The Swedish SCAPIS study of more than 30,000 middle-aged adults found approximately 40% had atherosclerosis, underscoring the importance of early detection of coronary artery disease, according to researchers presenting their findings Nov. 13 during AHA 2020. The study also found success with a personalized screening questionnaire to identify individuals at higher risk for cardiovascular disease.

Participants in the study were between the ages 50-64 years and had no history of prior heart attack or cardiac intervention. Participants were asked questions about gender, age, smoking, body measurements, cholesterol medication and blood pressure to predict their risk of coronary artery disease. Coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) images were then used to examine patients’ arteries for the presence of plaque.

According to researchers led by Göran Bergström, MD, PhD, more than 25,000 individuals from the original sample were successfully imaged, with 42% having plaque in their coronary arteries. A higher prevalence of atherosclerosis was observed in men and in older individuals, he said. Bergström, et al., also note that responses to the screening questions successfully predicted which individuals had severe atherosclerosis and were at higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

“We were surprised that atherosclerosis was so widespread and that we could rather easily predict it with simple questions,” Bergström said. “Our study lays the foundation for development of a home-based screening strategy to help combat cardiovascular disease. We can find people at high risk of having silent coronary artery disease using a simple screening questionnaire followed by a clinical visit to a health care facility to define the risk further using CCTA imaging.”

Clinical Topics: Diabetes and Cardiometabolic Disease, Dyslipidemia, Prevention, Stable Ischemic Heart Disease, Atherosclerotic Disease (CAD/PAD), Chronic Angina

Keywords: AHA Annual Scientific Sessions, AHA20, Coronary Artery Disease, Primary Prevention, Dyslipidemias, Angina, Stable

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