Oral contraceptives and death from myocardial infarction

We investigated 219 deaths from myocardial infarction in women under the age of 50. Their histories were compared with those of living age-matched controls selected from the same general practices. The frequency of use of oral contraceptives during the month before death was significantly greater in the group with infarction than during the corresponding month in the control group and the average duration of use was longer. No information of cigarette smoking was available but the proportion of women being treated for hypertension or diabetes was greater among those who died than among the controls. This did not alter the overall conclusion that the risk of fatal myocardial infarction was greater in the women using oral contraceptives, particularly in the older age groups.