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Female survivors CV events at increased risk for long-term mortality

Young women with a history of myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke were at increased risk for long-term health problems and death, often from acute vascular events, according to recently published data in JAMA Internal Medicine.

“Rates of death in the acute phase of cardiovascular events have decreased, but disease burden remains high in the increasing number of survivors. This finding is particularly important for those affected at a young age,” Bob Siegerink, PhD, department of clinical epidemiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands, and colleagues wrote. 

Researchers analyzed data from the Risk of Arterial Thrombosis in Relation to Oral Contraceptive study to assess the long-term mortality and morbidity of women aged 18 to 50 years who had previously survived myocardial infarction (MI) (n = 226) or ischemic stroke (IS) (n = 160), compared with women who had no history of arterial thrombosis (n = 782).

Results demonstrated that women with a history of MI had mortality rates 3.7 times higher than the control group. Women with a history of IS had mortality rates 1.8 times higher than women in the control group. 

Women in the IS group had the highest incidence rates for both fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events (14.1 per 1,000 person years; 95% CI, 9.9-19.4). Women with a history of MI had an incidence rate for fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events of 12.1 per 1,000 person years, according to the researchers.

Cardiac events were much more likely in women with a history of MI, while cerebral events were more likely among women with a history of IS, according to the researchers. 

“Our results showed that young women who have experienced a stroke or a myocardial infarction have an increased risk of vascular mortality and morbidity, which persist over time. Interestingly, the long term risk was ‘true to type,’ which suggests that the etiology of cardiovascular recurrence is disease specific. These findings stress that physicians should try to reduce the disease specific vascular risk profile of these patients through medication and lifestyle modification, even if their first event was years ago,” Siegerink told Healio.com/Family Medicine. – by Casey Hower

Disclosures: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.