Myocardial infarction (MI) may reoccur more frequently in younger patients with several modifiable risk factors such as smoking and high blood pressure, suggesting the need for clinicians to plan secondary preventive programs for younger patients, according to research presented Dec. 1 at ACC Asia Conference 2018 in Shanghai, China.

Researchers analyzed 133 young patients admitted at The Medical City in Manila, Philippines for a MI between 2013 and 2016. Of the 22 patients that had a reoccurrence during the study period, all were male, with an average age of 40.9 years. Patients who did not experience a reoccurrence were 90.1 percent male vs. 9.9 percent female, with an average age of 39.6 years.

Furthermore, the researchers found that risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure, family history of heart disease and chronic kidney disease were more prevalent among the patients who experienced a reoccurrence. In these patients, chest pain was shown to be the most common presenting symptom at 81.8 percent, while 90.9 percent had unstable vital signs at the time of admission.

The researchers note that previous studies defined young MI patients as less than 45-years-old, while some used a less than 40-year-old cut-off. Prior research found that these patients have a high prevalence of smoking, family history and high cholesterol.

"Heart attack in young patients can cause disability and even death at the prime of life," said Joanne Karen Recacho-Turingan, MD, cardiology fellow at The Medical City. "There are often serious consequences for these patients, their families and the health system, which can lead to an increased economic burden. We must make sure to work with these patients on their modifiable risk factors to reduce their risk not just for a second heart attack, but hopefully, even preventing the first."

Clinical Topics: Cardiovascular Care Team, Dyslipidemia, Prevention, Homozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia, Lipid Metabolism, Nonstatins, Hypertension, Smoking

Keywords: Risk Factors, Prevalence, Philippines, Myocardial Infarction, Chest Pain, Hypercholesterolemia, Hypertension, Renal Insufficiency, Chronic, Smoking, Cholesterol, Preventive Health Services

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