Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government

VA Health Systems Research

Go to the VA ORD website
Go to the QUERI website

HSR&D Citation Abstract

Search | Search by Center | Search by Source | Keywords in Title

Effects of Cardiovascular Health Shocks on Spouses' Work and Earnings: A National Study.

Jeon SH, Stepner M, Rotermann M, Fransoo R, Sanmartin C, Scales DC, Wunsch H, Iwashyna TJ, Garland A. Effects of Cardiovascular Health Shocks on Spouses' Work and Earnings: A National Study. Medical care. 2020 Feb 1; 58(2):128-136.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.
   Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions



Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Acute health shocks can reduce the ability to work and earn among working-age survivors. The full economic impact includes labor market effects on spouses/partners, but there is a knowledge gap in this area. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to assess how 3 common health shocks, acute myocardial infarction, stroke, and cardiac arrest, influence work and earnings of spouses aged 35-61 years. RESEARCH DESIGN: This retrospective cohort study of case and control couples used population-based, linked Canadian income tax and hospitalization data from 2005 to 2013. SUBJECTS: Case couples comprised 1 partner aged 41-61 years who experienced a health shock in the index year and survived 3 years hence, and a working-age partner. Control couples were matched up to 5:1 on 12 characteristics, with neither experiencing the health shock of interest in the index year. MEASURES: Primary outcome was the change in spousal annual earnings between the year prior and 3 years after the event. Pre-to-post spousal income changes were categorized into 9 levels and compared between case spouses and control spouses by the Pearson ? test. RESULTS: There were 11,208 matched case couples for acute myocardial infarction, 622 for cardiac arrest, and 2288 for stroke. Overall, case and control spouses experienced similar distributional changes in preevent to postevent earning (all P = 0.27). Heterogeneity analysis indicated that spouses of more severe stroke sufferers ceased working at a higher rate than for control spouses. CONCLUSION: Beyond assessing average values, detailed analysis of changes in spousal earnings after common cardiovascular health shocks did not demonstrate effects attributable to those health shocks.





Questions about the HSR website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.