A new analysis from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study highlighted the lifelong impact of elevated blood pressure (BP) on the development of carotid plaque in mid-adulthood. The study reveals that systolic blood pressure (SBP) levels from childhood through adulthood are collectively associated with plaque presence, with mid-adulthood BP playing a dominant role in determining plaque area. The findings were published in European Heart Journal. 

Involving 1,889 participants tracked for 38 years, the study analyzed BP measurements taken during childhood (ages 6–18), young adulthood (21–39), and mid-adulthood (40–56). By mid-adulthood, 745 participants (39.4%) exhibited carotid plaques. A Bayesian life-course exposure model was used to assess the impact of cumulative BP exposure on plaque formation and size.

Each 1-standard deviation (∼12 mm Hg) increase in cumulative SBP was associated with a 22% increased risk of having carotid plaque [relative risk 1.22]. Contributions to this risk were evenly distributed across life stages: 39.4% from childhood, 37.9% from young adulthood, and 22.7% from mid-adulthood.
Mid-adulthood SBP had the greatest influence, contributing 62.5% to plaque size compared to childhood (12.5%) and young adulthood (25%). Trends were similar for pulse pressure, diastolic BP, and mean arterial pressure.