McGill Researchers Develop Heart Disease Risk Model for Women

Medical researchers are tackling a persistent blind spot in preventive cardiology: standard risk assessment tools have historically been built around older populations, leaving millions of reproductive-aged women unassessed. A new study published in JACC: Advances introduces a validated prediction model designed to flag cardiovascular risks much earlier in a woman’s life.

Uncovering Early Risks in Reproductive-Aged Women

The study utilized health records from more than 260,000 UK women aged 15 to 45 who had given birth, tracking participants for nearly four years postpartum. According to the researchers, the newly developed model incorporates several health indicators entirely omitted by traditional calculators.

These newly factored elements include hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, gestational diabetes, preterm birth, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), depression, thyroid disorders, oral contraceptive use, and social deprivation. Senior author Robert Platt, professor in the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health and director of the School of Population and Global Health at McGill University, noted the limitations of legacy screening methods.

“Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women, yet existing risk tools were developed in older populations and ignore factors unique to women.”

Robert Platt, Professor and Director of the School of Population and Global Health at McGill University

Co-author Kristian Filion emphasized that younger women are frequently dismissed from regular cardiovascular evaluations. Integrating this predictive calculator into routine postpartum visits could allow clinicians to initiate lifestyle counseling, enhanced monitoring, or timely specialist referrals.

Broader AHA Projections

The push for earlier intervention aligns with broader sobering forecasts from the American Heart Association. High blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity are driving the projected surge, with young adult women facing increasingly steep risks.

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Karen Joynt Maddox, lead author of the AHA statement and a professor at Washington University School of Medicine, stressed the urgency of shifting focus toward prevention rather than treatment alone.

“We’re just setting up a generation of people to move through life, having their cardiovascular events earlier and more severe,”

Karen Joynt Maddox, professor at Washington University School of Medicine

The AHA’s PREVENT risk calculators, designed by researchers including Sadiya Khan, are engineered to estimate 10- and 30-year risks for heart attack, stroke, and heart failure by combining cardiovascular, kidney, and metabolic health measures. This approach addresses cardiovascular risk according to findings published by the American Heart Association.

Artificial Intelligence and Imaging Innovations in Risk Stratification

In addition to clinical calculators, advanced diagnostic technologies are emerging to refine risk assessment without adding burdensome procedures for patients.

Because manual quantification of pericardial fat is time-consuming, automated AI segmentation allows clinicians to rapidly extract this biomarker. Researchers found that higher pericardial fat volumes independently predicted cardiovascular events, proving particularly valuable for patients categorized in borderline or intermediate risk brackets who fall into clinical “gray zones.”

Next Steps for Clinical Implementation

For the McGill University research team behind the reproductive-aged women’s prediction model, the immediate priority involves validating the tool using data from Canada and the United States. Ultimately, developers aim to embed a practical calculator directly into electronic health records, streamlining identification for patients who require proactive cardiovascular care as outlined in the initial study release.