Sudden Death in Many Women
DALLAS (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Although most women who die from an abrupt loss of heart function, called sudden cardiac death, have no history of heart disease, 94 percent of these women have at least one cardiac risk factor.
"Sudden cardiac death has been understudied in women because it is more common in men," says Christine M. Albert, M.D., M.P.H., lead study author and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Data suggests that risk factors for this type of SCD may be different among women and is one reason the authors performed the study.
The researchers analyzed data from 121,701 women ages 30 to 55. The study followed the women for 22 years. It documented medical history, cardiac risk factors, diagnosed diseases and death. There were 224 cases of SCD, defined as death within one hour of the onset of symptoms, during the study.
The researchers found SCD was the first sign of heart disease in 69 percent of patients. All women who died had at least one risk factor. Women who smoked 25 or more cigarettes per day had a four-fold increased risk of SCD. Diabetes was associated with a three-fold increased risk; high blood pressure with about a 2.5-fold increased risk; and obesity with a 1.6-fold increased risk of SCD.
"The best advice now is for women to lower their risk of coronary heart disease, which might lower their risk of sudden cardiac death," says Dr. Albert. These results highlight the need for more research to better identify women who are at high risk for SCD.
SOURCE: To be published in an upcoming issue of Circulation
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