Ferritin modifies the relationship between inflammation and arterial stiffness in hypertensive patients with different glucose tolerance.

Background: Ferritin, a crucial element for iron homeostasis, is associated with chronic diseases characterized by subclinical inflammation such as essential arterial hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), showing a prognostic value in different clinical settings. We investigated whether ferritin is associated with arterial stiffness (AS), an early indicator of atherosclerosis, and if it could act as effect modifier on the relationship between inflammation and AS in hypertensive patients with different glucose tolerance.

Methods: We enrolled 462 newly diagnosed untreated hypertensive (HT) patients.