This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 105/19/2247    most recent 01.CIR.0000016345.58696.4Fv1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wagner, A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Wagner, A. Related Collections Acute coronary syndromes Acute myocardial infarction Epidemiology

(Circulation. 2002;105:2247.)
© 2002 American Heart Association, Inc.

Clinical Investigation and Reports

Physical Activity and Coronary Event Incidence in Northern Ireland and France

The Prospective Epidemiological Study of Myocardial Infarction (PRIME)

Aline Wagner, MD; Chantal Simon, MD, PhD; Alun Evans, MD; Jean Ferrières, MD; Michèle Montaye, MD; Pierre Ducimetière, PhD; Dominique Arveiler, MD, on behalf of the PRIME Study Group

From Laboratoire d’Epidémiologie et de Santé Publique, Strasbourg, France (A.W., D.A.); Groupe d’Etudes et de Recherche en Nutrition, Strasbourg, France (C.S.); the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, The Queen’s University Belfast, United Kingdom (A.E.); INSERM U558, Département d’Epidémiologie, Toulouse, France (J.F.); INSERM U508, Institut Pasteur, 59019 Lille, France (M.M.); and INSERM U258, Villejuif Cedex, France (P.D.).

Correspondence to Dr Chantal Simon, Service de Médecine Interne et de Nutrition, Hôpital de Hautepierre, 67098 Strasbourg Cedex, France. E-mail chantal.simon{at}medecine.u-strasbg.fr

Background— The influence of physical activity on the incidence of angina pectoris and hard coronary events (myocardial infarction and coronary deaths) was examined in Northern Ireland and France at contrasting risk for coronary heart disease (CHD) and with different physical activity patterns.

Methods and Results— Participants of the Prospective Epidemiological Study of Myocardial Infarction (PRIME) (n=9758; age, 50 to 59 years), free of CHD at baseline, were followed up for 5 years: 167 hard CHD and 154 angina events were recorded. Net energy expenditure (EE) as the result of physical activity was assessed by means of the MONICA Optional Study of Physical Activity Questionnaire (MOSPA-Q). Leisure-time physical activity EE was calculated; subjects were also categorized as to whether they performed high-intensity leisure-time activities or walked or cycled to work. After multivariate adjustment, leisure-time physical activity EE was associated with a lower risk of hard CHD events (P<0.04), whereas walking or cycling to work was not independently related to hard CHD events. No interaction by country was found. The beneficial effect of leisure-time physical activity was also present among subjects who did not report high-intensity activities (P<0.04), with similar results in France and Northern Ireland. In contrast, an increasing level of leisure-time physical activity was associated with a higher risk of angina in both countries.

Conclusions— These data indicate a beneficial effect of leisure-time physical activity EE on hard CHD incidence in middle-aged men, which could partly explain the unfavorable rate of CHD in Northern Ireland. The higher level of leisure-time activities in France could, in part, explain its lower rate of CHD.

Key Words: angina • coronary disease • follow-up studies • men • exercise

This article has been cited by other articles:

				P. K Myint, R. N Luben, N. J Wareham, S. A Bingham, and K.-T. Khaw Combined effect of health behaviours and risk of first ever stroke in 20 040 men and women over 11 years' follow-up in Norfolk cohort of European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (EPIC Norfolk): prospective population study BMJ, February 19, 2009; 338(feb19_2): b349 - b349. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				O. H. Franco, C. de Laet, A. Peeters, J. Jonker, J. Mackenbach, and W. Nusselder Effects of Physical Activity on Life Expectancy With Cardiovascular Disease Arch Intern Med, November 14, 2005; 165(20): 2355 - 2360. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. Noda, H. Iso, H. Toyoshima, C. Date, A. Yamamoto, S. Kikuchi, A. Koizumi, T. Kondo, Y. Watanabe, Y. Wada, et al. Walking and Sports Participation and Mortality From Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., November 1, 2005; 46(9): 1761 - 1767. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Freimann, M. Scheinowitz, D. Yekutieli, M. S. Feinberg, M. Eldar, and G. Kessler-Icekson Prior exercise training improves the outcome of acute myocardial infarction in the rat: Heart structure, function, and gene expression J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., March 15, 2005; 45(6): 931 - 938. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K Woolf-May, S Bird, and P D MacIntyre Physical activity levels during phase IV cardiac rehabilitation in a group of male myocardial infarction patients * Commentary Br. J. Sports Med., March 1, 2005; 39(3): e12 - e12. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. Buchheit, C. Simon, F. Piquard, J. Ehrhart, and G. Brandenberger Effects of increased training load on vagal-related indexes of heart rate variability: a novel sleep approach Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, December 1, 2004; 287(6): H2813 - H2818. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C.-C. Yang, S. S. Jick, and H. Jick Lipid-Lowering Drugs and the Risk of Depression and Suicidal Behavior Arch Intern Med, September 8, 2003; 163(16): 1926 - 1932. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K A Grindulis, G Bhatia, R Davis, M Sosin, D Connolly, and F Khattak Osteoarthritis and cardiovascular death Ann Rheum Dis, May 1, 2003; 62(5): 495 - 495. [Full Text]