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Enhancing Cardiovascular Disease Risk Prediction: Comparing Coronary Artery Calcium and Polygenic Risk Scores

A Northwestern University study revealed that both coronary artery calcium and polygenic risk scores significantly influence 10-year risk prediction for coronary heart disease. However, coronary artery calcium score demonstrated superior predictive power, reinforcing the integration of these novel tools in risk prediction models.

• Cardiovascular disease (CVD), a leading cause of death in the US, is often preventable, emphasizing the importance of accurate risk prediction.
• The Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine study analyzed coronary artery calcium and polygenic risk scores in two US and Netherlands cohorts.
• Coronary artery calcium, detected by CT scans, has emerged as a robust predictor of future coronary heart disease.
• Polygenic risk scores offer a novel risk assessment tool by incorporating genetic data.
• The study included white individuals aged 45-79 without baseline coronary heart disease from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and the Rotterdam Study.
• Both coronary artery calcium score and polygenic risk score were significantly associated with a 10-year risk of coronary heart disease, with coronary artery calcium score showing higher predictive ability.
• Despite limitations like population specificity, the study validates the inclusion of coronary artery calcium scores and polygenic risk scores in the toolkit for predicting cardiovascular risk.