Out of Hospital Sudden Cardiac Death Among Physically Active and Inactive Married Persons Younger than 65 Years in Slovenia

Journal of Clinical and Basic Cardiology 2003; 6 (1-4): 63-67

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Keywords: Kardiologie,  plötzlicher Herztod,  Slowenien,  Training,  cardiology,  physical activity,  Slovenia,  sudden cardiac death

Methods: A sedentary life style has been shown to increase the risk of coronary artery disease, a precursor of sudden cardiac death, while regular physical activity prevents atherosclerosis. In an out of hospital cardiac death study in Slovenia, case crossover design was used to investigate physical activity as a potential trigger of sudden cardiac death in connection with certain life style, biological and social risk factors. Results: In the study, 206 sudden cardiac deaths were selected: 166 men and 40 women with median age at death 57.8 and 59.0 years, respectively. The relative risk of dying during or within one hour after terminating physical activity of at least 6 metabolic equivalents was 3.0 in comparison to time without activity. The relative risk of people who performed 1.5 hours or more physical activity per week was 2.55 (95 % confidence limits: 1.69-3.84), opposed to 49.90 (confidence limits: 18.73-132.96) for persons who performed less activity. According to the observed characteristics the risk of dying for inactive sudden cardiac victims was 17.13 to 25.89 (95 % confidence limits: 11.28-44.60) times higher in comparison to physically active persons. Persons who drank more than 4 international units of alcohol per day, positive family history, ischaemic heart disease and a heart rate of more than 90 beats/minute had the highest risk. Conclusion: The results confirmed that the risk of dying due to sudden cardiac death during physical activity depends on the degree of physical activity regularly performed and the existing risk factors.