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Marital status, ischemic heart disease mortality linked in women
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Ischemic heart disease mortality is significantly lower among married or cohabiting women, although being partnered does not influence the risk for developing ischemic heart disease, according to recent findings.
In a prospective study, researchers evaluated 734,626 women (mean age, 59.7 years) who participated in the Million Women Study as part of the UK breast screening program. The participants had no history of heart disease, stroke or cancer. Researchers gleaned information about marital status through a mailed survey administered 3 years after enrollment, and followed the responders for a mean of 8.8 years for incidence of hospitalization or death. The investigators also assessed socioeconomic status and risk factors related to lifestyle and well-being, including tobacco and alcohol use, exercise, BMI, sleep duration, happiness and symptoms of depression at baseline and social activity.
Within the cohort, 81% of women reported being married or cohabiting with a partner. These women were less likely to live in economically depressed areas, smoke or have sedentary lifestyles; however, these participants reported a higher alcohol intake than unpartnered women.
During follow-up, 30,747 women experienced an initial ischemic heart disease event and 2,148 died of ischemic heart disease. After adjustment for evaluated risk factors, researchers observed a similar risk for a first ischemic heart disease event between partnered and unpartnered women (RR=0.99; 95% CI, 0.96-1.02); however, married/cohabiting women had a significantly lower rate of death from ischemic heart disease (RR=0.72; 95% CI, 0.66-0.8). This reduced ischemic heart disease mortality risk was observed in both women with (RR=0.72; 95% CI, 0.6-0.85) and without a previous hospitalization for ischemic heart disease (RR=0.7; 95% CI, 0.62-0.78).
Subgroup analysis according to age, lifestyle factors, well-being or region or level of area deprivation did not significantly alter results.
The researchers wrote that they could not conclusively explain the lower ischemic heart disease mortality risk among partnered women, but it is possible that this decrease may be linked to having someone at home to facilitate help.
“In this cohort, unpartnered women tended to live alone, so a possible explanation for the lower risk of death among partnered women may be that they have someone at home who can respond to symptoms and help them seek appropriate treatment,” the researchers wrote. “… Spouses can also provide emotional support to cope with the distress of having had a cardiac event.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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