Infertility appears linked to women’s risk of heart problems, an evidence review suggests.

Women who are infertile have an increased risk of heart disease and stroke, with the risk highest among younger women and those who undergo fertility treatment, researchers reported in Copenhagen, Denmark, recently at a joint meeting of the European Society of Pediatric Endocrinology and the European Society of Endocrinology.

The study “suggests that infertility could be an early warning sign for future heart health issues,” lead researcher Dr. Elena Armeni said in a news release. She’s an endocrinologist with the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in Greece.

For their review, researchers pooled data from 21 studies involving nearly 179,000 women with infertility and nearly 3.4 million women without fertility issues.

The team compared heart health indicators between the two groups and found that infertile women had a:

• 17% increased risk of heart disease.

• 16% increased risk of stroke.

• 14% increased risk of health conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels.

Younger women bore the greatest risk, with 20% higher odds of heart disease among those under 40, results show.

Heart health risk also was 18% greater in women who underwent fertility treatments, researchers noted.

“Recognizing infertility as a potential early marker for cardiovascular disease could help doctors identify women who may need closer monitoring or preventive strategies earlier in life,” Armeni said. “It also raises important questions about the long-term effects of fertility treatments like assisted reproductive technology treatments.”

Researchers next plan to follow women over time to gain a better understanding why fertility might influence heart health.

“We hope to clarify the biological mechanisms behind these associations and identify which groups are at greatest risk,” Armeni said. “Ultimately, this will help shape future guidelines for early prevention strategies and improve cardiovascular care for women with a history of infertility.”

Findings presented at medical meetings should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.