Prevalence of erythrocytosis (strict criteria) as function of sex and age and the association of erythrocytosis with CVD and survival. (A) Prevalence of erythrocytosis according to sex and age categories. (B) Forest plot for the risk of CVD and all-cause mortality. Logistic regression analyses and Cox proportional hazards regression included age, sex, BMI, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, smoking status, medical history of diabetes, number of medications used, androgen drug use, drugs for obstructive airway disease, antihypertensive drug use, family history of CVD, and LDL cholesterol as covariates. Absence of erythrocytosis was used as reference. Circles indicate the OR/HR, with horizontal lines corresponding to 95% CIs. (C) Kaplan-Meier curve for overall survival, stratified according to the presence of erythrocytosis.