In an observational study, researchers at the University of Hamburg found that people with iron deficiency have a higher risk of coronary heart disease. In addition, approximately 10% of new cases occurring in middle age can be prevented through preventionPrevent iron deficiency. However, there is increasing evidence that there is a connection. These study results therefore form the basis for further research to confirm these new findings.
Possible causes of coronary heart disease in old age
Previous studies have shown that iron deficiency was associated with complications and death in patients with cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure. Therefore, in the current research, the study authors wanted to investigate whether this connection can also be observed in the general population. The study included 12,164 people from three European cohorts. The average age was 59 years, with 55% of participants being women. At the start of the study, 60% of the subjects had an absolute iron deficiency, while 64% of them had a functional iron deficiency. Functional iron deficiency was associated with a 24% higher risk of coronary heart disease. There was also a 26% higher risk of cardiovascular mortality and a 12% higher risk of all-cause mortality. However, absolute iron deficiency was not associated with higher mortality. There were also no associations between iron deficiency and stroke.
Over a 10-year period, 5.4% of all deaths, 11.7% of cardiovascular deaths, and 10.7% of newly diagnosed coronary heart disease were due to functional iron deficiency. This analysis shows that if iron deficiency had not been present to begin with, such risks would not have occurred in the following decade. Furthermore indicatesthis studyindicates that iron deficiency is common in the majority of the population in this middle age. Future research should examine these associations in younger and non-European cohorts. If the associations are confirmed, the next step would be a randomized trial that could adapt and improve the effects of iron deficiency treatment in the general population.
