People are obsessed with death, and although this doesn't have an absolute guarantee, a standard test may help predict when it's going to happen.
Emory University researchers have learned that a scan that detects the presence or buildup of calcified deposits in the coronary arteries can determine the possible lifespan of a person.
This test is called the coronary calcium or coronary artery calcification scan. Calcified deposits can accumulate within the blood vessels, primarily in the arteries of the heart. When this happens, the blood's pathway becomes narrow, making it more difficult to deliver the much-needed blood supply throughout the body. This also means that the heart needs to work harder to achieve what it's meant to do. Over time, a person with significant calcified deposits may be diagnosed with coronary heart disease.
This type of scan is so effective that it is a common figure in the 10-year action plans between doctors and patients.
With Leslee Shaw as the lead author, the researchers used the data obtained from a free scan program organized by a Nashville outpatient clinic. At least 9,500 men and women were chosen for the study whose risk factors and results of the scan within 3 years starting from 1996 were considered.
While these subjects didn't show any prominent symptoms of coronary heart disease, the researchers, based on the analyses of the information gathered, were still able to determine the likelihood of dying within the next 15 years.
Whether this scan may eventually become a standard screening test remains unclear. Nevertheless, the researchers believe that the examination can significantly help in increasing the better outcomes for coronary heart disease.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease remains to be the number one cause of death in the United States, including among most ethnicities. Of 610,000 people who die from heart disease, at least 365,000 are caused by coronary heart disease.