HEALTH NEWS: Patients with High risk of Heart attack can now be identified earlier, Research shows!!!

Amongst many new innovations in the Medical Field, a new test developed by Edinburgh University, uses a PET-CT or PET/CT (Positron Emission Tomography- Computed Tomography) scanner and has been trialled by researchers at the institution.

In a research report published in The Lancet on Monday, the scientists outline how fat that builds up in arteries and threatens to rupture them, are lit up in a scan.

According to Dr Nik Joshi, from the university, said: "We have shown, for the first time, high risk fatty plaques - on the verge of potentially causing a heart attack - can be detected on a PET-CT scan in the arteries supplying the heart with blood.

"If we are now able to identify patients at highest risk of having a heart attack, we could possibly take steps to prevent this catastrophic event. This could fundamentally change the way we approach and manage these patients, reducing their risk of a future heart attack."

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation and Chief Scientist Office, looked at two groups of patients - 40 people who had just had a heart attack and 40 people with angina and at risk of a heart attack.

Around 90% of the heart attack patients had a lit-up area in one of their blood vessels, corresponding exactly to the location of the plaque that caused their heart attack.

The researchers found about 40% of patients with angina also had a plaque that lit up yellow, as well as high-risk features suggesting a heart attack may be imminent, and aggressive treatment would be required.

Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director at the British Heart Foundation, said: "Being able to identify dangerous fatty plaques likely to cause a heart attack is something that conventional heart tests can't do. This research suggests that PET-CT scanning may provide an answer - identifying 'ticking time bomb' patients at risk of a heart attack.

"These are exciting data - being able to prospectively identify patients at the highest risk of a heart attack and provide treatment to prevent this would be a significant step forward in the clinical management of this group. It is important therefore that these findings are further tested to determine their best clinical use."

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