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Age and Gender Biases in Secondary Prevention of Coronary Heart Disease in a Finnish University Hospital Setting

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Abstract

Background and objectives:

Several studies have shown that treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD) does not meet the goals set in recommendations. The aim of this study was to investigate the adequacy of CHD drug treatment and secondary prevention measures, particularly with respect to age and gender biases, in a Finnish university hospital setting.

Methods:

The participant pool consisted of patients in FINCAVAS (Finnish Cardiovascular Study), which is a cohort study recruiting consecutive patients performing a clinical exercise test at Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland. 802 patients (581 men, 221 women) with a prior diagnosis of CHD recruited between October 2001 and December 2004 were included in the analysis.

Results:

Only roughly 12% of both men and women had an optimal risk factor profile. High blood pressure and hypercholesterolaemia were more common in women than in men, whereas smoking was more frequent among men. Men used ACE inhibitors (32.9% vs 20.4%, respectively), β-adrenoceptor antagonists (80.8% vs 68.3%, respectively) and aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) [69.7% vs 58.8%, respectively] more frequently than women, but the frequency of use of these medications was also not at the recommended levels in men. Risk factor control is poorer in older than younger age groups.

Conclusions:

CHD patients, particularly women, who performed an exercise stress test in a university hospital are suboptimally treated.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support for this study was received from the Medical Research Fund of Tampere University Hospital, the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research, the Academy of Finland (grant no. 104821), the Emil Aaltonen Foundation, Finland and the Tampere Tuberculosis Foundation.

The authors wish to thank the staff of the Department of Clinical Physiology for collecting the data used in the present study. The authors have no conflicts of interest that are directly relevant to the content of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Medical School, University of Tampere, Tampere, FI-33014, Finland

    Sanna-Maria Michou & Tuomo Nieminen

  2. Department of Clinical Physiology, Tampere University Hospital and Medical School, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland

    Mika Kähönen, Rami Lehtinen, Tiit Kööbi & Väinö Turjanmaa

  3. Laboratory of Atherosclerosis Genetics, Department of Clinical Chemistry, and Medical School, Tampere University Hospital, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland

    Terho Lehtimäki

  4. Department of Cardiology, Heart Centre, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland

    Kjell Nikus & Kari Niemelä

  5. Ragnar Granit Institute, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland

    Jari Viik & Janne Kallio

  6. Tampere Polytechnic - University of Applied Sciences, Tampere, Finland

    Rami Lehtinen

Authors
  1. Sanna-Maria Michou
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  2. Mika Kähönen
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  3. Terho Lehtimäki
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  4. Kjell Nikus
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  5. Jari Viik
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  6. Kari Niemelä
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  7. Janne Kallio
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  8. Rami Lehtinen
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  9. Tiit Kööbi
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  10. Väinö Turjanmaa
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  11. Tuomo Nieminen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tuomo Nieminen.

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Michou, SM., Kähönen, M., Lehtimäki, T. et al. Age and Gender Biases in Secondary Prevention of Coronary Heart Disease in a Finnish University Hospital Setting. Clin. Drug Investig. 27, 673–681 (2007). https://doi.org/10.2165/00044011-200727100-00002

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.2165/00044011-200727100-00002

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