Chronic Inflammation Links Frailty, Social Deprivation, and Heart Disease Risk

Inflammatory proteins that connect frailty, social deprivation, and cardiovascular risk offer new avenues for medical and policy interventions.

Highlights:

Study links 10 inflammatory proteins to both frailty and living in deprived areas in women
CDCP1 protein is strongly associated with future heart disease events
Findings support combined medical and policy interventions to reduce CVD risk

A new study published in Communications Medicine has revealed that chronic inflammation may be the biological link connecting frailty, social disadvantage, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women ().

The research highlights that tackling this link may require a dual public health approach — combining medical strategies that reduce harmful inflammation with policies that address health inequalities.

Researchers from King’s College London examined 74 inflammation-related proteins in blood samples from over 2,000 women aged 37 to 84. Researchers explored how these proteins were connected to three factors:

Frailty (reduced physical resilience with age)
Social deprivation (measured at the area level)
Cardiovascular disease risk

They found 10 inflammatory proteins linked to both frailty and living in deprived areas. Among these, four proteins — TNFSF14, HGF, CDCP1, and CCL11 — stood out for their connection to increased cardiovascular disease risk.

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TOP INSIGHT

Did You Know?
Inflammation may be the missing biological link between social inequality, ageing, and heart disease in women. #hearthealth #womenshealth #inflammation #frailty #socialdeterminants #cardiovasculardisease #medindia

CDCP1: A Potential Red Flag for Future Heart Events

One protein, CDCP1, was significantly associated with future heart disease events, such as narrowed or blocked arteries. The findings were validated in an independent group of women, strengthening the evidence.

Researchers suggest that these inflammatory proteins may act as a biological bridge between social inequality, ageing, and heart disease.

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Frailty, Disadvantage, and Disease: A Shared Pathway

“By identifying overlapping biological markers linked to both social and health vulnerability, we were able to uncover a potential shared pathway between these risk factors,” said Dr. Yu Lin, Research Associate at King’s College London.

Dr. Cristina Menni, Senior Lecturer in Molecular Epidemiology, added that socioeconomic hardship may trigger harmful inflammation, damaging health over time.

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Why This Matters

The results suggest that chronic inflammation could act as a biological bridge between social inequality, ageing, and heart disease.

If confirmed in future studies, these proteins could serve as biomarkers to help clinicians identify women at greater risk and intervene earlier.

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Implications for Prevention

The researchers propose a two-pronged approach:

Medical Interventions — Anti-inflammatory treatments or lifestyle changes targeting harmful inflammation.
Policy Measures — Tackling the root causes of social deprivation to reduce long-term health risks.

This combination could help protect vulnerable groups, especially ageing women, from the compounded effects of frailty, inequality, and heart disease.

Reference:

Chronic Inflammation Identified as Link Between Frailty, Social Disadvantage, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Women - (https://www.geneonline.com/chronic-inflammation-identified-as-link-between-frailty-social-disadvantage-and-cardiovascular-disease-risk-in-women/)

Source-Medindia