Gender differences in cardiovascular risk factor awareness: Results from the ESC EORP EUROASPIRE V Registry

Patients' risk factor awareness is essential to decrease the risk of recurrent coronary events. The aim of this study was to provide up-to-date evidence on existing gender differences in the patients' knowledge of risk factors and information provided by healthcare professionals.

Analyses were based on the cross-sectional ESC EORP EUROASPIRE V survey, including data on CHD patients across 27 European countries. Consecutive patients (18-80 years), hospitalized for a coronary event or surgical procedure, were retrospectively identified. Information on risk factor awareness was collected from medical records, medical examination, and structured questionnaires during the study visit (six months to two years after hospitalization).

Patient information was available for 8261 patients, of which 25.8% were women. Although women with obesity were significantly less aware about their actual (OR = 0.66, CI = 0.52-0.85) and target weight levels (OR = 0.66, CI = 0.54-0.81), no significant gender differences in risk factor awareness were found in disfavour of women. Remarkably, women with hypertension and women with raised low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were even more aware about their target blood pressure levels (OR = 1.21, CI = 1.01-1.46) and actual cholesterol levels (OR = 1.18, CI = 1.02-1.36), respectively. Moreover, there is some indication that women were more informed by a healthcare professional if they had raised CHD risk factor levels.

Our study showed only few gender differences in disfavour of women in terms of risk factor awareness and information provided by a healthcare professional. Nevertheless, previous EUROASPIRE V findings demonstrated that women still have a poorer risk factor control in secondary CHD prevention.