The comparative characteristics of male and female mortality from the basic cardiovascular diseases based on the data of a prospective study
Plavinskaia, S.I.; Shestov, D.B.
Terapevticheskii Arkhiv 63(12): 69-73
1991
ISSN/ISBN: 0040-3660 PMID: 1839472 Document Number: 371141
The authors describe the results of a prospective follow-up of a large population of men and women living in a large industrial city. The data obtained show that the death rate of men is higher than in women; primarily men die of coronary heart disease. The differences in the death rate are more demonstrable in persons under 60. In the older age groups, the differences are not so striking. The presence of coronary heart disease identified during screening has an unfavorable effect on the life prognosis of men and exerts a weak effect on the prognosis in women. The signs of a history of myocardial infarction was the only exception. Women with that form die much more frequently than men. Multifactorial analysis of the relationship between the main risk factors and the death rate due to coronary heart disease has demonstrated that systolic arterial pressure, the age and level of total cholesterol produce an influence on the death rate in both sex groups. At the same time, men manifested the U-like character of the relationship between the death rate and the total cholesterol whereas women showed the "liminal" one. In both sex groups, persons with lower diastolic arterial pressure died more frequently from coronary heart disease, provided systolic arterial pressure was the same. Poor risk factors (Kettle index, education, the level of high density lipoproteins of cholesterol) affected the death rate only in men. Tobacco-smoking produced a significant action on the death rate because of cerebrovascular lesions; however, it was related poorly to the death rate due to coronary heart disease. The data obtained allowed deriving criteria for adequate hypotensive therapy.