Examining Predictors of Myocardial Infarction

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Cardiovascular diseases, particularly myocardial infarction (MI), represent a leading cause of mortality in the United States.
• Understanding the multifactorial predictors of MI is crucial for developing effective prevention and intervention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze demographic, socioeconomic, geographic, behavioral, risk factors, and healthcare access variables predicting myocardial infarction (MI) in adults aged 35 and older.
• To identify statistically significant predictors and assess their impact on MI risk.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the 2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey.
• Employed multiple quasibinomial models, including hierarchical training and testing sets, to predict MI.
• Compared models built on training sets with a complete dataset model to ensure coefficient stability.

Main Results:

• Demographic factors (age, gender, marital status, veteran status, income, home ownership, employment, education) and socioeconomic status were significant predictors.
• Geographic location (West North Central Census Division), behavioral factors (health status, smoking, alcohol), risk factors (cholesterol, blood pressure), and comorbidities (diabetes, stroke, COPD, kidney disease, arthritis) were associated with MI.
• Healthcare access variables showed significant impact: lack of a primary care provider (OR=0.853), cost barriers to care (OR=1.232), and absence of annual checkups (OR=0.807) were statistically significant.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully identified a robust set of predictors for myocardial infarction.
• Healthcare cost remains a significant barrier, influencing care access and potentially exacerbating MI risk.
• Interventions addressing cost barriers and promoting regular primary care and checkups are essential for reducing MI incidence and improving outcomes.