GRAY HAIR, BALDNESS, AND WRINKLES IN RELATION TO MYOCARDIAL-INFARCTION - THE COPENHAGEN CITY HEART-STUDY

To investigate a possible relation between aging signs such as graying of the hair, baldness, and facial wrinkling and myocardial infarction (MI), we analyzed data from The Copenhagen City Heart Study. During t he 12-year follow-up, 750 cases of first-time MI were observed. After statistical adjustment for possible confounders, we found a correlatio n between graying of the hair, facial wrinkling, and frontoparietal ba ldness and crown-top baldness and MI in men. For example, the relative risk was 1.4 (95% Cl, 0.9 to 2.0) for men with moderately gray hair c ompared with men with no gray hair and 1.9 (1.2 to 2.8) for men with c ompletely gray hair (p < 0.001). With regard to gray hair, a similar a lthough weaker and not statistically significant trend was seen in wom en. We conclude that, in addition to established coronary risk factors , aging signs like graying of the hair, male baldness, and facial wrin kling indicate an additional risk of MI.