New diagnostic option makes early stages of heart disease recognizable

Improved prognosis and diagnosis of heart disease

Health experts repeatedly point out that supposedly harmless infections should not be taken lightly. After all, even simple colds can spread to the heart muscle. However, this often remains unrecognized for a long time and can therefore be extremely dangerous and in the worst case even fatal. New diagnostic options can reduce such risks.

Heart disease is not just a risk for the elderly

Heart disease is by no means just a risk to seniors. Even physically active people can be at risk, such as when an actually harmless cold on the heart muscle overreaches. Such heart muscle inflammations are often not recognized in time. If, for example, the craftsman continues his active activity or the athlete continues his intensive training, this can lead to chronic inflammation and, in the worst case, to sudden death. The scientific magazine "Forschung Frankfurt" describes how examinations with state-of-the-art imaging devices reduce such risks in its current issue.

Researchers are working on improved prognosis and diagnosis of heart disease. Also with the help of the magnetic resonance tomography one can look into the heart muscle. (Image: digitalphotos / fotolia.com)

Look inside the heart muscle

Prof. Eike Nagel and his twelve colleagues in the "Cardiovascular Imaging" department of the Goethe University Frankfurt are developing improved prognosis and diagnosis options for heart disease.

"With the help of magnetic resonance imaging, we can see into the heart muscle," says Nagel, describing the advantages of a procedure that is quite new in cardiac examinations and which the Frankfurt researchers have helped to develop and further develop in recent years.

It makes the blood flow visible and thus possible bottlenecks. In addition, the experts recognize whether the heart muscle is scarred, inflamed or otherwise altered.

Various diseases radiate on the heart

The comparatively fast method allows patients to be examined at an early stage and thus possibly to prevent cardiac insufficiency, including heart attacks.

"Diseases such as HIV, kidney damage, rheumatism or tumors often radiate to the heart," says Nagel in a statement.

"Today, we can successfully treat or even cure so many diseases - but the heart suffers undetected and should therefore be monitored," says the cardiologist.

Recognize the finest changes

The gentle MRI scan from the outside is just as efficient at lower risks as a classic cardiac catheter procedure, in which a fine tube is advanced over a vein to the heart.

Nagels working group recently showed this in an internationally acclaimed study.

State-of-the-art computer tomographs are also available to the cardiovascular imaging department for three-dimensional images of the heart. In particular, they reveal calcified deposits that could burst in the future and trigger a sudden heart attack.

Soon, a heartbeat will be enough for a meaningful shot, Nagel predicts - currently, patients need to hold their breath for six to ten seconds so that the lung activity does not blur the image.

These rapid advances in imaging over the last decades fascinate Nagel: "Today we can see subtle changes and actually get a picture of the heart disease." (Ad)