Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 15, 2026
Multimodal Study of Murine Cardiovascular Remodeling: Four-Dimensional Ultrasound and Mass Spectrometry Imaging
Published on: January 10, 2025
Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging markers of ageing: a multi-centre, cross-sectional cohort study
Hosamadin S Assadi1,2, Xiaodan Zhao3, Gareth Matthews1,2
1Department of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UQ, Norfolk, UK.
Insights
Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) can predict functional heart age, revealing it is higher in individuals with comorbidities like hypertension and diabetes. This tool helps assess heart aging and related cardiovascular changes.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Medical Imaging
- Gerontology
Background:
- Cardiac aging involves structural and physiological changes impacting heart performance.
- Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is a key imaging modality for assessing age-related cardiovascular remodeling.
- Quantifying functional heart age aids in understanding cardiovascular health trajectories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a fully automated CMR model for predicting functional heart age.
- To assess the accuracy of the model in healthy individuals and a cohort with cardiovascular risk factors.
- To investigate the relationship between CMR-derived heart age and common comorbidities.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective observational study using international, multi-center data.
- Development of an automated CMR model using left atrial (LA) end-systolic volume and LA ejection fraction.
- Validation in a cohort of 191 healthy individuals and 366 patients with comorbidities (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, atrial fibrillation, obesity).
Main Results:
- In healthy individuals, CMR-derived heart age closely matched chronological age.
- In the validation cohort, functional heart age was 4.6 years higher than chronological age.
- Significantly higher CMR-derived heart age was observed in patients with hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and atrial fibrillation, with a trend in obesity.
Conclusions:
- The study provides insights into the temporal changes of cardiac structure and function during aging.
- The proposed CMR-based equations can help communicate age-related cardiac assessment changes.
- Automated CMR analysis offers a valuable tool for assessing cardiovascular health and aging.
Aims:
Cardiac ageing involves a series of anatomical and physiological changes contributing to a decline in overall performance. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) provides comprehensive structural and functional assessment for detecting age-related cardiovascular remodelling. We aimed to develop a fully automated CMR model to predict functional heart age.
Methods And Results:
This international, multi-centre, retrospective observational study enrolled 191 healthy individuals with normal body mass index (BMI), free of metabolic, cardiovascular, and respiratory disease as the derivation cohort. Left atrial (LA) end-systolic volume and LA ejection fraction were selected for the final model. The model was validated on 366 patients with BMI >25 kg/m2 and one or more comorbidities [hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), atrial fibrillation (AF), and obesity]. In healthy individuals [median age: 34 years, 105 (55%) female], CMR-derived functional heart age was similar to the chronological age [bias: 0.05%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 9.56-9.67%, P = 0.993]. In the validation cohort [median age: 53 years, 157 (43%) female], CMR-derived functional heart age was 4.6 years higher than chronological age (95% CI: 1.6-7.6 years, P = 0.003). Cardiac magnetic resonance-derived functional heart age was significantly higher in patients with hypertension (P < 0.001), DM (P < 0.001), and AF (P < 0.001) than age-matched healthy controls. Moreover, CMR-derived functional heart age was higher than the chronological age in obesity Class I (P = 0.07), obesity Class II (P = 0.11), and obesity Class III (P < 0.001).
Conclusion:
This study highlights the time course of structural and physiological changes in the heart during healthy and unhealthy ageing. We propose simple equations that should help communicate subtle changes in heart assessment with ageing.
Registration:
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT05114785.
Related Concept Videos
01:25Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System VI: Calcium -Scoring CT
01:28Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System V: CT
01:21Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System IV: CMRI
01:20Blood Studies for Cardiovascular System I: Cardiac Biomarkers
The essential diagnostic tools for detecting myocardial necrosis and monitoring individuals suspected of having acute coronary syndrome (ACS) include:
Troponins
Troponins, particularly cardiac troponins I and T, are the most precise and sensitive markers of myocardial injury. They are detectable within 4-6 hours of myocardial injury and remain...
01:20Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System III: X-Ray
Definition and Purpose
An X-ray, or radiograph, is a non-invasive method that uses ionizing radiation to take images of internal structures. It is mainly used in cardiac imaging to examine the heart, lungs, and major blood vessels, aiming to identify abnormalities in the heart's size, shape, and position, such as heart failure, congenital defects, and vascular...
01:19The Effect of Aging on Tissues