People with damaged arteries are not only at higher heart attack risk, but also are more likely to have a stroke, researchers in the United States have found. The findings could lead to changes in the way patients with damaged arteries or coronary endothelial dysfunction (CED) are treated, according to a report in BBC.
This condition occurs when arteries that supply blood to the heart do not dilate as they should. The disorder affects the vascular endothelium - the smooth layer of cells lining the walls of arteries throughout the body.
A healthy vascular endothelium is supposed to expand and contract according to the body's blood flow needs. Failure of these cells to expand and contract properly can trigger chest pain in people with the condition. It is regarded as an early indicator of heart disease.
But Dr Amir Lerman and colleagues at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota believe it may also be an early warning sign for stroke, the report said.
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