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Life's Simple 7 Cardiovascular Health Score in Relation to Arrhythmias on Extended Ambulatory Electrocardiographic
Yuyang Ma1, James S Floyd2, Thomas R Austin1
1Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
Insights
The Life's Simple 7 (LS7) score, a measure of cardiovascular wellness, showed little association with subclinical cardiac arrhythmias in older adults. However, a better LS7 score suggested fewer premature ventricular contractions (PVCs).
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Preventive Medicine
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The Life's Simple 7 (LS7) metric assesses cardiovascular wellness through 7 modifiable health behaviors.
- The relationship between LS7 score and cardiac arrhythmias is not well-established.
- Cardiac arrhythmias pose a significant risk to cardiovascular health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between the LS7 cardiovascular health score and subclinical cardiac arrhythmias.
- To examine the impact of LS7 components on different types of arrhythmias.
- To analyze these associations in a multi-ethnic cohort free of diagnosed cardiovascular disease.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study using data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.
- LS7 score assessed between 2010-2012.
- Cardiac arrhythmias evaluated using Zio Patch ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring (2016-2018).
- Logistic and linear regression models used for analysis in 1,329 participants.
Main Results:
- A favorable LS7 score was associated with fewer premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) per hour (geometric mean ratio 0.52).
- This association was attenuated after adjusting for sociodemographic factors (0.66).
- A favorable body mass index component of LS7 was linked to reduced ventricular ectopy.
- No significant associations were found between total LS7 score and atrial arrhythmias.
Conclusions:
- Little evidence supports an association between the LS7 cardiovascular health score and subclinical cardiac arrhythmias in older adults without prior cardiovascular disease.
- A trend suggested that higher LS7 scores may correlate with fewer PVCs.
- A healthy body mass index appears particularly important for reducing ventricular ectopy.
Abstract:
The Life's Simple 7 (LS7) metric consists of 7 modifiable health behaviors and measures that are known health factors for cardiovascular wellness. Relatively little is known about the association of LS7 score with cardiac arrhythmias. In the setting of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, we studied the LS7 score (range 0 to 14), assessed at the 2010 to 2102 study visit, in relation to cardiac arrhythmias assessed by Zio Patch ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring in 2016 to 2018. In participants free of clinically recognized cardiovascular disease and atrial fibrillation, we used logistic and linear regression to examine the association of total LS7 score with atrial fibrillation, supraventricular ectopy, and ventricular ectopy. In 1,329 participants in the analysis, the mean (SD) age was 67 (8) years and 48% were men. A more favorable total LS7 score was associated with fewer premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) per hour (ratio of geometric means for optimal [11 to 14] versus inadequate [0 to 7] score 0.52 [95% confidence interval 0.34 to 0.81]). After adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, the association was attenuated (0.66 [0.43 to 1.01]). =Among the LS7 components, a more favorable body mass index was associated with less ventricular ectopy. We did not detect associations of total LS7 score with atrial arrhythmias. In conclusion, in this longitudinal study of older participants free of clinically recognized cardiovascular disease, there was little evidence of association of the LS7 cardiovascular health score with subclinical cardiac arrhythmias. However, there was a suggestion that a more favorable LS7 score was associated with fewer PVCs and specifically, that a more favorable body mass index was associated with fewer PVCs.
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