Married people may be more likely to survive a heart attack than those who are divorced or who never got married in the first place, researchers say.

In a preliminary study based on the medical records of 25,000 people, the team found that married individuals were 14% less likely to die from a heart attack than those who were single.

Divorced people fared worse than others, the researchers found, and had a 7% greater risk of death from heart attack than the single patients, perhaps because of the increased stress or social isolation they experienced.

The anonymised patients included in the study were diagnosed in hospitals in the north of England between January 2000 and March 2013. Those who took part had an average age of 67 and more than 60% were men, according to details presented at the British Cardiovascular Society conference in Manchester on Wednesday.

The researchers believe that the apparent health benefits of marriage are not particular to the institution itself, but instead reflect the greater mental and physical support that married patients may enjoy.

Nicholas Gollop, a medical research fellow at the University of East Anglia, also saw effects on the time people spent recovering in hospital. He said that people who were married or living with their partner remained in hospital for an average of only six days after experiencing a heart attack, a full two days less than single patients. Divorced patients stayed in hospital for seven days on average.

“There seems to be something about divorce and the surrounding circumstances and stresses which has a negative impact on mortality and, or, the length of stay,” he said.

Rahul Potluri, founder of the ACALM study unit that performed the work at Aston University, said the findings held important lessons for doctors who treat and rehabilitate seriously ill patients. “It’s not that people should get married after a heart attack, but there may be ways to improve post heart attack rehabilitation, to involve group support, group therapy, and by ensuring people are not lonely,” he said.

While the study suggests that, when age and sex are taken into account, divorced people are more likely than others to die after a heart attack, there was only a minimal difference of less than 3% in the death rates of single people and those who were either separated or living with their partner.

Paul Carter, co-director of the ACALM unit, said that while cardiologists were good at sorting out the medical problems associated with heart attacks, they were not so good at addressing the patient’s health as a whole. More work was needed, he said, to understand the different causes of poor outcomes in patients with heart problems, rather than focusing solely on their medical problems.

“What is important for wellbeing and physical health is the presence of a stable, loving relationship providing mutual social support rather than marriage per se,” said Kate Bennett, a psychologist at the University of Liverpool who was not involved in the study.

Mike Knapton, associate medical director at the British Heart Foundation said: “A heart attack can have both devastating physical and psychological effects, most of which are hidden from the outside world. These findings suggest the support offered by a spouse can have a beneficial effect on heart attack survivors, perhaps helping to minimise the impact of a heart attack.”

“When you have your heart attack, whether you’re married or not, it’s important to remember that you are not alone. Enrolling on a cardiac rehabilitation course, for example, will help you to recover physically, psychologically, and also help you to meet people with similar experiences, who know what you’ve been through,” he added.