Performing genome analyzes could help identify people at risk before the first symptoms appear.
Detect people at risk to reduce the number of sudden death victims. Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT and Harvard find that genetic variations can predict the risk of suffering from sudden cardiac death. The results of their study were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
15 genetic variations identified
The researchers proceeded to sequence the genome of 600 adults who died of sudden cardiac death and 600 healthy adults forming the control group. They have the identity of 15 clinically significant genetic variations. “Strikingly, these 15 pathogenic variations were all present in cases of sudden cardiac death, but in none of the members of the control group”, underlines the director of the study Amit V. Khera.
The second part of the study was carried out with a larger sample. Scientists studied the genes of 4,525 adults with no symptoms of heart disease, and 0.9% of them had disease-causing genetic variations. For 14 years, the researchers followed all the participants. Those with a pathogenic genetic variation had a 3 times higher risk of dying from a cardiovascular problem.
“These findings show that a genetic test, if made widely available, can identify high-risk individuals who are currently undetectable,” adds the researcher. According to scientists, 1% of the population without particular symptoms would have these genetic variations in the United States. “Our hope is to enable our patients to better understand, predict and prevent health problems, in particular irreversible tragedies, such as sudden cardiac death, thanks to genetic information”, concludes Amit V. Khera.
Little chance of survival
According to the foundation heart research, around 60,000 people suffer from sudden cardiac death each year. The survival rate is less than 3%. The accident affects 3 to 4 times more men than women, and particularly concerns 45-75 year olds.
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