Increased risk of heart attack after a miscarriage

After a miscarriage, according to a study by the German Cancer Research Center, the risk of heart attack increases in women. Particularly at risk are women who have already experienced three or more abortions.

(03.12.2010) Women who have had a miscarriage have an increased risk of heart attack. The risk is especially high for women who have had three or more abortions. Researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg came to this conclusion when evaluating the medical data of more than 11,500 women.

Researchers led by Elham Kharazmi from the German Cancer Research Center have analyzed the medical data of 11,518 women who have been pregnant at least once in their lifetime in a comprehensive study. Around a quarter of women (2,876) had at least one miscarriage behind them, 69 had suffered more than three abortions. Data from the women surveyed are taken from the EPIC study, a major European study of over 500,000 participants from ten countries to determine the impact of diet and lifestyle on cancer risk. In the ten statistically recorded years, which are based on the current study of the German Cancer Research Center, 82 of the women suffered a heart attack and 112 a stroke, according to the statement of the researchers from Heidelberg when publishing their study in the journal „Heart“. And while statistically no correlation between the abortions and the strokes could be found, the data analysis has shown that with miscarriage and stillbirth a significantly increased risk of heart attack associated with it, said the scientists from the German Cancer Research Center.

With each miscarriage, the risk of a later heart attack increased by about 40 percent, according to the study of the DKFZ. In women who have suffered more than three miscarriages, the risk even quintupled, the researchers continue. However, the abortions were not necessarily the cause of myocardial infarction, so the experts from the DKFZ, but there have apparently been factors that increase both the likelihood of miscarriage and a heart attack. For example, the women who have had a miscarriage and a heart attack have on average been thicker than the others and more frequent smokers or ex-smokers. Both are known risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and miscarriages, said the researchers from Heidelberg. In addition, the women who had stillbirth not only tended to have a higher body weight, but they were older, less educated, exercised less, and had diabetes more often than the average, according to the data from the current study. According to the researchers of the DKFZ, repeated miscarriages could serve as a kind of indicator for possible cardiovascular diseases in the future. The scientists advised the scientists to evaluate repeated miscarriages as a clear indication of an attacked cardiovascular system and to take intensive precautions.

But according to the DKFZ scientists also other effects are conceivable in which the miscarriages are not only a consequence but also the cause of possible disorders of the cardiovascular system. For example, changes in hormone status through premature pregnancy may also play a role in the risk of myocardial infarction. Also, the miscarriages are associated with an increased risk of certain infections that can damage the vascular system and thus increase the risk of heart attack, said the scientists. One aspect that is not highlighted in the current study of the DKFZ, however, is the impact of mental stress on the traumatic experience of miscarriage on the individual risk of heart attack. Recently, Thomas Buckley and his research colleagues at the University of Sydney had recently demonstrated in a comprehensive mourning study that grief over the death of a family member or life partner clearly increases the risk of heart attack. An overview of the timing of myocardial infarction and miscarriage as well as a corresponding assessment by the experts in the current DKFZ study would have been helpful in assessing the extent to which mourning after a miscarriage increases the risk of myocardial infarction. (Fp)

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