title: Racial differences in sudden cardiac death.
abstract: There is an increased risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), in African Americans, the basis of which is likely multifactorial. African Americans have higher rates of traditional cardiac risk factors including hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, diabetes, coronary heart disease, and heart failure. There are also significant disparities in health care delivery. While these factors undoubtedly affect health outcomes, there is also growing evidence that genetics may have a significant impact as well. In this paper, we discuss data and hypotheses in support of both sides of the controversy around racial differences in SCD/SCA.
authors.affiliation: The Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
authors.forename: Erin A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Fender
authors.affiliation: The Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
authors.forename: Charles A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Henrikson
authors.affiliation: The Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA. Electronic address: tereshch@ohsu.edu.
authors.forename: Larisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tereshchenko
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People
keywords: Race; Sudden cardiac death