Density of Coronary Artery Calcium may predict Risk

Calcium plaque in the arteries of the heart is a sign of changes that can lead to heart attacks. To measure this calcium physicians sometimes use a form of CAT scan, which provides information on how much calcium is present and how dense it is. A new study examined whether measuring calcium amount and density separately might better help predict if a person is at risk for developing a heart attack or stroke.  “The denser your calcium the higher the score they give you.  We found, you should make the score smaller because the denser the calcium is, it’s actually protective.” Dr. Michael Criqui and co-authors studied CT scans of men and women, ages 45 to 84 from four different ethnic groups. Coronary artery calcium was measured in heart arteries. The participants were followed for 10 years to see whether they developed heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular disease. “It’s not good to have plaque but if you have plaque if it’s very dense it’s less hazardous then if it’s less dense.”  The study appears in JAMA, Journal of the American Medical Association.