Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To elucidate the interplay between genetic predisposition and cardiovascular health (CVH) factors in individuals with pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy sarcomere-encoding genes (SARC-HCM-P/LP).
METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used data from the UK Biobank, including 159,375 participants aged 40 to 69 years with whole exome sequencing data and no baseline cardiovascular disease. Participants were stratified into 2 groups based on the presence of SARC-HCM-P/LP variants (SARC-HCM-P/LP vs SARC-NEG). Cardiovascular health was assessed by the Life’s Essential 8 score, categorizing participants into favorable, intermediate, and unfavorable CVH profiles. The primary outcome was a composite of heart failure, arrhythmias, and cardiovascular mortality. Adjusted Cox models examined the association between genetic variant status, CVH, and risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes.
RESULTS: Of 159,375 participants, 446 were SARC-HCM-P/LP carriers (median age, 56 years; 47.3% male). The median Life’s Essential 8 score was similar between SARC-HCM-P/LP and SARC-NEG groups (68.1 vs 66.9; P=.36). Compared with SARC-NEG carriers with favorable CVH, the risk of the primary outcome was higher in SARC-NEG carriers with intermediate (adjusted hazard ratio [HRadj), 1.14; 95% CI, 1.10 to 1.18) and unfavorable (HRadj, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.47 to 1.58) CVH profiles. Importantly, SARC-HCM-P/LP carriers, regardless of CVH profile, had a significantly higher risk of the primary outcome with favorable (HRadj, 2.12; 95% CI, 1.45 to 3.09), intermediate (HRadj, 2.19; 95% CI, 1.51 to 3.18), and unfavorable (HRadj, 2.30; 95% CI, 1.65 to 3.19) profiles.
CONCLUSION: SARC-HCM-P/LP carriers remain at elevated cardiovascular risk despite favorable CVH, highlighting the significant role of genetics in this population.