A new study found that death due to cardiac arrest is twice more likely to occur in African Americans than in whites. Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is said to account for most cases of mortality; however, information about the role of the white race, are scarce. With this, the researchers conducted a study that considers the racial profile of the participants, which may help to improve the process of SCA prevention.
The researchers from the The Heart Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research and Oregon Health and Science University conducted the study by analyzing data from the Oregon Sudden Unexpected Death Study (SUDS) from 2002-2012, which prospectively determined the individuals suffering from SCA in the metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon. The researchers looked into the demographic details of the participants, as well as the situations enveloping the arrest and their health status prior to SCA. They then reviewed these data alongside racial profiles and calculated the incidence rates starting from the burden assessment stage which run from 2002-2005.
The findings of the study, published in the journal Circulation by the American Heart Association, show that SCA rates were higher by two-fold among black men and women than in white men and women after adjusting the ages. The researchers also found that participants from the black descent were six years younger at the time of SCA compared to the whites. The blacks also hold higher prevalence rates of hypertension, diabetes and chronic renal insufficiency prior to the SCA event, compared to the white participants. Although the researchers were not able to identify distinct deviations between the racial incidence of coronary artery disease or left ventricular dysfunction, the blacks were associated with higher prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy, congestive heart failure and a longer QT interval.
"We do not know why African-Americans are more likely to have sudden cardiac arrest," says Kyndaron Reinier, lead author of the study from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute. According to him, the reason may be because diseases such as diabetes and hypertension, which are known to predispose an individual to heart diseases, are more prevalent among blacks. Genetics may also play role, as well as environmental conditions such as poor access to medical care. Nonetheless, a significant difference between the clinical prognoses of the two races was definitely noted, he adds.
Majority of SCA cases lead to death thus, adequate preventive measures must be implemented prior to its attack, says Dr. Sumeet Chugh, senior author, also from Cedars-Sinai. The results of the study may signify that SCA prevention should be individualized according to the race or ethnicity of a patient, instead of generalizing the measures for all individuals.
