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Migraines increase future risk for CVD in women
Migraines in women lead to a higher risk for developing CVD later in life, according to recent study findings.
“Our analysis suggests that migraine should be considered an important risk marker for [CVD], particularly in women,” Tobias Kurth, MD, ScD, said in a press release. “The risk of developing [CV] events was ... 50% higher in women with ... migraine. When compared to women unaffected by the condition, the risk of developing [an MI] was 39% higher for women with migraine, the risk of having a stroke [was] 62% higher, and that of developing angina [was] 73% higher.”
Tobias Kurth
Kurth, professor of public health and epidemiology, and director of the Institute of Public Health at the Charité-Universitätsmedizin in Berlin, and colleagues analyzed data from 115,541 women from the Nurses’ Health Study II. At baseline, all women were free from angina or CVD and were aged 25 to 42 years. Follow-up was from 1989 to June 2011.
The primary endpoint was major CVD, defined as MI, stroke or CVD death. Secondary endpoints included MI, stroke, angina/coronary revascularization procedures and CV mortality.
Of the cohort, 17,531 women (15.2%) self-reported a physician’s diagnosis of migraine. During the follow-up period, there were 1,329 major CVD events, including 223 deaths. The researchers found migraine was linked to a higher risk for major CVD (HR = 1.5; 95% CI, 1.33-1.69) after adjustment for potential confounding factors.
After adjustment, the researchers also found women with migraine had an increased risk for MI (HR = 1.39; 95% CI, 1.18-1.64), stroke (HR = 1.62; 95% CI, 1.37-1.92) and angina/coronary revascularization procedures (HR = 1.73; 95% CI, 1.29-2.32). Migraine also was associated with greater risk for CVD mortality (HR = 1.37; 95% CI, 1.02-1.83).
“... [T]here is an urgent need to understand the biological mechanisms and processes to provide preventive solutions for patients with migraine,” Kurth said in the release.
All associations were similar across subgroup categories, including age, smoking status, hypertension, postmenopausal hormone therapy and oral contraceptive use. The study did not provide information on individual biomarkers or specifics associated with migraines such as the presence of aura.
“Migraine ... affects approximately one-fifth of the general U.S. population for at least part of their lives, and women are affected three to four times more often than men,” the researchers wrote. – by James Clark
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.