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One cardiovascular risk factor can lead to major heart risk

01.26.2012

Small cardiovascular risk factors in middle age may lead to a substantially higher risk of heart attack or stroke later in life, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

When doctors are assessing a person's chances of experiencing cardiovascular complications, they typically look at the likelihood of risk factors like cholesterol and blood pressure leading to a heart attack or stroke within 10 years. However, the new study suggests that this approach may be inadequate for gauging a patient's lifetime cardiovascular risk.

For the study, researchers from Northwestern University tracked the health of 250,000 patients for up to 50 years. The findings revealed that even just one cardiovascular risk factor may lead to a significant increase in a patient's lifetime odds of suffering a heart attack or stroke.

The team said that optimal cardiovascular health includes having total cholesterol below 180 mg/dl, blood pressure levels below 120 over 80, not smoking and being free of diabetes. Individuals who have none of these risk factors have a lifetime heart attack or stroke risk of 1.4 percent. However, that number jumps to 49.5 percent if they have two.

Donal Lloyd-Jones, who led the investigation, said the findings underscore the importance of preventing cardiovascular complications in the first place. This may be the best approach to controlling cardiovascular risk, both in the short term and over a person's entire lifetime.

"We need to do a much better job of making sure these risk factors don't develop in the first place, getting kids and young adults off to better starts so they don't gain weight and are following healthier lifestyles throughout their lives," he said.

Categories: Health and Wellness