Sudden Cardiac Death in Women

Despite recent progress in profiling of risk for sudden cardiac death (SCD) and prevention and intervention of cardiac diseases, SCD remains a major cause of death. Among women, the incidence of SCD is significant, but lower than in men, particularly in the premenopausal and early postmenopausal years. Possibly, as a consequence of the difference in population burden, the mechanisms and risk markers of SCD are not as well defined for women. The aim of this study was to determine the autopsy findings and causes of death among women in a large SCD population. Additionally, we sought to classify prior ECG characteristics in male and female subjects with SCD. The Fingesture study has systematically collected clinical and autopsy data from subjects with SCD in Northern Finland between 1998 and 2017. The cohort consists of 5869 subjects with SCD. Previously recorded ECGs were available and analyzed in 1101 subjects (18.8% of total population; and in 25.3% of women). Female subjects with SCD were significantly older than men: 70.1±13.1 years versus 63.5±11.8 years (mean ± standard deviation, P