Socioeconomic Inequalities in the Morbidity and Mortality of Acute Coronary Events in Finland: 1988 to 2002

Purpose To examine the changes in socioeconomic disparities in the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and mortality in Finland and to analyze the effects of the severe economic recession of the early 1990s on these disparities. Methods The population-based FINAMI Myocardial Infarction (MI) register recorded all suspected MI events among men and women ages 35 to 99 years in four geographical areas of Finland. Record linkage with the files of Statistics Finland provided us with detailed information on the indicators of socioeconomic status (SES; income, education, and profession). Rates were expressed per 100,000 inhabitants of each socioeconomic group per year and age-standardized to the European standard population. Poisson regression was used for analyzing rate ratios and time trends of coronary events in different socioeconomic groups. Results The mortality rate ratio of coronary events among 35- to 64 year-old men was 5.21 (95% confidence interval, 4.23–6.41) when the lowest income sixth to the highest income sixth were compared. Among women, the respective rate ratio was 11.13 (5.77–21.45). Significant differences in the incidence and 28-day mortality by SES were seen also in the older age groups. Some socioeconomic differences were found in the proportions of patients receiving thrombolysis or undergoing early revascularization. No substantial changes were observed in inequalities between the socioeconomic groups during the study period. Conclusions The excess CHD morbidity and mortality among persons with lower SES is still considerable in Finland, but the economic recession did not widen the differences.