Heart bypass surgery: marriage linked to longer survival
22 August 2011
A happy marriage is linked to a higher likelihood of survival after heart bypass surgery, researchers have found.
In a study of 225 US patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery - a surgical treatment for narrowed blood vessels around the heart - researchers found married patients were more than twice as likely as unmarried patients to be alive 15 years after surgery.
It is the first study to link marital satisfaction to survival after bypass surgery, the researchers said in the journal Health Psychology (2011, online 22 Aug).
They found men had a survival benefit from marriage, whether or not it was a happy union, whereas women in an unsatisfying relationship saw no benefit, while those highly satisfied with their marriage had a 4-fold boost to survival chances.
Support from a spouse may lead patients to adopt specific healthy habits, the researchers suggested.
Last Reviewed: 22 August 2011
- 1. King KB, Reis HT. Marriage and long-term survival after coronary artery bypass grafting. Health Psychol 2011 Aug 22. [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1037/a0025061. http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2011-18545-001/ (accessed Aug 2011).
