CKD Strongest Risk Factor for Sudden Cardiac Arrest in Hispanics/Latinos

THURSDAY, Oct. 12, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- For Hispanic or Latino adults, chronic kidney disease is the strongest risk factor for sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), according to a study published online Oct. 11 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Kyndaron Reinier, Ph.D., M.P.H., from the Cedars-Sinai Health System in Los Angeles, and colleagues examined predictors of SCA risk among Hispanic or Latino individuals in the United States. A total of 1,468 adult SCA cases were ascertained from the Ventura Prediction of Sudden Death in Multi-Ethnic Communities study, and control participants were selected from 3,033 Hispanic or Latino participants at the San Diego site of the Hispanic Community Health Survey/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL). The analyses included 295 Hispanic or Latino SCA cases and 590 frequency-matched HCHS/SOL controls.

The researchers found that in models adjusted for age, sex, and other clinical variables, chronic kidney disease, heavy drinking, stroke, atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease, heart failure, and diabetes were associated with SCA (odds ratios [95 percent confidence intervals], 7.3 [3.8 to 14.3], 4.5 [2.3 to 9.0], 3.1 [1.2 to 8.0], 3.7 [1.7 to 7.9], 2.9 [1.5 to 5.9], 2.5 [1.2 to 5.1], and 1.5 [1.0 to 2.3], respectively).

"These findings provide information that could be useful in designing public health and medical interventions to reduce SCA risk among Hispanic or Latino individuals," the authors write. "Because of the strong association of kidney disease with SCA in our study, early identification and management of chronic kidney disease could reduce risk of SCA among Hispanic or Latino individuals."

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