Circulation
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Racial Differences in Sudden Cardiac Death.
Blacks have a higher incidence of out-of-hospital sudden cardiac death (SCD) in comparison with whites. However, the racial differences in the cumulative risk of SCD and the reasons for these differences have not been assessed in large-scale community-based cohorts. The objective of this study is to compare the lifetime cumulative risk of SCD among blacks and whites, and to evaluate the risk factors that may explain racial differences in SCD risk in the general population. ⋯ Blacks had a much higher risk for SCD in comparison with whites, particularly among women. Income, education, and traditional risk factors explained ≈65% of the race difference in SCD. The high burden of SCD and the racial-gender disparities observed in our study represent a major public health and clinical problem.