bielak L, Grossardt B, Sheedy II P et al. (2005). C-reactive protein is related to arterial wave reflection and stiffness in asymptomatic subjects from the community. Am J Hypertens 18, 1123–1129.
LaCroix AZ, Mead LA, Liang KY, Thomas CB, Pearson TA (1986). Coffee consumption and the incidence of coronary heart disease. N Engl J Med 315, 977–982.
Lane JD, Pieper CF, Phillips-Bute BG, Bryant JE, Kuhn CM (2002). Caffeine affects cardiovascular and neuroendocrine activation at work and home. Psychosom Med 64, 595–603.
Laurent S, Boutouyrie P, Asmar R, Gautier I, Laloux B, Guize L et al. (2001). Aortic stiffness is an independent predictor of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in hypertensive patients. Hypertension 37, 1236–1241.
Lelo A, Miners JO, Robson R, Birkett DJ (1986). Assessment of caffeine exposure: caffeine content of beverages, caffeine intake, and plasma concentrations of methylxanthines. Clin Pharmacol Ther 39, 54–59.
London GM, Blacher J, Pannier B, Guerin A, Marchais S, Safar M (2001). Arterial wave reflections and survival in end-stage renal failure. Hypertension 38, 434–438.
Lopez-Garcia E, van Dam RM, Willett WC, Rimm EB, Manson JE, Stampfer MJ et al. (2006). Coffee consumption and coronary heart disease in men and women: a prospective cohort study. Circulation 113, 2045–2053.
Lovallo WR, Wilson MF, Vincent AS, Sung BH, McKey BS, Whitsett TL (2004). Blood pressure response to caffeine shows incomplete tolerance after short-term regular consumption. Hypertension 43, 760–765.
Mahmud A, Feely J (2001). Acute effect of caffeine on arterial stiffness and aortic pressure waveform. Hypertension 38, 227–231.
Mahmud A, Feely J (2005). Arterial stiffness is related to systemic inflammation in essential hypertension. Hypertension 46, 1118–1122.
McCusker RR, Goldberger BA, Cone EJ (2003). Caffeine content of specialty coffees. J Anal Toxicol 27, 520–522.
Nichols WW, O’Rourke MF (eds) (1998). McDonald's Blood Flow in Arteries, 4th edn Edward Arnold: London, pp 170–222. 284–315, 347–395, 450–476.
Noordzij M, Uiterwaal C, Arends L, Kok F, Grobbee D, Geleijnse J (2005). Blood pressure response to chronic intake of coffee and caffeine: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Hypertens 23, 921–928.
O’Rourke M, Staessen J, Vlachopoulos C, Duprez D, Plante G (2002). Clinical applications of arterial stiffness; Definitions and reference values. Am J Hypertens 15, 426–444.
Panagiotakos DB, Pitsavos C, Chrysohoou C, Kokkinos P, Toutouzas P, Stefanadis C (2003). The J-shaped effect of coffee consumption on the risk of developing acute coronary syndromes: the CARDIO2000 case-control study. J Nutr 133, 3228–3232.
Pauca A, O’Rourke M, Kon N (2001). Prospective evaluation of a method for estimating ascending aortic pressure from the radial artery pressure waveform. Hypertension 38, 932–937.
Pincomb GA, Lovallo WR, McKey BS, Sung BH, Passey RB, Everson SA et al. (1996). Acute blood pressure elevations with caffeine in men with borderline systemic hypertension. Am J Cardiol 77, 270–274.
Rakic V, Burke V, Beilin LJ (1999). Effects of coffee on ambulatory blood pressure in older men and women: a randomized controlled trial. Hypertension 33, 869–873.
Robertson D, Frolich JC, Carr RK, Watson JT, Hollifield JW, Shand DG et al. (1978). Effects of caffeine on plasma renin activity, catecholamines and blood pressure. N Engl J Med 298, 181–186.
Robertson D, Wade D, Workman R, Woosley RL, Oates JA (1981). Tolerance to the humoral and hemodynamic effects of caffeine in man. J Clin Invest 67, 1111–1117.
Saboury AA, Divsalar A, Ataie G, Amanlou M, Moosavi-Movahedi AA, Hakimelahi GH (2003). Inhibition study of adenosine deaminase by caffeine using spectroscopy and isothermal titration calorimetry. Acta Biochim Pol 50, 849–855.
Savoca MR, MacKey L, Evans CD, Wilson M, Ludwig DA, Harshfield GA (2005). Association of ambulatory blood pressure and dietary caffeine in adolescents. Am J Hypertens 18, 116–120.
Smits P, Boekema P, De Abreu R, Thien T, van’t Laar A (1987). Evidence for the antagonism between caffeine and adenosine in the human cardiovascular system. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 10, 136–143.
Stefanadis C, Dernellis J, Tsiamis E, Stratos C, Diamantopoulos L, Michaelides A et al. (2000). Aortic stiffness is a risk factor for recurrent acute coronary events in patients with ischaemic heart disease. Eur Heart J 21, 390–396.
Stefanadis C, Dernellis J, Vlachopoulos C, Tsioufis C, Tsiamis E, Toutouzas K et al. (1997). Aortic function in arterial hypertension determined by pressure–diameter relation: effects of diltiazem. Circulation 96, 1853–1858.
Stewart AD, Millasseau SC, Kearney MT, Ritter JM, Chowienczyk PJ (2003). Effects of inhibition of basal nitric oxide synthesis on carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity and augmentation index in humans. Hypertension 42, 915–918.
Sutton-Tyrrell K, Najjar S, Boudreau R, Venkitachalam L, Kupelian V, Simonsick EM et al. (2005). Elevated aortic pulse wave velocity, a marker of arterial stiffness, predicts cardiovascular events in well-functioning older adults. Circulation 111, 3384–3390.
Varani K, Portaluppi F, Merighi S, Ongini E, Belardinelli L, Borea PA (1999). Caffeine alters A2A adenosine receptors and their function in human platelets. Circulation 99, 2499–2502.
Vlachopoulos C, Alexopoulos N, Panagiotakos D, O’Rourke M, Stefanadis C (2004b). Cigar smoking has an acute detrimental effect on arterial stiffness. Am J Hypertens 17, 299–303.
Vlachopoulos C, Dima I, Aznaouridis K, Vassiliadou K, Ioakeimidis N, Aggeli C et al. (2005b). Acute systemic inflammation increases stiffness of large arteries. Circulation 112, 2193–2200.
Vlachopoulos C, Hirata K, O’Rourke M (2001). Pressure-altering agents affect central aortic pressures more than is apparent from upper limb measurements in hypertensive patients: the role of arterial wave reflections. Hypertension 38, 1456–1460.
Vlachopoulos C, Hirata K, O’Rourke M (2003b). Effect of caffeine on aortic elastic properties and wave reflection. J Hypertens 21, 563–570.
Vlachopoulos C, Hirata K, Stefanadis C, Toutouzas P, O’Rourke MF (2003a). Caffeine increases aortic stiffness in hypertensive patients. Am J Hypertens 16, 63–66.
Vlachopoulos C, Kosmopoulou F, Panagiotakos D, Ioakeimidis N, Alexopoulos N, Pitsavos C et al. (2004a). Smoking and caffeine have a synergistic detrimental effect on aortic stiffness and wave reflections. J Am Coll Cardiol 44, 1911–1917.
Vlachopoulos C, O’Rourke M (2000). Genesis of the normal and abnormal arterial pulse. Curr Probl Cardiol 25, 303–367.
Vlachopoulos C, Panagiotakos D, Ioakeimidis N, Dima I, Stefanadis C (2005a). Chronic coffee consumption has a detrimental effect on aortic stiffness and wave reflections. Am J Clin Nutr 81, 1307–1312.
Weber T, Auer J, O’Rourke MF, Kvas E, Lassnig E, Berent R et al. (2004). Arterial stiffness, wave reflections, and the risk of coronary artery disease. Circulation 109, 184–189.
Wilkinson IB, MacCallum H, Hupperetz PC, van Thoor CJ, Cockcroft JR, Webb DJ (2001). Changes in the derived central pressure waveform and pulse pressure in response to angiotensin II and noradrenaline in man. J Physiol 530, 541–550.
Zampelas A, Panagiotakos DB, Pitsavos C, Chrysohoou C, Stefanadis C (2004). Associations between coffee consumption and inflammatory markers in healthy persons: the ATTICA study. Am J Clin Nutr 80, 862–867.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Guarantors: CV Vlachopoulos and NA Alexopoulos.
Contributors: CVV conceived the idea, designed the study, interpreted the results and drafted the manuscript. GVV interpreted the results and drafted the manuscript. NAA interpreted the results and drafted the manuscript. AIZ and PGP collected data and drafted the manuscript. KAA interpreted the results and drafted the manuscript. CIS interpreted the results and drafted the manuscript.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Vlachopoulos, C., Vyssoulis, G., Alexopoulos, N. et al. Effect of chronic coffee consumption on aortic stiffness and wave reflections in hypertensive patients. Eur J Clin Nutr 61, 796–802 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602577
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602577
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Consumption of coffee, not green tea, is inversely associated with arterial stiffness in Japanese men
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2013)