IS YOUR HEART NOT NIFTY AT FIFTY?
LANDMARK STUDY SHOWS THAT HEARTS BEGIN SHRINKING, BLOOD PRESSURE GOES UP AT THE MID-CENTURY MARK
First results of long-term study by researchers at St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center also demonstrate differences in heart size and blood pressure between men and women

Roslyn, N.Y., February 1, 2008 – Initial findings from a landmark heart study, led by researchers at St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center on Long Island, NY, show that heart size significantly decreases in both men and women beginning at 50 years of age. The study also shows that this “inflection point” –the first time such a specific age has been identified for a cardiovascular phenomenon – also marks the age where blood pressure increases in both genders.

Dr. Nathaniel Reichek, Director of Research and Education at St. Francis and lead researcher for the study, titled Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance – Normal, says the findings also demonstrate a major difference between heart sizes and blood pressure levels between men and women.

“While this is a long-term study, the description of an inflection point so early on in the research is significant, and a finding that we hope will be a springboard to explaining some of the most pressing mysteries of the human heart,” said Dr. Reichek. “It also raises new questions that need to be answered – for example, does the ‘age 50’ heart phenomenon blunt the benefits of cardiovascular exercise for older people? What causes this inflection point, and can the effects be corrected, or even reversed? And most importantly, does it set the stage for the very common development of heart failure in the elderly?

Recruiting for the CMR – Normal study began in 2002; these data represent the first time enough study subjects have been evaluated to demonstrate the “age 50” effect. The study’s methodology and cohort are unique in that the study group comprises the largest number of “genuinely normal” participants - that is, excluding subjects with diabetes, mild high blood pressure, obesity or abnormalities on cardiac ultrasound or EKG ever assembled for a study of its kind – 218, from Long Island and the New York City metropolitan area.

The findings were first presented today by Dr. Reichek at the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance’s 11th annual Scientific Sessions in Los Angeles, CA. Presentation posters are attached to this press release and will soon be available at www.stfrancisheartcenter.com.

The study cohort also comprised participants in a comprehensive age range – from those in their 20’s to those in their 80’s – also to ensure against the shortcomings of previous heart studies, in terms of both age limitations and also of cohort size.

METHODOLOGY AND SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

Researchers aimed to assess the effects of age and gender on right ventricle (RV) and left ventricle (LV) structure and function in a population of normal subjects. Researchers used cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) to perform RV and LV evaluations in 218 participants, 99 of which were male and 119 of which were female. The volunteers ranged in age from 20 to 90 (mean 54±15). Conclusions of the researchers included the following.

For RV evaluations:

• The right ventricle is larger, indexed for body size, in men than in women at all ages, while ejection fraction is higher in women.
• RV size falls with age, showing an abrupt decrement at age 50 in both men and women.
• The mechanisms underlying this dramatic change remain to be determined.
• With aging, reduced chamber volumes and increased EF develop but RV mass is constant in both men and women.

For LV evaluations:

• With aging, reduced chamber volumes and increased EF develop, but LV mass is constant in both men and women.
• There is an inflection point at age 50 when chamber volumes fall and blood pressure increases in both genders.
• Thus, blood pressure related concentric remodeling occurs with aging. Further studies are needed to determine why mass is maintained while chamber volumes fall in this setting and what mechanisms lead to the emergence of this phenomenon at age 50.

A follow-up study is being planned; recruitment of study volunteers is under way. For more information please call (516) 629-2037. And for more information on the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance, please visit http://www.scmr.org.

Contact:
Paul Barry, 516-705-6657, paul.barry@chsli.org
Rosemary Gomez, 516-705-6656, rosemary.gomez@chsli.org