Is spinal cord injury associated with an increased risk of heart disease and stroke?
Spinal cord injury is associated with nearly 3- to 4-fold increased odds of heart disease and stroke, emphasizing the need for targeted cardiovascular prevention in this population.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between cardiovascular disease (CVD) and spinal cord injury (SCI) in a large representative sample. METHODS: Data were compiled from more than 60,000 individuals from the 2010 cycle of the cross-sectional Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine this relationship, adjusting for confounders and using probability weighting to account for the CCHS sampling method. RESULTS: After adjusting for age and sex, SCI was associated with a significant increased odds of heart disease (adjusted odds ratio OR = 2.72, 95% confidence interval CI 1.94-3.82) and stroke (adjusted OR = 3.72, 95% CI 2.22-6.23). CONCLUSIONS: These remarkably heightened odds highlight the exigent need for targeted interventions and prevention strategies addressing modifiable risk factors for CVD in individuals with SCI.
Cragg et al. (Thu,) studied this question.