男同性恋者和双性恋女性患高血压的几率更高
By Thor Christensen, American Heart Association News
男同性恋者和双性恋者可能比异性恋者有更高的高血压发病率, according to new research.
该研究分析了424,255名参与者的自我报告数据，其中包括1名.8% who were gay or lesbian and 2.3% who were bisexual. After adjusting for demographics, insurance, body mass index and smoking status, 研究人员发现，与异性恋同龄人相比，男同性恋者患高血压的可能性高出24%，双性恋女性患高血压的可能性高出17%.
The findings 将于周六在美国心脏协会的虚拟科学会议上发表. 在同行评议的期刊上发表之前，它们被认为是初步的.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is called a "silent killer" because it often has no obvious symptoms. When left untreated, it can contribute to heart attacks and strokes. According to AHA statistics, about half of all U.S. adults have high blood pressure, 其中超过三分之一的人甚至可能没有意识到自己患有糖尿病.
首席研究员Yashika Sharma说，她对研究结果并不感到惊讶.
“有充分的证据表明，性少数的成年人患高血压的风险因素更高, such as tobacco use, short sleep duration and obesity, than heterosexual adults," said Sharma, 她是纽约哥伦比亚大学护理学院的博士生.
近年来，科学家们收集了一些证据来解释这种差异存在的原因. Gay, 女同性恋和双性恋成年人“在一生中都会经历严重的心理社会压力，这些压力会损害他们的心血管健康," according to an AHA scientific statement last year on heart health in LGBTQ adults.
However, 夏尔马惊讶地发现，被诊断患有高血压的男同性恋者服用药物治疗的可能性要高出32%, compared to heterosexual men. At the same time, 研究发现，双性恋女性使用降压药的可能性比异性恋女性低30%. 这一数字与之前的研究一致，即“某些性少数群体的成年人倾向于推迟医疗保健。," Sharma said.
夏尔马说，医疗专业人员需要更积极主动地筛查LGB成年人的高血压, and schools for health professions such as doctors, 护士和医师助理需要更好地向学生讲授LGB健康差异. 她呼吁未来的研究来检查哪些因素对高血压的影响最大，哪些干预措施对同性恋者最有效, lesbian and bisexual adults.
Dr. Carl Streed, who was not involved in the study, 说这项研究是有限的，因为数据是自我报告的，没有关于酒精摄入量的信息, a hypertension risk factor with higher rates in the gay, lesbian and bisexual community.
Still, 这项研究“符合我们对少数民族压力理论的更大理解, which attempts to explain how marginalized identities, such as sexual identity, are associated with worse health outcomes. How society treats marginalized populations, such as lesbian, gay and bisexual persons, has measurable negative effects on health, such as hypertension," said Streed, 她是美国心脏协会关于LGBTQ社区心脏健康声明的合著者.
Streed, an assistant professor at Boston University School of Medicine, 呼吁公共卫生专业人员“从上游寻找这些差异的原因”，并敦促人们感到有能力倡导自己的健康, including their blood pressure.
“虽然社会承担着个人和社区必须做得更好的负担, 患者必须倡导自己的健康，并寻求适当的治疗, including but not limited to medication," Streed said.
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