Gender differences in prevalence and prognostic value of fragmented QRS complex

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Electrophysiology
• Public Health

Background:

• Fragmented QRS (fQRS) on electrocardiogram (ECG) indicates myocardial scarring and adverse outcomes.
• Limited data exists on gender-specific prevalence and prognostic value of fQRS.
• Understanding gender differences in fQRS is crucial for risk stratification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate gender disparities in the prevalence of fQRS.
• To assess if these differences persist across various risk populations.
• To evaluate the association of fQRS with cardiac disease severity in men and women.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 12-lead ECG data for fQRS in three cohorts: sudden cardiac death (SCD) victims, coronary artery disease (CAD) patients, and the general population.
• Inclusion of 953 SCD victims, 1900 CAD patients, and 10,904 general population adults.
• Statistical comparison of fQRS prevalence between genders within each cohort and across different levels of cardiac disease.

Main Results:

• fQRS prevalence increased with age, male sex, and cardiac disease severity.
• In the general population, fQRS was more common in men (20.5%) than women (14.8%).
• This gender gap persisted across all studied groups, including CAD patients and SCD victims, with men consistently showing higher fQRS prevalence.

Conclusions:

• The prevalence of QRS fragmentation differs significantly between genders.
• fQRS is strongly related to underlying cardiac disease in both men and women.
• Women consistently exhibit a lower prevalence of fQRS compared to men across diverse populations.