Myelodysplastic syndromes tied to incident cardiovascular disease

Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is independently associated with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a study published online Nov. 10 in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology.

Hiroyuki Aoki, M.D., from the University of Tokyo, and colleagues evaluated the association between MDS and incident CVD. The analysis included nearly 1.14 million individuals without prior CVD identified from the DeSC database (DeSC Healthcare Inc., Tokyo; April 2014 to August 2023).

The researchers found that during a mean follow-up of 3.5 years, 121,265 individuals experienced CVD events. There was a significant association between MDS and the composite CVD outcome of ischemic heart disease (IHD), stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation (hazard ratio [HR], 1.86), as well as with each individual outcome: IHD (HR, 1.62), stroke (HR, 1.82), heart failure (HR, 1.81), and atrial fibrillation (HR, 2.26). Findings persisted across age, sex, and anemia status.

“MDS was independently associated with incident CVD, including ischemic heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation,” the authors write. “MDS should be recognized as an independent cardiovascular risk factor in both clinical practice and public health strategies.”

Two authors disclosed ties to the medical device industry.

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