Association between Serum Mg 2+ Concentrations and Cardiovascular Organ Damage in a Cohort of Adult Subjects.

Magnesium (Mg2+) levels are associated with insulin resistance, hypertension, atherosclerosis, and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). We evaluated the clinical utility of physiological Mg(2+)in assessing subclinical cardiovascular organ damage including increased carotid artery intima- media thickness (c-IMT) and left ventricular mass index (LVMI) in a cohort of well-characterized adult non-diabetic individuals. Age- and gender-adjusted correlations between Mg(2+)and metabolic parameters showed that Mg(2+)circulating levels were correlated negatively with body mass index (BMI), fasting glucose, and 2h-oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) glucose. Similarly, Mg(2+)levels were significantly and negatively related to c-IMT and LVMI. A multivariate regression analysis revealed that age (beta = 0.440;p< 0.0001), BMI (beta = 0.225;p< 0.0001), and Mg(2+)concentration (beta = -0.122;p< 0.01) were independently associated with c-IMT. Age (beta = 0.244;p= 0.012), Mg2+(beta = -0.177;p= 0.019), and diastolic blood pressure (beta = 0.184;p= 0.038) were significantly associated with LVMI in women, while age (beta = 0.211;p= 0.019), Mg2+(beta = -0.171;p= 0.038) and the homeostasis model assessment index of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (beta = -0.211;p= 0.041) were the sole variables associated with LVMI in men. In conclusion, our data support the hypothesis that the assessment of Mg(2+)as part of the initial work-up might help unravel the presence of subclinical organ damage in subjects at increased risk of cardiovascular complications.