WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) — Individuals of Hispanic/Latino background with known peripheral artery disease (PAD) have the lowest use of all classes of cardiovascular medications, according to a study published online Aug. 5 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Simin Hua, from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, and colleagues examined the use of cardiovascular therapies in 1,244 Hispanic/Latino individuals recruited from four U.S. sites, including 826 individuals with a physician-reported diagnosis of PAD and 418 individuals with coronary artery disease alone.
The researchers found that for individuals with PAD, the overall prevalence of taking antiplatelet therapy and lipid-lowering therapy was 31 and 26 percent, respectively; the prevalence of taking antihypertensive therapy was 57 percent among those with hypertension. For all classes of cardiovascular medications, use was lowest for individuals of Mexican background. In adjusted models, there were significant associations seen for older age, number of doctor visits, and existing hypertension and diabetes mellitus with taking cardiovascular therapies. Individuals with PAD and concurrent coronary artery disease had an increased likelihood of using antiplatelet agents and statins compared with those with PAD alone (prevalence ratios, 1.52 and 1.74, respectively) in a multivariable analysis.
“We believe our findings provide crucial evidence on the treatment status of Hispanic/Latino population with PAD in the United States, identifying a clear area of need in improving cardiovascular outcomes among this important race-ethnic minority group,” the authors write.
One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.
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