A global Commission published in the Lancethas called on the medical profession to change the way it treats coronary artery disease – the most common form of heart disease – encouraging clinicians to shift away from a focus on the late stages of the disease towards early prevention and cure.
The global Commission involved more than 20 experts from across the world, including first author Associate Professor Sarah Zaman, a cardiologist at Westmead Hospital and Principal Research Fellow at the Westmead Applied Research Centre, Professor Will Parsonage at QUT and Professor Stephen Nicholls from Monash University, as well as experts in the UK, China, Thailand, the US and Saudi Arabia.
Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death globally with researchers projecting that it will be responsible for the death of 10.5 million people annually by 2050.
It occurs when plaque (made up of fat, cholesterol and other substances) builds up in the arteries and reduces the blood flow leading to chest pains (angina), shortness of breath and even heart attack.
The main contributors to the progression of heart disease are lifestyle factors such as poor diet, high cholesterol and smoking.
Currently, the medical profession focuses on treating the acute symptoms of heart disease – including heart attacks and angina using stents – but treating acute symptoms means that patients are receiving care only when the disease is already advanced.
The Commission’s first author Associate Professor Sarah Zaman from Westmead Hospital in Western Sydney Local Health District said “it’s often thought that heart disease is a condition that develops in older age, but in fact the risk starts in utero and signs of coronary heart disease can be seen in children and adolescents.
“At the moment, the early stages of coronary artery disease often go undetected which means we’re missing an opportunity to make changes early on and to stop the disease escalating into more serious health events, such as heart attack and stroke.”
The Commission is calling on governments, funding bodies and clinicians to prioritise research into the early detection of coronary artery disease, including advanced CT scans to identify plaque build up before acute symptoms develop.
The researchers also want to see lifestyle risk factors – such as smoking, diet and exercise – addressed through public health campaigns and targeted screening programs to identify early signs of disease.
If lifestyle risk factors were eliminated by 2050, deaths from coronary artery disease could decrease by more than 80 percent, saving 8.7 million lives annually.