White matter hyperintensities severity and progression are not related to earlobe crease presence. A cross-sectional and longitudinal prospective study in community-dwelling older adults

Abstract

Background: Earlobe crease (ELC) has been associated with coronary atherosclerosis. Recently, ELC has been associated with white matter hyperintensities (WMH) of presumed vascular origin. However, the results are heterogeneous among stu- dies. We aimed to assess whether ELC is associated with WMH severity and progression in community-dwelling older adults. Methods: Atahualpa Project Cohort participants received earlobe photographs and brain MRIs to assess the association bet- ween ELC and WMH severity, as well as the relationship between ELC and WMH progression using ordinal logistic and Pois- son regression models, respectively. Results: The cross-sectional component of the study included 359 individuals aged ≥60 years. ELC was present in 175 subjects. On MRI, 107 participants did not have WMH, 174 had mild, 56 had moderate, and 22 had severe WMH. A multivariate ordinal logistic regression model did not show a significant association between the main va- riables investigated (OR: 0.72; 95% C.I.: 0.48 – 1.06). The longitudinal component included 252 individuals, 126 of whom had ELC and 103 had WMH progression. A Poisson regression model showed no association between ELC and WMH progression (IRR: 1.02; 95% C.I.: 0.69 – 1.51). Conclusions: ELC is not related to WMH severity and progression in the study population.