New Blood Test Could Predict Women’s 30-year Risk for Heart Disease

Could a simple blood test help predict a woman’s three-decade risk of heart disease?

Yes, claims new research that found women with high levels of three specific blood markers had a greater than threefold increased risk for heart disease within 30 years, compared to women with the lowest levels.

High levels of the three markers is also linked to a 1.5-times increased risk of stroke, researchers reported Aug. 31 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The findings were simultaneously presented at the European Society of Cardiology’s annual meeting in London.

“We can’t treat what we don’t measure, and we hope these findings move the field closer to identifying even earlier ways to detect and prevent heart disease,” said researcher Dr. Paul Ridker, director of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Boston.

For the study, researchers analyzed blood samples and medical data from nearly 28,000 U.S. women, average age 55, who participated in a long-range health study starting between 1992 and 1995.

During a 30-year follow-up period, more than 3,600 of the women had a heart attack or stroke, needed surgery to reopen clogged arteries or suffered a heart-related death.

The research team checked the women’s blood samples for levels of two types of fat – “bad” LDL cholesterol and lipoprotein(a), a lipid partly made of LDL.

The samples were also tested for C-reactive protein, which is released by the liver in response to inflammation. High levels of CRP can indicate a serious health condition that causes inflammation, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Results showed that women with the highest levels of LDL cholesterol had a 36% increased risk for heart disease. The highest levels of lipoprotein(a) brought a 33% higher risk, and high CRP levels were linked to a 70% increased risk.

All three levels taken together formed the best assessment of a woman’s heart risk, researchers found.

Although the study was conducted using data from women, the researchers would expect to find similar results in men.

“In recent years, we’ve learned more about how increased levels of inflammation can interact with lipids to compound cardiovascular disease risks,” said researcher Dr. Ahmed Hasan, a medical officer and program director at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). “This helps explain why lower levels are often better.”

Immune cells can sense an accumulation of high cholesterol in cells or become activated in response to artery-clogging cholesterol plaques, sending out inflammatory signals, researchers explained in a NHLBI news release.

This increased inflammation can cause more plaques to form, or existing plaques to grow larger or even rupture, researchers said. Heart attacks, strokes and heart disease all are linked to arterial plaques.

People with high levels of these three blood markers can reduce their heart risk by getting regular exercise, eating a healthy diet, managing their stress and avoiding tobacco, researchers said.

There also are medications available to help manage cholesterol levels and reduce inflammation.

And the sooner the better — steps people take earlier in life to protect their heart can add up over time, researchers said.

More information

The American Heart Association has more about preventing heart attacks.

SOURCE: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, news release, Aug. 31, 2024

Source: HealthDay