Sex differences in myocardial infarction events between patients with and without conventional risk factors: the Modares Heart Study.

The authors sought to determine the profile of traditional risk factors and hematologic-metabolic parameters as well as relative risk among patients with myocardial infarction (MI). This study included 594 MI patients (70.2% men and 29.8% women) and was carried out during a period of 11 years from 1994 to 2005. Patients were analyzed by sex according to selected hematologic-metabolic parameters and risk factors. The mean age, hemoglobin, hematocrit, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, total cholesterol, and fasting blood glucose were significantly different (P<.05) between men and women. The mean hemoglobin and hematocrit levels in men with hyperlipidemia (HLP) and family history of MI compared with those without these risk factors were significantly different (P<.05). Relative risks of HLP, diabetes mellitus (DM), and hypertension (HTN) for women were higher than for men in all age groups. The relative risk was 6.16 times higher for women with the 3-factor HLP, DM, and HTN combination. The results of this study confirm the important role of HLP, DM, and HTN in the occurrence of MI, especially in women.