Low cumulative socioeconomic position was associated with increased incident CHD compared to high SEP (HR 1.82; 95% CI 1.17-2.85), but adjustment for CHD risk factors attenuated the association.
Cohort (n=1,835)
Does low cumulative life-course socioeconomic position increase the incidence of coronary heart disease in a US cohort?
Cumulative socioeconomic disadvantage across the life course is associated with an increased risk of incident coronary heart disease, an effect that appears largely mediated by traditional CHD risk factors.
Hazard Ratio: 1.82 (95% CI 1.17–2.85)
Cumulative exposure to socioeconomic disadvantage across the life course may be inversely associated with coronary heart disease (CHD); the mechanisms are not fully clear. An objective of this study was to determine whether cumulative life-course socioeconomic position (SEP) is associated with CHD incidence in a well-characterized US cohort that had directly assessed childhood and adulthood measures of SEP and prospectively measured CHD incidence. Furthermore, analyses aimed to evaluate whether adjustment for CHD risk factors reduces the association between cumulative life-course SEP and CHD. The authors examined 1,835 subjects who participated in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring Cohort from 1971 through 2003 (mean age, 35.0 years; 52.4% women). Childhood SEP was measured as father's education; adulthood SEP was assessed as own education and occupation. CHD incidence included myocardial infarction, coronary insufficiency, and coronary death. Cox proportional hazards analyses indicated that cumulative SEP was associated with incident CHD after adjustment for age and sex (hazard ratio = 1.82, 95% confidence interval: 1.17, 2.85 for low vs. high cumulative SEP score). Adjustment for CHD risk factors reduced that magnitude of association (hazard ratio = 1.29, 95% confidence interval: 0.78, 2.13). These findings underscore the potential importance of CHD prevention and treatment efforts for those whose backgrounds include low SEP throughout life.
Loucks et al. (Thu,) conducted a cohort in Coronary Heart Disease (n=1,835). Low cumulative life-course socioeconomic position vs. High cumulative socioeconomic position was evaluated on CHD incidence (myocardial infarction, coronary insufficiency, and coronary death) (HR 1.82, 95% CI 1.17-2.85). Low cumulative socioeconomic position was associated with increased incident CHD compared to high SEP (HR 1.82; 95% CI 1.17-2.85), but adjustment for CHD risk factors attenuated the association.