Large study in Gothenburg could save a lot of hearts

The biggest research study of heart, lung and blood diseases ever to have been carried out in Sweden was recently initiated in Gothenburg. A number of regional medical and healthcare operators are going to try and identify individual risk factors for heart attacks, sudden cardiac arrests and other heart diseases.

Around 1,000 randomly selected Gothenburg residents between the age of 50 and 65 have been invited to participate in this first part of a larger national study: SCAPIS - Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimage Study.

Wide regional cooperation
The SCAPIS study will be carried out in the spring and autumn of 2012 with the support of the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation. The Project Managers are Gothia Forum, who are a clinical trials resource in the Västra Götaland region initiated by Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University, Chalmers University of Technology and the research industry through AstraZeneca, MSD, Pfizer, LIF and Swedish Medtech.

The participants' hearts, blood vessels and lungs will be examined using the latest technology. The participants will receive a computer tomography, ultrasound examinations and pulmonary function tests and in addition answer questions about their status when it comes to blood sugar, cholesterol and any possible sleeping difficulties. In addition, some will have the chance to test their fitness level. Also included in the study is the detection of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and other pulmonary diseases at an early stage as well as improving the individual's health through improved diagnosis, care and treatment.

With the aim of preventing and treating
The pilot study in Gothenburg is planned to be followed by a large-scale study involving 30,000 men and women between the age of 50 and 64 taking these tests throughout Sweden. "Such a large amount of data, images and test results have never before been stored in an information bank in Sweden, and for a lot of people this is probably the most thorough medical examination they will go through in their entire life," says Chief Physician and Professor Göran Bergström, who is in charge of the pilot study in Gothenburg. "If the large-scale study is carried out it will be the biggest in the world. It provides fantastic opportunities for future research which we hope will lead to us being able to prevent and treat heart, lung and blood diseases better."

Read more about the study: www.scapis.se
Read more about Gothia Forum: https://www.gothiaforum.com/home

Contact:Göran Bergström,
Chief Physician at Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Professor at the Sahlgrenska Academy, Gothenburg University
+46 (0)31-342 8011
goran.bergstrom@hjl.gu.se