HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — A new study shows a common blood test could help detect women's risk for heart disease.
According to the CDC, heart disease is the number one cause of death for women in the United States.
Dr. Daniela Crousillat, with both Tampa General Hospital and USF Health, explained how the testing worked.
“So it checks three different markers in their blood,” Crousillat said.
She explained that the test checks cholesterol, which is a routine test that primary care doctors run. It also tests high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, which Dr. Crousillat said is a biomarker that looks like inflammation in the body.
“The third one is something called lipoprotein little A, which is something that has not been frequently checked in women,” Dr. Crousillat said.
She said the three tests together could predict the risk in healthy women as much as 30 years before an incident like a heart attack or stroke.
“I think what this study has done is swing the pendulum a little earlier for women," she said.
Dr. Crousillat said if a test does show there is a risk, then there are prevention efforts and medications available.
She suggests talking to your primary care doctor to see if this is a test you should get.
"We don't come home until they do."
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