Private MD News

Home | News | Heart Health and Cholesterol

Blood test combined with risk factor assessment accurately determines heart disease risk

Updated: 2010-03-15 16:29:12 CST Category: Heart Health and Cholesterol

by Alex Schoenfeld

U.S. researchers have reportedly developed a more accurate measurement tool to determine a patient's risk of coronary heart disease, according to a new study.

In an effort to improve upon the Framingham Risk Score, which is currently the traditional method of gauging an individual's risk of heart problems, a research team from Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah, designed the Intermountain Risk Score, which assesses risk factors, but also adds the results of routine blood tests.

"Framingham does a good job of classifying groups of patients, but it's not as good at indentifying an individual's risk for disease," said Benjamin Horne, principal author of the study.

"Our research has shown that the Intermountain Risk Score really improves a doctor's ability to measure patient risk by including two simple and inexpensive tests: the complete blood count and metabolic profiles," he added.

In the study, the researchers monitored 5,000 patients who were treated for angiography. After one year of follow-up, they found that the Intermountain Risk Score was 23 percent more likely to accurately determine a woman's risk of heart disease and 46 percent more likely to correctly assess a man's risk than was the traditional measurement tool.

Related Articles from Private MD:

• Plaque on abdominal CT scan linked to increased risk of heart disease
  
• Fatigue in dialysis patients linked to increased risk of cardiovascular eve
  
• New CT scan may help reduce excess radiation
  
• Low potassium levels in heart failure patients with chronic kidney disease
  
• Maternal obesity linked to inflammation disorders in offspring
  

Share on Facebook

Subscribe to Private MD Health News RSS Feed:

News Categories:

Advanced Lipid Treatment I   Allergy Testing   Anemia and RBC disorders   Autoimmune Diseases   Bariatric Lab Testing   Blood and Blood Diseases   Breast   Cancer Detection and Tumor Markers   Celiac Disease Testing   Chlamydia   Coagulation and blood clotting disorders   Colon   Diabetes   DNA, Paternity and Genetic testing   Drug Screening   Environmental Toxin Testing   Female Specific Tests   Gastrointestinal Diseases   General Health   General Wellness   Heart Health and Cholesterol   Herpes   HIV   HIV monitoring/Treatment/Testing/Post Diagnos   Hormones and Metabolism   Infectious Diseases   Infertility Testing-Male   Infertitlity Hormone Testing   Kidney Diseases   Leukemia and WBC disorders   Liver   Liver Diseases   Lyme Disease   Male Specific Tests   Menopause/Peri-Menopausal Diagnosis   Organ Specific Testing   Ovarian   Prostate   Sexually Transmitted Diseases   Thyroid Diseases   Vitamin D Deficiency-Diagnosis and Treatment   

Visit the Health News Archive: Click Here

Questions about online blood testing or how to order a lab test? Click here to get started or call us toll-free at 1.877.283.7882. Our certified professionals are ready to assist you.