Going Back To Understand the Future: Socioeconomic Position and Survival after Myocardial Infarction
Authors: George A. Kaplan
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2006)

Editorials17 January 2006Going Back To Understand the Future: Socioeconomic Position and Survival after Myocardial InfarctionGeorge A. Kaplan, PhDGeorge A. Kaplan, PhDFrom the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-144-2-200601170-00012 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Do we really need another paper on socioeconomic inequalities in health? After all, we have known for decades (or centuries, as some would say [1]) that, for most health outcomes, the rich do better and the poor do worse (2). After a literature search (3), I found that the rate at which articles were being published on this topic was more than 300 papers per month. When I recently updated the search, the exponential increase in publications had not abated in the slightest. We hear whispers of "enough studies, it's time to intervene," and yet more and more submissions arrive ...References1. Antonovsky A. Social class, life expectancy and overall mortality. Milbank Mem Fund Q. 1967;45:31-73. [PMID: 6034566] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Kaplan GA, Haan MN, Syme SL, Minkler M, Winkleby M. Socioeconomic status and health.. In: Amler RW, Dull HB, eds. Closing the Gap: The Burden of Unnecessary Illness. New York: Oxford Univ Pr; 1987:125-9. Google Scholar3. Kaplan GA, Lynch JW. Whither studies on the socioeconomic foundations of population health? [Editorial]. Am J Public Health. 1997;87:1409-11. [PMID: 9314787] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Lynch JW, Smith GD, Kaplan GA, House JS. Income inequality and mortality: importance to health of individual income, psychosocial environment, or material conditions. BMJ. 2000;320:1200-4. [PMID: 10784551] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Bruner E, Marmot M. Social organization, stress, and health.. In: Marmot M, Wilkinson RG, eds. Social Determinants of Health. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford Univ Pr; 2005:6-30. Google Scholar6. Davey Smith G. Health Inequalities: Lifecourse Approaches. Bristol: Policy Pr; 2003. Google Scholar7. Kaplan GA. People and places: contrasting perspectives on the association between social class and health. Int J Health Serv. 1996;26:507-19. [PMID: 8840199] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Fiscella K, Franks P, Gold MR, Clancy CM. Inequality in quality: addressing socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic disparities in health care. JAMA. 2000;283:2579-84. [PMID: 10815125] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Alter DA, Chong A, Austin PC, Mustard C, Iron K, Williams JI, et al. Socioeconomic status and mortality after myocardial infarction. Ann Intern Med. 2006;144:82-93. LinkGoogle Scholar10. Williams RB, Barefoot JC, Califf RM, Haney TL, Saunders WB, Pryor DB, et al. Prognostic importance of social and economic resources among medically treated patients with angiographically documented coronary artery disease. JAMA. 1992;267:520-4. [PMID: 1729574] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar11. Rose G. The Strategy of Preventive Medicine. Oxford: Oxford Univ Pr; 1992. Google Scholar12. Lynch JW, Kaplan GA. Socioeconomic position.. In: Berkman LF, Kawachi I, eds. Social Epidemiology. New York: Oxford Univ Pr; 2000:13-35. Google Scholar13. Torrey BB, Haub C. A comparison of US and Canadian mortality in 1998. Popul Dev Rev. 2004;30:519-32. CrossrefGoogle Scholar14. Gorey KM, Holowary EJ, Fehringer G, Laukkanen E, Moskowitz A, Webster DJ, et al. An international comparison of cancer survival: Toronto, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, metropolitan areas. Am J Public Health. 1997;87:1156-63. [PMID: 9240106] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar15. Ross N, Wolfson M, Kaplan GA, Dunn JR, Lynch JW, Sanmartin C. Income inequality as a determinant of health.. In: Heymann J, Hertzman C, Barer ML, Evans RG, eds. Healthier Societies: From Analysis to Action. New York: Oxford Univ Pr; 2006:202-36. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.Grant Support: By Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health and Society Scholars Program and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R24 HD047861).Disclosures: None disclosed.Corresponding Author: George A. Kaplan, PhD, Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan School of Public Health and Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health, 1214 S. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48104; e-mail, [email protected]edu PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoSocioeconomic Status and Mortality after Acute Myocardial Infarction David A. Alter , Alice Chong , Peter C. Austin , Cameron Mustard , Karey Iron , Jack I. Williams , Christopher D. Morgan , Jack V. Tu , Jane Irvine , C. David Naylor , and Metrics Cited byPerceived Stress Is Associated With Incident Coronary Heart Disease and All‐Cause Mortality in Low‐ but Not High‐Income Participants in the Reasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke StudyInfluence of Socioeconomic Status on Lifestyle Behavior Modifications Among Survivors of Acute Myocardial InfarctionThe Metabolic Syndrome, Depression, and Cardiovascular Disease: Interrelated Conditions that Share Pathophysiologic Mechanisms 17 January 2006Volume 144, Issue 2Page: 137-139KeywordsCardiovascular diseasesDeath ratesHealth care qualityHeart diseasesHeart rateMedical risk factorsMyocardial infarctionPsychologyRevascularizationVascular diseases ePublished: 17 January 2006 Issue Published: 17 January 2006 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2006 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...