Family History of Myocardial Infarction Is a Risk Factor for Venous Thromboembolism Among Whites But Not Among Blacks

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Fatima D. Mili, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; W. Craig Hooper, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Cathy Lally, Emory University; Harland Austin, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2013-07
• Publisher: SAGE Publications (UK and US): Open Access Titles
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: The Author(s) 2012
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1076029612448419
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Clinical and Applied Thrombosis/Hemostasis
• ISSN: 1076-0296
• Volume: 19
• Issue: 4
• Start Page: 410
• End Page: 417
• Grant/Funding Information: The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the Associations of Schools of Public Health/CDC Cooperative Agreement mechanism.
• Keywords: venous thrombosis; myocardial infarction; ethnicity; epidemiology; family history; comorbid condition
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Medicine and Surgery; Biology, Genetics

Abstract

In addition to potentially sharing common pathogenesis and clinical manifestations, venous and arterial thromboses might have overlapping risk factors. To evaluate the family history of myocardial infarction (MI) as a risk factor for venous thromboembolism (VTE) among whites and blacks, we analyze data from the Genetic Attributes and Thrombosis Epidemiology (GATE) study. Results indicate that the association between VTE and a family history of MI is statistically significant only among whites (odds ratio [OR] = 1.3; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03-1.8), particularly when they have diabetes mellitus (OR = 3.1; 95% CI = 1.2-8.0). Among blacks, the association between VTE and a family history of MI is not statistically significant (OR = 1.2; 95% CI = 0.89-1.5) either among those with diabetes or those without diabetes. We conclude that a family history of MI is a risk factor for VTE among certain populations stratified by race and comorbid conditions.