Can Social Isolation, Loneliness Be Associated With Cardiovascular Disease?

A study published in Heart that followed 479,054 participants for more than seven years found that persons reporting social isolation and loneliness had a 1.4-fold to 1.5-fold greater risk of incident acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and stroke, reports Cardiovascular Business . "However, approximately 85 percent of this excess risk was attributable to known risk factors such as obesity, smoking, low education, and pre-existing chronic illness," the researchers note. In the follow-up period, the researchers estimated that more than 12,000 participants had died, with 5,731 having AMI and 3,471 having stroke. Of those who died during follow-up, 16 percent had AMI and 24 percent had stroke. The outcomes of the follow-up ascertained that isolation and loneliness significantly elevated a person's risk of cardiovascular problems. Isolation was associated with a 43 percent higher risk of first-time AMI and a 39 percent higher risk of first-time stroke. Meanwhile, loneliness was associated with a 49 percent greater risk for first-time AMI and 36 percent for first-time stroke. Following adjustment for biological, health, and socioeconomic risk factors, isolation only raised the risk of AMI and stroke by 7 percent and 6 percent, respectively, while loneliness increased the risk of AMI and stroke by 6 percent and 4 percent, respectively. Social isolation increased an individual's chance of AMI by 25 percent and the chance of stroke by 32 percent in persons with preexisting chronic conditions.