New at-home test reveals heart attack risk in just five minutes

By Stephen Beech via SWNS

A potentially life-saving home test reveals the risk of a heart attack in just five minutes.

Swedish scientists created a questionnaire that rapidly identifies people at high risk.

Research shows that it has the same level of accuracy as blood tests and blood pressure measurements.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association , uses data from the SCAPIS population group, based at the University of Gothenburg .

Study leader Professor Göran Bergström said: “A heart attack often comes out of the blue.

“Many of those who suffer heart attacks are apparently healthy and asymptomatic but have fatty deposits in the coronary arteries, known as atherosclerosis.

"Our test makes it possible to identify almost two-thirds of people aged 50 to 64 who have significant coronary atherosclerosis and are therefore at high risk of cardiovascular disease.”

It consists of 14 questions that take five to eight minutes to answer.

The questions relate to factors including age, gender, weight, waist circumference, smoking, high blood pressure, family history of cardiovascular disease, high blood fats and diabetes.

By combining information from the responses in a special algorithm, the home test can detect 65% of people at the highest risk of cardiovascular disease, according to the study.

Bergström said: “The results show that our home test is as accurate as a clinic examination using blood tests and blood pressure measurements."

He added: “If we can make the test widely available within healthcare, it can save lives and prevent suffering by helping us to identify those who are at high risk of heart attack or who are currently undertreated.”

The study was based on data from 25,000 people aged 50 to 64 included in SCAPIS.

All the participants had their coronary arteries examined using computed tomography, which provides an image of the degree of atherosclerosis.

By comparing the images of the heart with questionnaires completed by the participants, the research team were able to see which factors had the closest links with the degree of atherosclerosis.

The researchers have also launched studies in Sweden and on data from the United States, to evaluate how the test works on different groups.

Identifying people at risk before disease occurs is one of the main objectives of the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation’s focus on SCAPIS.

Foundation Secretary-General Kristina Sparreljung said: “A test that can provide early warnings would save many lives and a great deal of suffering.

"The results of Professor Bergström’s study are therefore extremely interesting.”

The post New at-home test reveals heart attack risk in just five minutes appeared first on Talker .