History of non-fatal cardiovascular disease in a cohort of Dutch and British patients with haemophilia

Objective Cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality is reported to be lower in haemophilia patients than in the general population, but information on the occurrence of non-fatal CVD is lacking. The aim of our study was to assess CVD history in a cohort of living haemophilia patients. Methods Retrospective data on the occurrence of myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, ischaemic stroke and intracranial bleeding in 709 living Dutch and British haemophilia patients aged 30 similar to yr or older were analysed and compared with the general age-matched male population. Results There was a trend towards a lower cumulative incidence of myocardial infarction (1.7% vs. 4.0%) and ischaemic stroke (0% vs. 1.5%) in patients with severe haemophilia than in the general population, while the occurrence of angina pectoris was similar (3.2 vs. 3.7%). As expected, the cumulative incidence of intracranial bleeding was, on the other hand, significantly increased in haemophilia patients (1.6% vs. 0.4% in the general population). Conclusion Our results suggest a protective effect of severe haemophilia against acute ischaemic CVD.