AHA Scientific Sessions 2026 AbstractNov 9, 2026, 00:34 GMT

Higher urine protein linked to higher lifetime cardiovascular risk

Estimated lifetime cardiovascular risk ranged from 41.1% to 69.1% in men and 34.1% to 56.0% in women, from lowest to highest urine protein levels.

Paper by Ashish Verma, Hongyan Ning, Sophie Elizabeth Claudel, +4Donald M. Lloyd-Jones · Boston Medical Center · Boston University

A protein-rich urine droplet sits beside a heart with a narrowed vessel; a smaller, sparse-protein droplet accompanies a healthy heart.

Our read

Populations

Studied:: Cohort study of 20,106 adults without prior cardiovascular disease, against adults with UACR <5 mg/g
What changed:: With higher urine protein, estimated lifetime cardiovascular risk rose from 41.1% to 69.1% in men and 34.1% to 56.0% in women
The catch:: Lifetime risk was estimated from a median follow-up of 17.9 years
In the record:: The 53rd paper on urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio with results in people; 205 on record in all.

Editor of record: Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News

Paper

Adults aged 35–79 without prior cardiovascular disease—conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels—were studied in a pooled observational analysis of four community cohorts. The 20,106 participants averaged 59 years old; 39% were men and 25% were Black. Median follow-up was 17.9 years.

Researchers measured urine albumin, a protein, relative to creatinine, a waste product. Estimated lifetime risks covered ages 40 through 90 and accounted for competing deaths. Even ratios of 5 to below 15 milligrams per gram were linked to higher cardiovascular risk than ratios below 5, after adjustment for other risk factors. The clinical threshold was 30 milligrams per gram. From the lowest category to the highest, at least 30 milligrams per gram, estimated years without cardiovascular disease fell from 19.1 to 12.1. Years with disease rose from 1.9 to 3.6.

Why it matters

Preventing cardiovascular disease is part of preserving health with age. The authors suggested that urine albumin could guide earlier, broader and more equitable prevention.

Caveats

Other differences in participants’ health may have contributed to the links despite adjustment for measured risk factors. The conference abstract covered adults without prior cardiovascular disease, not people with established disease.