Prevention & lipidsCross-sectional study
Social Determinants of Health, Cardiovascular Health, and Mortality in Sexual Minority Individuals in the United States
- Cross-sectional study
- National Health Interview Survey 2013–2017
- National Death Index linkage
Authors' conclusion
An unfavorable SDOH profile was associated with worse CVH scores and higher cardiovascular mortality risk among SM individuals in the United States compared to their heterosexual counterparts.
Study context
- Population
- US adults aged ≥18 years surveyed in the 2013 to 2017 National Health Interview Surveyrepresenting 82,826,690 persons
- Participants
- 57,182 adults
- Exposure
- Worse vs better composite social determinants of health (SDOH) score, sexual minority vs heterosexual individuals
- Outcome
- CVH score (7-item, adapted from AHA Life's Essential 8; higher = worse CVH)
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Worse CVH score per worse composite SDOH score
Adjusted rate ratio (95% CI)P value
Heterosexual
1.14(1.13–1.15)
P < 0.001SM
1.16(1.12–1.20)
P < 0.001Per worse composite SDOH score, as printed
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | adjusted HR (95% CI) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| CV mortality per worse composite SDOH score (exploratory) — Heterosexual · exploratory analysis | 1.17 (1.06–1.28) | P = 0.002 | |
| CV mortality per worse composite SDOH score (exploratory) — SM · exploratory analysis | 2.25 (1.24–4.08) | P = 0.008 | |
| 0.20.5125Adjusted hazard ratio (log scale) |
- CV mortality per worse composite SDOH score (exploratory): P interaction = 0.006
Worse cardiovascular health (CVH) score per worse SDOH score, by sexual minority (SM) subgroup
- Consistent associations among gay/lesbian and bisexual individuals, but not in those with other or uncertain sexual orientations
Original publication
Social Determinants of Health, Cardiovascular Health, and Mortality in Sexual Minority Individuals in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol. Published 11 February 2025. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2024.11.026
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it