This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
CVD mortality elevated in predominantly Hispanic counties
Counties in the United States with higher Hispanic ethnic density had higher rates of CVD mortality, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
“The finding that Hispanic population density is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality is noteworthy and challenges existing notions about the protective effect of cultural enclaves among Hispanics, or what’s known as the ‘Hispanic paradox,’” Fatima Rodriguez, MD, MPH, cardiologist at Stanford University, said in a press release. “Clinical and public health efforts should target cardiovascular disease prevention in counties where Hispanics live, design interventions outside of health care settings and focus on improving neighborhood access to healthy food sources and physical activity.”
Researchers analyzed data from the National Center for Health Statistics’ Multiple Cause of Death files on county-level deaths of Hispanic and non-Hispanic white patients from 2003 to 2012. Counties included in the study had more than 20 CVD deaths of Hispanic patients. Census data and calculations using linear interpolation and extrapolation were used for population estimates.
During the study period, 4,769,040 deaths occurred among Hispanic (n = 382,416) and non-Hispanic white patients (n = 4,386,624) from 715 counties.
Compared with counties in the lowest category of Hispanic density, those in the highest category had 60% higher rates of CVD mortality among Hispanic individuals after adjusting for age (215.3 per 100,000 vs. 134.2 per 100,000). Hispanic density in counties included in the study ranged from 1% to 96%.
After adjusting for county-level socioeconomic, demographic and health care factors, linear regression models showed that increasing Hispanic ethnic density was strongly associated with mortality for Hispanic patients. This was not seen in non-Hispanic white patients.
“[Public health] interventions should target areas of high-proportion Hispanic density and explore the adverse health consequences of residential segregation,” Rodriguez and colleagues wrote. “Future studies examining the importance of ethnic density on CVD should disaggregate Hispanics by subgroups and acculturation, as well as study these findings prospectively.” – by Darlene Dobkowski
Disclosures: The authors report no relevant financial disclosures.