Coronary Artery Calcium Can Be a
Warning Sign of Fatal Cardiac Event
 (Oak Brook, IL, Health Acurian, 8/26/03)

Dr. Paolo Raggi, professor of medicine at Tulane University School of Medicine, and colleagues, analyzed data gathered from 10,377 adults over 5 years and found that measuring the accumulation of calcium in the coronary arteries can predict how likely an asymptomatic individual is to have a fatal heart attack within 5 years. While the subjects had no obvious symptoms, they were considered high risk for coronary disease because of factors like smoking, age, hypertension, elevated cholesterol and family history. The scientists found that age and calcium deposits were the "strongest risk markers." The investigators recommend calcium screening to determine the degree of risk in patients judged by traditional factors to have an above average likelihood of developing coronary problems.