DieEarly detection of heart diseaseis one of the most important conditions for preventing serious consequences, including a heart attack. Now a group of researchers claim that ita key factorthere is something that could predict a future heart attack or stroke,Years before symptoms even appear. Read on to find out what it is.
A new study from Edith Cowan University published this week inJournal of the American Heart Associationwas published, found thatPeople with abdominal aortic calcification(AAC) have a two to four times increased risk of a heart attack. The more calcification there is in the blood vessel wall, the greater the risk of future cardiovascular problems. They also found that people with kidney disease and AAC have a greater risk of cardiovascular problems than people with AAC alone.
A heart attack can be predicted long in advance
“Heart disease is often a silent killer as many people do not know they are at risk or that they have early warning signs such asCalcification of the abdominal or coronary arteriessays lead researcher Associate Professor Josh Lewis from ECU's School of Medical and Health Sciences and Heart Foundation Future Leader Fellow. "TheBauchaortais one of the first places where calcium can deposit in the arteries - before the heart. If we do thisrecognize early, we can intervene and make lifestyle and medication changes to stop the disease from progressing.”
The study also points to factors that contribute to the condition, including poor diet, lack of exercise, smoking and genetics, and hopes people use these study results to help themIdentify risk earlyand act accordingly.
“Calcification of the abdominal aorta is often accidentaldiscovered in many routine tests, such as B. in lateral spine scans from bone densitometers or X-rays, and now we have a much better idea of the prognosis in these people,” he said.
This can be an early warning for doctors
“This may signal to physicians that they need to screen and assess their patients’ risk of a heart attack or stroke. Ultimately, if we can detect this condition earlier, people can make lifestyle changes and start preventive treatments sooner, potentially saving many lives in the future.”
Reference:Journal of the American Heart Association (13. Januar 2021)Prognostic Value of Abdominal Aortic Calcification: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis of Observational Studies