Posted on 02/25/2023 4:33:39 PM PST by ConservativeMind
When the artery that supplies the stomach and the liver forms a bulge that ruptures, this "silent killer" condition, known as abdominal aortic aneurysm, led to the death of Albert Einstein.
Surgery can prevent abdominal aneurysms by inserting a tube inside the damaged artery, but physicians do not have a way to predict who is most at risk and should be screened for this condition.
Having high cholesterol or high blood pressure, and being older, a smoker, or a man can increase one's odds of developing an abdominal aneurysm. Abdominal aneurysms usually are caused by plaque buildup in the arteries, but infection or injury can also cause this condition.
To conduct the study, the research team decided to focus on the protein LRP1. To test this, they genetically engineered mice. Using CT scans to look at these blood vessels without LRP1, the researchers noticed that the abdominal arteries were abnormally enlarged as compared to vessels in normal mice.
They found enlarged blood vessels in the genetically engineered mice had higher levels of proteins involved in the hormonal angiotensin-renin system that regulates blood pressure.
For the final part of the study, the researchers were able to prevent the abdominal arteries from enlarging using the blood pressure drug losartan.
"Now that the researchers identified some of the components involved in these aneurysms, they will next need to explore how they interact together," said Mark T. Gladwin, MD.
"For example, it's known that LRP1 is involved in transporting proteins from outside the cell to the inside in the region of the cell that digests and recycles those materials, but we do not know how that plays a role in forming or preventing aneurysms."
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Losartan is an inexpensive ARB, the better blood pressure medicine alternative to old ACE-Inhibitors.
I knew a popular singer died of an abdominal aortic aneurysm & when I was looking up who it was, I found this (singer was Conway Twitty):
Cause of Death: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm
“An abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a blood-filled bulge or ballooning in a part of your aorta that runs through your abdomen. Over time, this bulge in your aorta can become weak, and the force of normal blood pressure can cause it to rupture.
The following celebrities died from the cause: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm.”
https://www.thecelebritydeaths.com/cause-of-death/abdominal-aortic-aneurysm/
My paternal grandfather and my maternal aunt both died either with or from an AAA. Especially glad I’m on losartan, lol.
There appears to be a genetic component so if you have family members who had an AAA or died from one, you should be periodically screened for it.
On the list of celebrities, Alfred & Albert Einstein both died of AAA ... they were cousins.
My father in law, my wife’s uncle and my uncle all had abdominal aneurysms. All had their aneurysms detected almost by shear luck and all survived the surgery. My father in law had two aneurysms on each side af the aorta the size of grapefruits astounding his Mayo Clinic surgeon.
My father died of an abdominal aneurysm almost 30 years ago.
Because of a very observant V.A. Dr on a routine visit found my AAA, I was able to have a successful repair via an Aortic graft done 10 years ago by a fantastic vascular surgeon.
Well I guess I am happy I am LOSARTAN now!
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