Every year, 80,000 people are affected by myocardial infarction. As Inserm explains, it is triggered by a blockage of the artery that supplies the heart with blood and therefore oxygen. Sweden’s Uppsala University has developed a tool to identify people at risk of heart attack within six months. This article was published in the journal Nature Cardiovascular Research. This test requires only a standard blood test.
“We know that the time leading up to a heart attack is very dynamic. For example, the risk of heart attack doubles in the month following a divorce, and the risk of fatal heart attack is fivefold in the week following a cancer diagnosis.“, warns Professor Sundström, a cardiologist and professor of epidemiology at Uppsala University, quoted by MedicalExpress.
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A group of researchers began with the hypothesis that several biological processes occur in the months leading up to a heart attack. So this can be identified during a blood test. To reach this conclusion, the researchers began taking blood samples from 169,053 people. Within six months, 420 of these people had their first heart attack. Their blood was then compared with 1,598 healthy participants.
90 molecules removed
“We first identified about 90 molecules linked to heart attack risk. However, samples already taken in health institutions are now sufficient to predict risk. We hope this will increase people’s motivation to take their preventive medicine or quit smoking, for example.“, the cardiologist reports.
With all this data, researchers have managed to develop an online tool in which everyone can track their risk of heart attack within six months. “If you find out that you are at increased risk of having a heart attack in the near future, you may feel more motivated to prevent it.“, argues scientist Sundström.
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