Link between higher levels of education and lower risk of heart failure similar in men, women
WEDNESDAY, July 20, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) survivors with higher levels of education are less likely to develop heart failure, according to a study published online July 20 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
The study included 70,506 patients in Norway, aged 35 to 85. All had been hospitalized for incident AMI between 2001 and 2009. None had a history of heart failure at the start of the study. By the end of 2009, 17.7 percent of patients had been diagnosed with early-onset heart failure.
Compared to those with only 10 years of schooling, the risk of heart failure was 9 percent lower among those with high school or vocational school diplomas. For those who’d completed college or university, the risk of developing heart failure was 20 percent lower. Another 11.8 percent of patients were diagnosed with late-onset heart failure. Compared to those with 10 years of schooling, the risk was 14 percent lower among those with high school or vocational school diplomas. For those who completed university or college, the risk of late-onset heart failure was 27 percent lower.
When the researchers focused on patients who underwent myocardial revascularization after AMI, the risk of heart failure was 16 percent lower among those with high school or vocational school diplomas, and 33 percent lower among those who’d completed college or university, compared to those with only 10 years of schooling. The link between higher levels of education and lower risk of heart failure was similar in men and women, the researchers found.
Copyright © 2016 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
