Health & Medicine
Study Ties Sex Hormone Levels in Blood to Risk of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
Benita Matilda
First Posted: Sep 03, 2014 04:31 AM EDT
A new study found that measuring levels of sex hormone in the blood helps identify which patients are more likely to suffer a sudden cardiac arrest.
The research conducted at the Cedear-Sinai Heart Institute offers preventive treatment for people at risk of sudden cardiac arrest. The study shows that lower levels of testosterone, the male sex hormone, ups the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. On the other hand, higher level of estradiol was linked to a greater risk of suffering a sudden cardiac arrest in both men and women.
A sudden and unexpected loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness is referred to as a sudden cardiac arrest. Unlike heart attacks that occur due to blocked arteries that obstruct the blood flow to heart muscle, a sudden cardiac arrest occurs due to defective electrical impulses. The heart stops beating abruptly without any warning and leads to instantaneous death. In the U.S., every year 250,000-300,000 people die from sudden cardiac arrest.
"Because sudden cardiac arrest is usually fatal, we are constantly looking for ways to predict which patients are susceptible so we can concentrate on prevention," said Sumeet Chugh, MD, director of the Heart Rhythm Center in the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and the Pauline and Harold Price Chair in Cardiac Electrophysiology Research. "If we wait until someone has a sudden cardiac arrest, it is usually too late for treatment."
The worst part is that despite emergency medicine having made advances, just 5 percent of the victims of sudden cardiac arrest survive. For those known to be at a risk of this disorder or other heart rhythm abnormalities, an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator or ICD is placed in the chest or abdomen to pick faulty electrical impulses and provide shock to return to the normal rhythm.
"This is the first time it has been reported that there is an association between sex hormone levels and sudden cardiac arrest," said Chugh. "While these findings need to be confirmed by other studies, they suggest that higher testosterone levels in men may offer protection from sudden cardiac arrest and lower levels of estrogen may protect both men and women."
In this study, the researchers measured the blood hormone levels in 149 patients with sudden cardiac arrest. They were later compared with the levels of 149 patients who had coronary artery disease and did not have sudden cardiac arrest.
The researchers noted that men with sudden cardiac arrest had testosterone levels of 4.4 nanograms per milliliter. Men with sudden cardiac arrest had estradiol levels of 68 picograms per millileter. Women with sudden cardiac arrest had estradiol levels of 54 picograms per millimeter.
The finding is published in the journal Heart Rhythm.
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First Posted: Sep 03, 2014 04:31 AM EDT
A new study found that measuring levels of sex hormone in the blood helps identify which patients are more likely to suffer a sudden cardiac arrest.
The research conducted at the Cedear-Sinai Heart Institute offers preventive treatment for people at risk of sudden cardiac arrest. The study shows that lower levels of testosterone, the male sex hormone, ups the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. On the other hand, higher level of estradiol was linked to a greater risk of suffering a sudden cardiac arrest in both men and women.
A sudden and unexpected loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness is referred to as a sudden cardiac arrest. Unlike heart attacks that occur due to blocked arteries that obstruct the blood flow to heart muscle, a sudden cardiac arrest occurs due to defective electrical impulses. The heart stops beating abruptly without any warning and leads to instantaneous death. In the U.S., every year 250,000-300,000 people die from sudden cardiac arrest.
"Because sudden cardiac arrest is usually fatal, we are constantly looking for ways to predict which patients are susceptible so we can concentrate on prevention," said Sumeet Chugh, MD, director of the Heart Rhythm Center in the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and the Pauline and Harold Price Chair in Cardiac Electrophysiology Research. "If we wait until someone has a sudden cardiac arrest, it is usually too late for treatment."
The worst part is that despite emergency medicine having made advances, just 5 percent of the victims of sudden cardiac arrest survive. For those known to be at a risk of this disorder or other heart rhythm abnormalities, an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator or ICD is placed in the chest or abdomen to pick faulty electrical impulses and provide shock to return to the normal rhythm.
"This is the first time it has been reported that there is an association between sex hormone levels and sudden cardiac arrest," said Chugh. "While these findings need to be confirmed by other studies, they suggest that higher testosterone levels in men may offer protection from sudden cardiac arrest and lower levels of estrogen may protect both men and women."
In this study, the researchers measured the blood hormone levels in 149 patients with sudden cardiac arrest. They were later compared with the levels of 149 patients who had coronary artery disease and did not have sudden cardiac arrest.
The researchers noted that men with sudden cardiac arrest had testosterone levels of 4.4 nanograms per milliliter. Men with sudden cardiac arrest had estradiol levels of 68 picograms per millileter. Women with sudden cardiac arrest had estradiol levels of 54 picograms per millimeter.
The finding is published in the journal Heart Rhythm.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone