A Prospective Study of Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Mortality, and Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

It has been postulated that dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfate ester, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), the major secretory products of the human adrenal gland, may be discriminators of life expectancy and aging. We examined the relation of base-line circulating DHEAS levels to subsequent 12-year mortality from any cause, from cardiovascular disease, and from ischemic heart disease in a population-based cohort of 242 men aged 50 to 79 years at the start of the study. Mean DHEAS levels decreased with age and were also significantly lower in men with a history of heart disease than in those without such a history. In men with no history of heart disease at base line, the age-adjusted relative risk associated with a DHEAS level below 140 μg per deciliter was 1.5 (P not significant) for death from any causes, 3.3 (P<0.05) for death from cardiovascular disease, and 3.2 (P<0.05) for death from ischemic heart disease. In multivariate analyses, an increase in DHEAS level of 100 μg per deciliter was associated with a 36 percent reduction in mortality from any causes (P<0.05) and a 48 percent reduction in mortality from cardiovascular disease (P<0.05), after adjustment for age, systolic blood pressure, serum cholesterol level, obesity, fasting plasma glucose level, cigarette smoking status, and personal history of heart disease.