Association between anemia and cardiovascular disease among adults aged 35-70-years: a population- based cross- sectional study

The importance of anemia in relation to cardiovascular disease (CVD) has received considerable attention in epidemiological and clinical research. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the association between anemia and cardiovascular disease. The present population-based cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the enrollment phase of the Hoveyzeh Cohort Study (HCS). In this study, adults aged 35 to 70 years were included as the target population. multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between anemia and cardiovascular disease. A total of 10,009 participants was included in the present study. The prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) was 14.8% (1483/10009) in the present study. The prevalence of CVD was 17.6% (193/1097) among participants with anemia. The prevalence of anemia among participants with CVD was 13% (193/1483). In the adjusted analysis, anemia was associated with 20% higher odds of CVD (OR: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.04–1.38, p = 0.009). In addition, CVD was associated with age (Increased with age), female participants (OR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.21–1.63, p < 0.001), diabetes (OR: 1.60, 95% CI: 1.40–1.82, p < 0.001), hypertension (OR: 4.24, 95% CI: 3.75–4.80, p < 0.001) and smoking cigarettes (OR: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.45–1.99, p < 0.001). Moreover, higher physical activity was associated with lower odds of CVD. No statistically significant association was observed between BMI, dyslipidemia, and CVD. According to the results of our study, the prevalence of CVD was higher among individuals with anemia than individuals without anemia. After adjustment for selected covariates, anemia was associated with higher odds of CVD. However, due to the cross-sectional design of the study, it is not possible to determine the temporal relationship between anemia and CVD, and causality cannot be inferred. Prospective studies are recommended to further examine the association between anemia and CVD and determine the temporal relationship between them.