Health: Certain medications may impact risk of heat-related heart attacks

 
　Patients taking antiplatelet drugs and beta-blockers may be at increased risk of heat-related nonfatal heart attacks, according to a paper.Nature Cardiovascular Research will be published inHowever, more research is needed to confirm that this effect is real.

　Cold and heat are well-established triggers for heart attacks, and previous epidemiological studies suggest that a global warming of 2°C or 3°C would probably increase heat-related heart attacks. ing.

　Kai Chen and colleagues analyzed data from 2001 heart attack patients in Augsburg, Germany, between May and September 2014-5, comparing patients' clinical information with daily weather information and drug administration.Among the reported medications, they found that patients receiving antiplatelet drugs and beta-blockers (both of which are widely prescribed drugs for cardiovascular disease) were more likely to be found an increased risk of heat-related non-fatal heart attacks.

　The effect was also stronger in younger patients (25-59 years) with a lower prevalence of underlying coronary heart disease than in older patients (60-74 years).However, given the nature of the data, patients on antiplatelet drugs and beta-blockers were more ill and had heat-related heart attacks due to the severity of their underlying illness. The authors say they are more susceptible to cancer and cannot rule out the possibility that it increases the risk.To answer this question, further studies with larger patient populations are needed.

Chen et al. say that these findings may help develop targeted therapeutic strategies to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease associated with rising temperatures.

 
* This article is reprinted from "Nature Japan Featured Highlights".
Reprinted from: "Health: Certain medications may affect heat-related heart attack risk'