Transgender adults in rural America may have more risks for cardiovascular disease

Transgender adults in rural America may be more likely to develop risk factors – including obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes – that can lead to cardiovascular disease and death than their non-transgender peers, new research suggests.

The findings are the latest in a growing body of evidence that underscores the need for stronger health interventions that help reduce disparities that many transgender individuals face, particularly in rural areas, that make them more at risk for heart disease and other cardiovascular conditions. The new research will be presented Sunday at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions conference in Philadelphia. The findings are considered preliminary until full results are published in a peer-reviewed journal.

"With these findings, we can intentionally work towards improving the overall health and well-being of transgender individuals and reducing their cardiovascular risk," the study's lead researcher, Dr. Ebubechukwu Ezeh, said in a news release. He is a cardiovascular disease fellow at the University of Kansas in Kansas City. "Because our study population is relatively young, we believe that early intervention may reduce the future risks of death from cardiovascular causes."

The study included 89 self-reported transgender adults and 69 randomly selected non-transgender, or cisgender, individuals who lived in Huntington, West Virginia, and neighboring rural areas of Ohio and Kentucky between November 2022 and February 2023. The participants in both groups were 29 years old on average. Researchers found that transgender participants had more than six times higher odds of using tobacco and were about four times more...