Article Impact Level: HIGH Data Quality: STRONG Summary of European Heart Journal, ehac364. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehac364 Dr Jean Shin et al
Points
- The main purpose of the trial was to find out the correlation between age at the time of menopause and the risk of developing heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF).
- The results of the study indicated that the risk of HF and AF is correlated with premature menopause.
- This study also indicated that the relationship between premature menopause and heart failure is stronger among the groups >65 years of age, obese, and never-smokers as compared to other groups.
- In the future, these factors (pre-mature menopause and age at menopause) should also be considered risk factors for HF and AF.
Summary
Heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are global issues that increase the rate of healthcare expenditures, morbidity, and mortality. Estrogen is considered a protective hormone in premenopausal women, which protects them from cardiovascular diseases. But when there is the cessation of menses, the estrogen level decreases gradually, which makes them vulnerable to cardiovascular problems.
The study was carried out to find out the association of age at the time of menopause, whether it’s premature menopause or at its proper age, with the risk of developing atrial fibrillation as well as heart failure. For this purpose sample of 1,401,175 post-menopausal women was selected, and their complete reproductive histories were collected through health examination by Korean National Health Insurance Service. Multi-variable Cox proportional hazard model was carried out to find out the hazard ratio. The result shows that women who have a pre-mature history of menopause have more risk of developing HF and AF.
Link to the article: https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/advance-article/doi/10.1093/eurheartj/ehac364/6646730
References Shin, J., Han, K., Jung, J.-H., Park, H.-J., Kim, W., Huh, Y., Kim, Y.-H., Kim, D.-H., Kim, S.-M., Choi, Y.-S., Cho, K.-H., Nam, G.-E. (2022). Age at menopause and risk of heart failure and atrial fibrillation: a nationwide cohort study. European Heart Journal, ehac364. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehac364
