Heart markers flagged risk, not benefit from tighter pressure control
In type 2 diabetes, elevated markers of heart strain and injury were linked to higher cardiovascular risk: adjusted hazard ratios of 1.34 and 2.47 versus non-elevated levels, respectively.
Our read
Interventions- Studied:
- Cohort study of 3,326 adults with type 2 diabetes, against participants with non-elevated hs-cTnT
- What changed:
- Cardiovascular risk was higher with elevated heart-injury markers (adjusted hazard ratio 2.47); neither marker identified benefit from tighter pressure control
- The catch:
- The analysis did not measure benefits of choosing blood pressure targets using these markers
- In the record:
- The 63rd paper on intensive blood pressure control with results in people; 85 on record in all.
Editor of record: Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
Adults with type 2 diabetes—3,326 participants—took part in an ancillary study of the ACCORD-BP blood pressure trial. Intensive control targeted systolic pressure, the upper reading, below 120 millimeters of mercury, versus below 140 with standard control. Blood tests measured markers of heart strain and heart injury at enrollment and after one and four years.
Over a median 9.1 years, 514 participants had a heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular death. Elevated starting levels of either marker were linked to higher risk. The hazard ratios compared event rates over time after adjustment for other factors. Neither marker identified a subgroup that benefited from intensive control. Intensive control increased the heart-strain marker over four years but had no statistically significant effect on the heart-injury marker.
Why it matters
Preventing heart attacks and strokes matters for health in later life. A marker that predicts these events need not help identify who benefits from more intensive blood pressure control.
Caveats
The analysis did not test whether choosing blood pressure targets using these markers improved outcomes. The findings concern adults with type 2 diabetes and were reported in a conference abstract.
- Intensive blood pressure control
- Type 2 diabetes
- Stroke
- Major adverse cardiovascular events
- Myocardial infarction
- Humans
The paper
University of Michigan; The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
AHA Scientific Sessions 2026 Abstract, Nov 2, 2026
Presented at AHA Scientific Sessions 2026, abstract 6450
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