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Chronic infections and coronary heart disease

D Smith1, S Gupta, J C Kaski

  • 1Department of Cardiological Sciences, St George's Hospital Medical School, London, UK.

International Journal of Clinical Practice
|January 6, 2000
PubMed

Insights

Infectious agents like Chlamydia pneumoniae may contribute to coronary heart disease (CHD) and atherosclerosis. Antibiotic interventions show promise for treating CHD, suggesting infection plays a role.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Pathogenesis of Atherosclerosis

Background:

  • Conventional cardiovascular risk factors do not fully explain coronary heart disease (CHD) prevalence.
  • Infectious agents are increasingly implicated in the development of atherosclerosis.
  • Chlamydia pneumoniae shows the strongest evidence linking infection to CHD.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of infectious agents, specifically Chlamydia pneumoniae, in the etiology of coronary heart disease.
  • To evaluate the potential of anti-chlamydia antibiotic interventions for CHD treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Review of sero-epidemiological, pathological, and animal-model studies.
  • Analysis of results from pilot antibiotic intervention studies targeting Chlamydia pneumoniae.

Main Results:

  • Evidence suggests Chlamydia pneumoniae is associated with atherosclerosis and CHD.
  • Pilot antibiotic studies targeting Chlamydia pneumoniae have shown promising results.
  • Ongoing larger intervention studies are expected to provide further insights.

Conclusions:

  • Infection, particularly with Chlamydia pneumoniae, may be a contributing factor to atherogenesis.
  • Broad-spectrum antibiotics could represent a novel treatment strategy for coronary heart disease patients.

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