PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Study shows value of calcium scan in predicting heart attack, stroke among those considered at risk

Coronary artery calcium testing trumps cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and other risk factors in predicting heart attacks and deaths

2013-12-27
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Ellen Beth Levitt
eblevitt@jhmi.edu
410-955-5307
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Study shows value of calcium scan in predicting heart attack, stroke among those considered at risk Coronary artery calcium testing trumps cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and other risk factors in predicting heart attacks and deaths A new study shows that coronary artery calcium (CAC) screening, an assessment tool that is not currently recommended for people considered at low risk, should play a more prominent role in helping determine a person's risk for heart attack and heart disease-related death, as well as the need for angioplasty or bypass surgery. CAC screening provides a direct measure of calcium deposits in heart arteries and is easily obtained on a computed tomography (CT) scan.

"We showed that by using only the traditional risk factors, we miss a significant percentage of individuals at high risk. We may also be over-treating a large number of people who can safely avoid lifelong treatment," says lead author Michael G. Silverman, M.D., who formerly worked at the Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease and is now a cardiology fellow at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

In the study published online on Dec. 23 in the European Heart Journal, the researchers compared two approaches to risk assessment. One approach looked only at risk factors including cholesterol, blood pressure, current smoking and diabetes. The other used the direct measurement of atherosclerosis as seen on the coronary artery calcium score.

"Our study, using data from almost 7,000 adult participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), shows that coronary artery calcium screening provides an accurate, personalized assessment for those who, by traditional risk factors, are at either high or low risk of a heart attack or death from coronary artery disease," says Khurram Nasir, M.D., M.P.H., the study's senior author and director of wellness and prevention research at Baptist Health Medical Group in Miami. Nasir is also an adjunct faculty member at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

The MESA participants did not have evidence of heart disease when they joined the study between 2000 and 2002. They were assessed for risk factors and had a coronary calcium scan and were followed for a mean of 7.1 years for coronary heart disease events, such as heart attacks.

"We found that 15 percent of people believed to be at very low risk actually had high coronary artery calcium scores above 100 and were at relatively high risk of a cardiac event over the next seven years," says Roger Blumenthal, M.D., professor of medicine and director of the Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center, who is a co-author of the study.

"On the other hand, 35 percent of study participants thought to be at very high risk and needing aggressive therapy with aspirin and statin medication actually had no coronary artery calcium and an extremely low event rate of the next seven years. For them, we can emphasize lifestyle modifications," says Blumenthal.

Nasir says the results may encourage a major paradigm shift in how physicians estimate heart disease risk for their patients. "Our study shows that coronary artery calcium testing holds promise as a frontline assessment for people before they develop heart disease symptoms. In the meantime, we believe that doctors should consider offering a coronary artery calcium scan to their patients to markedly improve risk prediction if they are unsure whether they should be on lifelong statin and aspirin therapy."

###

The study, "Impact of Coronary Artery Calcium on Coronary Heart Disease Events in Individuals at the Extremes of Traditional Risk Factor Burden: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis," was supported by the National Institutes of Health grant numbers N01-HC-95159 to N01-HC-95166, N01 HC 95169, U01HL105270-03 to HMK and T32-HL-7227-36 to MGS.

For more information on the Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease:

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/heart_vascular_institute/clinical_services/centers_excellence/ciccarone/

Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM), headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, is a $6.7 billion integrated global health enterprise and one of the leading academic health care systems in the United States. JHM unites physicians and scientists of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine with the organizations, health professionals and facilities of The Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System. JHM's vision, "Together, we will deliver the promise of medicine," is supported by its mission to improve the health of the community and the world by setting the standard of excellence in medical education, research and clinical care. Diverse and inclusive, JHM educates medical students, scientists, health care professionals and the public; conducts biomedical research; and provides patient-centered medicine to prevent, diagnose and treat human illness. JHM operates six academic and community hospitals, four suburban health care and surgery centers, and more than 35 Johns Hopkins Community Physicians sites. The Johns Hopkins Hospital, opened in 1889, was ranked number one in the nation for 21 years in a row by U.S. News & World Report. For more information about Johns Hopkins Medicine, its research, education and clinical programs, and for the latest health, science and research news, visit http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org.

Media Contacts:
Ellen Beth Levitt, eblevitt@jhmi.edu, 410-955-5307, at Johns Hopkins Medicine
Liz Boulenger, lizlatta@baptisthealth.net, 786-596-6534 at Baptist Health
Helen Jones, hjones49@jhmi.edu, 410-502-9422, at Johns Hopkins Medicine

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Researchers identify gene that influences the ability to remember faces

2013-12-27
Researchers identify gene that influences the ability to remember faces New findings suggest the oxytocin receptor, a gene known to influence mother-infant bonding and pair bonding in monogamous species, also plays a special role in the ability to remember faces. ...

Inosine treatment safely elevates urate levels in Parkinson's disease patients

2013-12-27
Inosine treatment safely elevates urate levels in Parkinson's disease patients Phase 2 trial supports further investigation of urate's ability to slow disease progression A clinical trial assessing the potential of the nutritional supplement inosine to ...

Gene therapy method targets tumor blood vessels

2013-12-27
Gene therapy method targets tumor blood vessels Working in mice, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report developing a gene delivery method long sought in the field of gene therapy: a deactivated virus ...

Children at lower risk for peanut, tree nut allergies if moms ate more nuts while pregnant

2013-12-27
Children at lower risk for peanut, tree nut allergies if moms ate more nuts while pregnant Children appear to be less at risk for developing peanut or tree nut (P/TN) allergies if their mothers are not allergic and ate more nuts during pregnancy, ...

Study examines inosine to increase urate levels in patients with Parkinson disease

2013-12-27
Study examines inosine to increase urate levels in patients with Parkinson disease The drug inosine appears to be a safe and effective way to raise blood and cerebrospinal fluid urate levels in patients with early Parkinson disease (PD), suggesting it may ...

Increase in consultations for Medicare patients before cataract surgery

2013-12-27
Increase in consultations for Medicare patients before cataract surgery Preoperative consultations before cataract surgery became more common for Medicare patients despite no clear guidelines about when to require such a service, hinting at unnecessary use of health ...

Mongooses synchronize births to escape despotic females

2013-12-27
Mongooses synchronize births to escape despotic females Some mammals may have evolved to synchronise births as a way of evading the threat of infanticide, according to a study led by the University of Exeter. To ensure groups remain productive, some ...

Breast cancer patients experience fewer side effects from anticancer drug when receiving acupuncture

2013-12-27
Breast cancer patients experience fewer side effects from anticancer drug when receiving acupuncture A new analysis has found that both real and sham acupuncture treatments may help alleviate side effects of drugs commonly used to treat breast cancer. Published early online in ...

Pregnant women need not avoid peanuts, evidence shows

2013-12-27
Pregnant women need not avoid peanuts, evidence shows Peanut and tree nut allergy incidence lower among children whose mothers ate them during pregnancy BOSTON (Dec. 23, 2013)—Women need not fear that eating peanuts during pregnancy could cause ...

Embargoed study: New quality, payment initiative positively impacts pediatric care

2013-12-27
Embargoed study: New quality, payment initiative positively impacts pediatric care Contracting model, based on global payment and pay-for-performance, improves quality of care for sickest pediatric patients BOSTON (Dec. 23, 2013)—Within two years ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

MSU team develops scalable climate solutions for agricultural carbon markets

Playing an instrument may protect against cognitive aging

UNM study finds link between Grand Canyon landslide and Meteor Crater impact

Ultra-hot Jupiter’s death spiral could reveal stellar secrets

You only get one brain! The best helmet material for protecting your noggin

Neurodegeneration and stroke after GLP-1RAs in diabetes and obesity

Pediatric COVID-19 hospitalization trends by race and ethnicity, 2020-2023

Research spotlight: New genetic roadmap offers insights into obesity and diabetes

Fred Hutch leads new Vanguard Study for Cancer Screening Research Network

‘Mismatched’ transplants now safe, effective for blood cancer patients, study finds

New research helps narrow down uncertainties in near-term precipitation projections for the Asian Water Tower

AI tool accurately detects tumor location on breast MRI

Researchers use OCT imaging to uncover how the fallopian tube transports embryos

PolyU secures RGC theme-based research scheme funding to develop cost-effective and sustainable Co-GenAI model

Van Andel Institute scientists develop technique for high-resolution single cell epigenetic analysis

The Lundquist Institute wins multi-year NIH grant exceeding $11 million to transform diagnosis and treatment of deadly mucormycosis

Review suggests ending adult boosters for tetanus, diphtheria

ESMT Berlin welcomes Rebecca Schaumberg to faculty

Blocking a little-known protein may offer new hope for devastating lung disease

Medieval medicine was smarter than you think – and weirdly similar to TikTok trends

FAU receives NIH grant to investigate amphetamine addiction

Realizing on-site carbon nanotube photo-thermoelectric imaging

Most of us love memes. But are they a form of comics?

Novel biosensor allows real-time monitoring of sucrose uptake in plants

Korea University researchers reveal revealing how WEE1 drives cancer resistance to immunotherapy

Pusan National University researchers develop breakthrough deep learning model that enhances handheld 3D medical imaging

SLAS Discovery and SLAS Technology demonstrate research impact with 2024 impact factors

Disease-causing bacteria can deal with stink as long as they get a meal

Mapping the metabolism of blood stem cells

UK air quality improved since 2015 but targets still missed

[Press-News.org] Study shows value of calcium scan in predicting heart attack, stroke among those considered at risk
Coronary artery calcium testing trumps cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and other risk factors in predicting heart attacks and deaths