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A buildup of artery-clogging plaque may start much earlier than many people think, new research suggests.
About 1 in 13 adults aged 18 to 29 already had silent atherosclerosis – the hardening of the arteries due to plaque – despite having no known cardiovascular disease, while more than half of all healthy adults in the study had signs of plaque somewhere in their arteries, according to a major new international study.
Danish and Spanish researchers used advanced imaging to examine more than 16,800 adults aged 18 to 70 without known cardiovascular disease. They found plaque in 57.1% of participants, with the prevalence increasing steadily with age, from about 1 in 13 adults under 30 to about 9 in 10 adults aged 60 to 70, according to the study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in August.
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Atherosclerosis occurs when fatty deposits, cholesterol and other substances build up in the arteries, experts say. The process often develops silently for many years before causing a heart attack or stroke.
A new study found signs of silent arterial plaque in some healthy young adults without known cardiovascular disease. (iStock)
“For decades we have estimated cardiovascular risk using factors such as age, blood pressure and cholesterol,” said Dr. Borja Ibáñez, cardiologist and scientific director of the Spanish National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC), in a statement. “This study shows that we can now go further and detect the disease directly before it causes a heart attack or stroke.”
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The new findings come from the first phase of the ongoing international REACT study, which maps the frequency of silent arterial plaques in adulthood. In the next phase, researchers will test whether earlier detection can improve heart disease prevention.
Researchers are studying whether earlier detection of arterial plaque could improve heart disease prevention. (iStock)
“Until now, preventive decisions were based on an estimation of risk, but we did not know whether the disease was already present,” said Professor Henning Bundgaard, professor of cardiology at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen. “REACT shows that atherosclerosis can be detected decades before the onset of clinical manifestations and provides the most comprehensive atlas of disease progression during adult life.”
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The study also found that men tended to develop plaque five to 10 years earlier than women, while women experienced their greatest increase between the ages of 40 and 60.
Knowing your blood pressure, cholesterol levels and other risk factors for heart health can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, experts say. (iStock)
The researchers also found that commonly used cardiovascular risk scores identified only a small proportion of people who already had silent atherosclerosis, suggesting that some cases might go undetected using traditional risk assessments alone.
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Although researchers believe portable ultrasound could potentially help identify hidden plaque earlier, they say more clinical trials are needed.
The findings should encourage people to take their heart health seriously, but without panicking, experts note.
Researchers say heart disease prevention should start early, even before symptoms appear. (iStock)
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“Discovering plaque doesn’t mean someone is about to have a heart attack, but finding it gives us an opportunity to address a patient’s risk factors,” Dr. Sirisha Vadali, a cardiologist at HonorHealth Women’s Heart Health in Arizona, told Fox News Digital. “We shouldn’t wait until symptoms appear to start paying attention to heart health.”
“Feeling healthy doesn’t necessarily mean your arteries are free of plaque,” added Vadali, who was not involved in the research.
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She cautioned that the study alone does not establish that screening everyone will directly prevent heart attacks or strokes.
Healthy lifestyle habits, including avoiding tobacco, staying active and eating a nutritious diet, can help protect heart health, experts say. (iStock)
Vadali stressed that the findings do not mean that everyone under the age of 30 should have their arteries screened, saying that decisions about additional testing should be based on each person’s individual risk factors. She recommended avoiding tobacco, staying physically active and eating a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains, nuts and fish, while limiting saturated fats and excess sodium to help protect heart health.
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Fox News Digital has contacted the researchers for comment.
Gn Health
