Heart strain scans help spot hidden heart failure risk
Over 7.6 years, each 1% absolute decrease in heart strain was linked to a 13% higher risk of heart failure hospitalization or death.
Limit: The outcome included deaths from any cause, not just heart failure hospitalizations
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In a prospective cohort study, researchers analyzed 4,980 people with a mean age of 52.7 years, 59.6% male, who had no overt cardiovascular disease and were in stages 0 to 2 of cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome. They measured left ventricular global longitudinal strain, an ultrasound check of heart muscle deformation. The primary outcome was a composite of heart failure hospitalization and death from any cause.
Over a median follow-up of 7.6 years, 261 composite events occurred. Heart strain progressively worsened across syndrome stages. After adjusting for clinical risk factors, heart muscle mass, and diastolic function, how well the heart relaxes between beats, each 1% absolute decrease in strain was associated with a 13% higher risk of the primary outcome. Adding strain measurements to standard syndrome staging improved risk prediction over five years.
Why it matters
The study addressed a question relevant to healthy aging: who might need more intensive heart failure prevention despite having no overt cardiovascular disease?
Caveats
Because the study was observational, it tracks an association rather than cause and effect. The results also may not apply to people with existing cardiovascular disease or those in more advanced stages of the syndrome.
The paper
National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University; Taipei Veterans General Hospital
ESC Congress 2026 Abstract, Oct 26, 2026
Presented at ESC Congress 2026
