This story reports on new American Heart Association guidelines to help women lower their risk of cardiovascular disease.
But the story story sensationalized the incidence of heart disease and stroke by casting them as something nearly all American women are in danger of. While it is true that heart disease and stroke combine to be the most common cause of death of US women, the story failed to point out that although the same is true for men, women die, on average at older ages.
This is not to say that women ought not take their cardiovascular risk seriously, but to be most helpful to the reader, that risk needs to be placed in an understandable context.
No attempt was made to quantify the possible benefit in risk reduction.
The story did not mention how the guidelines were compiled, the nature of the clinical trials that were included or how these guidelines differ from those presented in 2004.
There was no mention of the costs of aspirin, but those costs are common knowledge.
Although this story did a comprehensive job of reporting the recommendations presented in the guidelines, it did not quantify the benefits to be obtained from the various means mentioned for lowering cardiovascular disease risk. While this is somewhat understandable because of the number of recommendations mentioned and space constraints, there did not appear to be any attempt to estimate the risk reduction to be gained from the various recommendations to better enable a reader to determine how to prioritize their efforts.
Harms of aspirin use, such as bleeding requiring transfusion and problems for individuals with uncontrolled hypertension were mentioned.
The evidence presented in this story derived from the newly published guidelines from the American Heart Association for heart disease prevention in women. The story did not mention how the guidelines were compiled, the nature of the clinical trials that were included or how these guidelines differ from those presented in 2004.
The story was clear about the guidelines' strong recommendation for daily aspirin intake for women at high risk. The story stated, "All other women should consider 81 mg. of aspirin daily", but then went on to say that this was controversial. The guidelines, however were clear, stating that "Routine use of aspirin in lower-risk women is not recommended pending the results of ongoing trials".
The story sensationalizes the incidence of heart disease and stroke by casting them as something nearly all American women are in danger of. While it is true that heart disease and stroke combine to be the most common cause of death of US women, the story failed to point out that although the same is true for men, women die, on average at older ages.
This is not to say that women ought not take their cardiovascular risk seriously, but to be most helpful to the reader, that risk needs to be placed in an understandable context.
The story included quotes from two of the American Heart Association guideline authors and several additional experts in the field without overt ties to the new recommendations.
The story included a comprehensive list of things that women can do to lower their risk of cardiovascular disease.
The story mentions that aspirin is available at drug stores.
This story reported on a set of guidelines about cardiovascular disease prevention in women; similar guidelines for cardiovascular disease prevention in men have been presented. It neglected to mention that this is an update of the guidelines issued in 2004 and failed to highlight what is new.
It is unlikely that this piece relied solely or largely on a press release.
Systematic, Criteria-Driven
Monday at #ADA2021, an infectious disease epidemiologist, a journalist, and a researcher shared perspectives on communication of risk in the era of COVID-19: http://ow.ly/ROfR30rMeE7 @AstleyCM @garyschwitzer @berthahidalgo @ADA_DiabetesPro
Shoutouts to @susan_bewley @drkevinknopf @MichaelBaum11 in this call for more than fawning coverage from press releases for these kinds of stories.
Also, linked history inside goes back 5 years just on Grail apparently trying to become Holy Grail. https://twitter.com/garyschwitzer/status/1408849696416841731
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