Trends in STEMI Explored for Women Aged 18 to 55 Years

MONDAY, March 13, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- For women aged 18 to 55 years, ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) hospitalization rates decreased during 2008 to 2019, with the decline driven by a reduced proportion of hospitalizations among women aged 45 to 55 years, according to a study published in the March 7 issue of the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Temidayo Abe, M.D., from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, and colleagues examined hospitalization rates, cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk profiles, and in-hospital outcomes stratified by three age subgroups (18 to 34, 35 to 44, and 45 to 55 years) among 177,602 women with a primary diagnosis of STEMI from the National Inpatient Sample during 2008 to 2019.

The researchers found that from 2008 to 2019, there was a decrease in STEMI hospitalization rates from 52 to 36 per 100,000 hospitalizations in the overall study cohort, which was driven by a decreased proportion of hospitalizations among women aged 45 to 55 years (74.2 to 71.7 percent). In women aged 18 to 34 and 35 to 44 years, the proportion of STEMI hospitalizations increased (4.7 to 5.5 percent and 21.2 to 22.7 percent, respectively). In all age subgroups, there was an increase observed in the prevalence of traditional and nontraditional female-specific and female-predominant CVD risk factors. During the study period, the adjusted odds of in-hospital mortality were unchanged in the overall cohort and age subgroups.

"These findings highlight the urgent need for more CVD awareness and prevention programs among young women in the United States," the authors write.

One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

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