Those with the highest levels of a specific protein were 50% more likely to die from a heart problem throughout the three-year trial period than those with lower levels.
According to experts, the findings show that detecting neuropeptide Y (NPY) levels could help forecast how heart failure will progress.
This might then be used to identify those who are most at risk and customize treatments to slow the lethal condition, which occurs when the heart fails to pump blood around the body properly.
In the United Kingdom, it is estimated that over one million people suffer from heart failure, with over 200,000 new diagnoses made each year.
Oxford University researchers analyzed data from over 800 patients in various stages of heart failure. The findings were published in The European Journal of Heart Failure.
The subjects’ levels of natriuretic peptide (BNP), a hormone now used to identify heart failure, were evaluated in addition to NPY. ,Nerves in the heart produce NPY in reaction to intense stress, which can cause hazardous cardiac rhythms. This can cause the tiniest blood vessels in the heart muscle to close, forcing the heart to work harder and the blood arteries that go to it to contract.
Scientists discovered that approximately one-third of the group had high levels of NPY and were 50% more likely to die from a heart problem during the three-year follow-up period.
They propose that testing NPY in addition to BNP could help diagnosis those in immediate danger.
This would allow doctors to determine who would benefit from therapies like an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), which identifies and prevents abnormal heartbeats known as arrhythmias.
Neil Herring, a professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Oxford, stated, “The findings of this study are an interesting new advance.
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