Alcohol consumption and long-term mortality in men with or without a history of myocardial infarction

The evidence for the impact of alcohol consumption on long-term mortality among myocardial infarction (MI) survivors is limited. A team of researchers in Japan examined whether alcohol consumption was associated with cause-specific and all-cause mortality in men with or without a history of MI.
A total of 32,004 men aged 40-79 years with no history of MI and 1,137 male MI survivors, free of stroke and cancer, were followed through the end of 2009. Alcohol consumption was assessed using self-administered questionnaires at baseline and five years.
In MI survivors, consuming 23-45 g/day of alcohol was associated with a lower risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality compared to never drinkers: the multivariable hazard ratio was 0.36 (95% confidence interval: 0.16-0.80). In non-MI men, a 10-26% lower risk was observed at <23 or 23-45 g/day with the U-shaped association for CHD, cardiovascular disease, other causes, and all causes.
Alcohol consumption of 23-45 g/day was associated with a lower CHD mortality in MI survivors as so in men without MI, the authors conclude.
Source: Isao Muraki, Hiroyasu Iso, et al. Alcohol Consumption and Long-Term Mortality in Men with or without a History of Myocardial Infarction, Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis, Article ID 63517, Advance online publication July 01, 2022, Online ISSN 1880-3873, Print ISSN 1340-3478