A clinic where care for patients with cardiovascular disease at a young age is combined with risk analysis for family members and data collection for research. ACS researcher Sarah-Joan Pinto started this clinic around 15 years ago. Now, the clinic harbors over 1300 families, comprising around 3000 individuals.
The mystery of CVD in the young
Around 15 years ago ACS researcher Sara Joan Pinto started a family outpatient clinic for premature atherosclerosis. ‘I was puzzled on why some families had so many young individuals with cardiovascular disease (CVD), of which it was obvious that there was a genetic background for it.’ Pinto made it her mission to try and unravel the mystery of CVD in the young in her career as a medical doctor.
A clinic for young patients and their families
Pinto is the sole practitioner and investigator of the clinic. Young patients with a CVD event (men under age 51 and women under age 56 years), as well as their first degree family members, are welcome. They will be asked about their medical history, complaints, lifestyle behaviors. Also, they will undergo a physical examination and blood is drawn for risk factors and to determine kidney, liver and thyroid function. In addition, the first-degree family members will also undergo a coronary CT scan for coronary calcifications to be able to diagnose subclinical disease.
Secondary prevention
By gathering this information Pinto aims to optimize treatment regimens for secondary prevention in case of premature atherosclerosis and identify family members at risk. Then they will be able to start preventive treatment. Besides, she hopes to learn and better understand what drives premature atherosclerosis within certain families.
A source for scientific research
The clinic has lead to one of the largest and most complete data sets on premature atherosclerosis and their first-degree family member. It not only has data on demographics, but also blood, and DNA in store as well as coronary calcium scores images. What's most important, is that it harbors a fairly large group of young family members who appear to have subclinical atherosclerosis, and therefore serve as a case without the interference of cardiovascular medication. ‘Especially the combination of imaging and DNA makes it most attractive.’
Collaboration
In addition to seeing the patients in the clinic, Pinto works together with other scientists on the data obtained over the years. The cohort now consists of about a third of patients with premature atherosclerosis and two-thirds of their first degree family members. Of some families she has gathered quite a lot of family members and are therefore large and complete. If you are interested in collaborating with Sara-Joan Pinto, please contact her directly via s.j.pinto@amsterdamumc.nl.
At the ACS symposium of the program Atherosclerosis & Ischemic syndromes, on 21 October 2024, Sara-Joan Pinto will give a talk on the family outpatient clinic. This lunch symposium (12:00 – 13:30) will take place at the Costerzaal, location AMC. Click here for more information.