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Coronary calcium scores highly effective in identifying heart disease in people without any known risk factors: Study
Medical Xpress / Intermountain Healthcare / American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2023 ^ | Nov. 11, 2023 | Jeffrey L. Anderson et al

Posted on 11/14/2023 10:02:34 PM PST by ConservativeMind

While high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes and smoking are well known heart disease risks, not everyone who has a heart attack has them. In fact, previous research has shown that 14% to 27% of heart attack patients have none of these risk factors.

Now, a new study finds that these patients had one thing in common: they all tended to have high levels of coronary calcium.

Results of the study show that scans that detect this kind of plaque buildup should be considered as part of their standard care, even in the absence of the four standard modifiable risk factors, so that these patients can be diagnosed and treated before their first heart attack event occurs.

In the study, Intermountain researchers identified 429 heart attack patients who also had coronary artery calcium scans. Of those, 369 had standard modifiable risk factors (SMuRF), like a diagnosis or treatment of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and or smoking; and 60 did not (SMuRF-less).

Researchers examined these patients' calcium artery scan scores, and then also major adverse cardiovascular events, like another heart attack, stroke, or death, at 60-days and long term.

Researchers found that SMuRF-less patients had high rates of, and higher percentile of, coronary calcium scores. They also found that 77% of these patients met their criteria for preventative therapy, like statins and/or aspirin. Patients with SMuRF, as expected, also had high CAC scores and percentiles. Outcomes were more favorable overall for SMuRF-less patients and for those patients with lower coronary artery calcium scores.

While coronary artery calcium scans are becoming more common and affordable, they're still not part of guideline-directed standard of care.

(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...


TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: coronarycalciumscore; smurf
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To: Salvey

“My friend also had a reading of 0 calcium and had a massive heart attack a year later.”

I had a frighteningly high score on my CAC test (1200!), so my PCP referred me to a large heart-health hospital for a (color doppler) stress test (for what it’s worth, my treadmill performance was 50% higher than normal for my age group).

The chief cardiologist saw no abnormalities in any aspect of my heart circulation, valve performance, etc., and said that if I maintained proper weight, good BP, and took statins (I’m not - they caused crippling muscle cramps - but I’m doing other things), that my heart attack risk should be normal for my age.

He said that while CAC is a valuable indicator, it’s not an absolute...he said he’s got patients with a 0 CAC score who have overt cardiac disease and patients with a 5000 CAC score with no heart problems. He mentioned something about genetic polymorphisms but got called away before I could ask him to elaborate.


21 posted on 11/15/2023 9:48:29 AM PST by Magic Fingers (Political correctness mutates in order to remain virulent.)
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To: ckilmer
Lowered LDL helps prevent buildup, but high HDL helps remove buildup.

Look into Arterosil, NanobacTX, or Endocalyx Pro.

Newer research seems to point to hard plaques being the more problematic concern:

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/316408

22 posted on 11/15/2023 9:49:04 AM PST by ConservativeMind (Trump: Befuddling Democrats, Republicans, and the Media for the benefit of the US and all mankind.)
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To: Magic Fingers; OftheOhio; IncPen

“Thanks - what’s your dosage of pantethine?”

i just knew you were gonna ask that!

have been taking swanson 300mg once in morning and once at night ... bottle says take 2-3 times a day ...

but swanson’s is out of stock right now, so bought Jarrow Pantethene from amazon, which are 450mg, and am taking one of those in AM and one in PM ...


23 posted on 11/15/2023 10:14:45 AM PST by catnipman (A Vote For The Lesser Of Two Evils Still Counts As A Vote For Evil)
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To: OftheOhio; Magic Fingers; IncPen

“I’ve wondered too about Co Q-10 being sucked out of your heart because of certain prescriptions”

that’s definitely well known to be true for statins: statins interfere with the liver’s ability to synthesize Co-Q10, which ironically enough, the heart muscle utilizes more than any other muscle ... docs in the know prescribe (non-prescription) Co-Q10 along with statins ...

even though i don’t take statins, been thinking about taking Co-Q10 anyway ... i already have some Jarrow 100mg QH-Absorb caplets ... bottle says 1-3 per day ... think i’ll start with one a day and see how that goes ...

[btw, i have serious heart issues, so i’m not doing any of this just for fun!]


24 posted on 11/15/2023 10:24:04 AM PST by catnipman (A Vote For The Lesser Of Two Evils Still Counts As A Vote For Evil)
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To: catnipman

“i just knew you were gonna ask that!”

Lol - it makes you prophetic as well as helping your lipid profile! I have some “NOW” brand pantethine that’s 600 mg that I’ve been hit/miss about taking...I should get it back into my supplement regimen.


25 posted on 11/15/2023 10:25:08 AM PST by Magic Fingers (Political correctness mutates in order to remain virulent.)
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To: ConservativeMind

Our local hospital does a free screening for this under a grant (multi million dollars) by a guy who had a family member drop dead from it out of the blue. When I got it the tech told me they never look at this no matter what cardiac procedure(s) one may have had. So I was glad to have it. Its non invasive and is like an ECHO Cardiagram. Or a Sonagram.


26 posted on 11/15/2023 10:28:36 AM PST by anton
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To: catnipman

“even though i don’t take statins, been thinking about taking Co-Q10 anyway ... i already have some Jarrow 100mg QH-Absorb caplets ... bottle says 1-3 per day ... think i’ll start with one a day and see how that goes ...”

For what it’s worth - about 20 years ago the owner of a supplement company told me that cardiologist acquaintances said they were noticing significantly decreased frequency of cancer diagnoses in their patients who were taking 400 mg/day of CoQ10.


27 posted on 11/15/2023 10:30:41 AM PST by Magic Fingers (Political correctness mutates in order to remain virulent.)
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To: IncPen; Magic Fingers

I used a high dose vitamin K/K2 supplement, higher dose nattokinase, bergamot, tocotrienols, and the seaweed extract, mentioned here:

https://kahn642.medium.com/reversal-of-clogged-arteries-is-real-here-are-some-ways-i-do-it-433b890bf77e


28 posted on 11/15/2023 10:40:10 AM PST by ConservativeMind (Trump: Befuddling Democrats, Republicans, and the Media for the benefit of the US and all mankind.)
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To: ConservativeMind

It looks like Look into Arterosil, NanobacTX, or Endocalyx Pro. help repair the endothelium —which is a very big deal if true.

The docs i listen to say you can remove the soft plaque but not the hard plaque. However, the hard plaque is stable —which is something you want. There’s not much chance of a rupture in the endothilium that would cause the stroke.


29 posted on 11/21/2023 2:07:35 PM PST by ckilmer (ui)
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To: ConservativeMind

I take a couple of drugs including 81 mg of baby asperin, 5 mg of crestor. .6 mg of colchicine and 10 mg estizimbe.

They all lower cholesterol reduce inflammation and reduce plaque buildup. but none heal the endothelial wall.

It looks like Arterosil, NanobacTX, or Endocalyx Pro may do that. I can’t figure out which is most effective at the best price point. What I’ve seen is pricy.

Do you have any opinions on their relative effectiveness vs price.


30 posted on 11/21/2023 2:17:36 PM PST by ckilmer (ui)
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To: ckilmer

Arterosil and Endocalyx Pro are cheapest if you buy the year, up front, straight from the company.

Endocalyx Pro has Glucosamine and fisetin (from a certain seaweed extract) in it, along with other items you could buy separate.

The main thing with Arterosil is it has rhamnan sulfate, which is very hard to find, elsewhere.

Endocalyx Pro seems to explicitly address capillaries well, along with arteries. Arterosil focuses on arteries and blood pressure, as its main effects.

NanobacTX most focuses on the calcium plaque side, it seems.

I would think Arterosil is a safe bet, but all three claim similar ability from completely different sides of the issue.


31 posted on 11/21/2023 2:57:33 PM PST by ConservativeMind (Trump: Befuddling Democrats, Republicans, and the Media for the benefit of the US and all mankind.)
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To: ConservativeMind

hmm. Interesting. It will take me a bit to digest what you have said.


32 posted on 11/21/2023 3:29:13 PM PST by ckilmer (ui)
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