The results have been published in the Journal of American Heart Association. 

The study is the world’s largest study to examine this issue and used data from half a million people undergoing kidney dialysis obtained from the United States Renal Data Systems (USRDS).  

The research has been awarded the prestigious Annual Dr Nanette K. Wenger Research Award for the Best Scientific Article on Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke in Women at the 2024 American Heart Association Conference in Chicago.  

Cardiovascular disease affects over 85% of patients with kidney failure and is the leading cause of death in these patients. Compared to general population, patients with kidney failure are 10-20 times more likely to suffer from a cardiovascular event or death.  

The researchers evaluated 508, 822 patients who began dialysis between 2005 and 2014. They looked at hospitalisation rates for cardiovascular events, including heart failure and stroke, and examined the association of sex with outcome of these events including cardiovascular death, and all‐cause death.  

They found that women had a 16% higher risk of stroke, and a 31% higher risk of heart failure compared to men. However, they also found that women have a lower risk of cardiovascular death and all‐cause death.  

Commenting on the results, as the Senior Author on the study, Professor Charuhas Thakar from the Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine at Queen’s University Belfast, explains: “Despite being a common risk, clinical trials for treatment of cardiovascular disease are underrepresented by patients with kidney failure, particularly women with kidney failure.  

“Our data suggests that among patients on dialysis, efforts for the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease and health promotion should be updated to take sex into account to ensure better outcomes for women suffering with kidney disease.” 

Lead Author on the study, Dr Silvi Shah, Associate Professor of Medicine at University of Cincinnati said: “The reasons for these sex disparities remain only partially understood. Future research needs to consider these findings while planning patient-centric interventions in improving cardiovascular health in women with kidney failure.” 

The research was supported in part by funding from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, USA.