A good old blood test is enough to warn people whether they are going to suffer a heart attack, over the next five years, say scientists.
According to Telegraph report, latest studies have revealed that high levels of antibodies, i.e. proteins which function to identify and help remove foreign antigens, are linked to a low risk of heart problems, regardless of other risk factors.
The new test calculates the levels of protective IgG antibodies, found to protect the body from a heart attack even when cholesterol and blood pressure is high. At present, doctors use information such as age, sex, medical history, cholesterol levels and blood pressure to calculate the risk of heart problems in future.
“Linking a stronger, more robust immune system to protection from heart attacks is a really exciting finding,” said lead researcher Dr Ramzi Khamis, consultant cardiologist at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London.
“As well as improving the way we tell who is at the highest risk of a heart attack so that we can give them appropriate treatments, we now have a new avenue to follow in future work. We hope that we can use this new finding to study the factors that lead some people to have an immune system that helps protect from heart attacks, while others don’t. We also hope to explore ways of strengthening the immune system to aid in protecting from heart disease,” added Dr Khamis.
The modern lifestyle has made heart diseases into one of the biggest killers in the world.
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