Poor diet quality is independently associated with a higher risk for recurrent major adverse
cardiovascular events (MACE) and major adverse limb events (MALE) in patients with chronic coronary
artery disease (CAD) or peripheral artery disease (PAD), according to a study published in the
European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. Sonia Anand, MD, PhD, FRCP(C), and colleagues examined the
relationship between dietary patterns and the risk for recurrent MACE and MALE in patients with CAD and
PAD. The analysis included data from 26,539 people from 33 countries. The incidence of MACE or MALE was
6.3% in the lowest diet-quality quartile (assessed by the modified Alternate Healthy Eating Index) versus
4.2% in the highest quartile over 30 months. For quartile 1 versus 4, in an adjusted analysis, lower-quality
diet was tied to a higher risk for MACE or MALE (HR, 1.27), with the excess hazard primarily driven by
higher MACE in both the CAD and PAD cohorts. “This is highly applicable globally because rather than saying
people need to stick to one rigid diet, these principles can be applied across multiple cultures,
countries, and ethnicities,” a coauthor said in a statement.
