Sex and Racial Differences in Outcomes and Guideline‐Based Management of Troponin‐Only‐Positive Acute Myocardial Infarction in Older Persons

Multiple studies have shown sex and racial differences in the management and outcomes of ischemic heart disease, but whether these sex and racial disparities persist in patients with troponin‐only‐positive acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is unknown. The authors evaluated a nationwide sample of eligible Medicare beneficiaries, 65 years or older, who were hospitalized (N=71,120) with a primary discharge diagnosis of AMI. Analysis was restricted to patients with troponin‐only‐positive AMI (n=5897) and was substratified into 4 groups: white men, white women, nonwhite men, and nonwhite women. The authors found that the traditional sex and racial disparities in the evidence‐based medication prescriptions for ischemic heart diseases resolved in this cohort of older patients. Similarly, in settings of equal care, sex and race seem to have no impact on the outcomes for older patients with troponin‐only‐positive AMI.