Analysis of data from a study conducted with more than 5,000 adults in several US states indicates a higher cardiovascular risk for people with asthma: Of those who suffered from persistent asthma, 67 percent had deposits in their arteries Carotid arteries, averaging two plaques. Among people who only had sporadic asthma, 49.5 percent had a plaque on average. On average, 50.5 percent of people without asthma had deposits.
Even after the research team took into account influencing factors such as age, gender, weight, other illnesses, prescription medication and smoking in the calculations, people with persistent asthma were almost twice as likely to have plaque in the carotid arteries as people without asthma. With constant asthma, the inflammatory markers IL-6 and CRP also increased.
The carotid arteries are large arteries on the left and right side of the neck that supply blood to the brain. It has long been known that chronic inflammation, which also occurs in asthma, contributes to the formation of deposits in blood vessels, which is known as vascular calcification or arteriosclerosis. This is associated with a higher risk of heart attack or stroke.
“Many doctors and patients are unaware that asthmatic airway inflammation can affect the arteries,” said study leader Prof. Matthew C. Tattersall of the University of Wisconsin at Madison. It is therefore very helpful for people with persistent asthma to deal with the risk factors for cardiovascular disease. If you want to reduce your personal risk, you can do this through a healthy diet, sufficient exercise, not smoking, enough sleep and a normal weight. Cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure levels should also be checked and, if necessary, treated.
Source: DOI 10.1161/JAHA.122.026644