Professor Figtree and her team have developed a platform to discover and validate blood markers that will significantly improve heart attack risk prediction. This takes us closer to a simple blood test that could identify heart attack risk 10-15 years before someone experiences one.
A new study in the Department of Neonatology at Royal North Shore Hospital tracks the development of small blood vessels and blood pressure of premature babies. Over the next three years, approximately 80 preterm and term babies will be followed from birth at different weeks of gestation until age 1. New techniques of ultrasound imaging will be used to trace the blood vessels in the kidneys and aorta, as well as new measurements of blood pressure and kidney function. We hope insights from this study shed light onto the cardiovascular consequences of premature birth. Ultimately, increased knowledge of the contributing factors toward hypertension will help identify the highest risk groups and allow early intervention to prevent later heart disease.