A New Treatment On The Horizon For Cardiac Fibrosis
August 3, 2007 by Kendra James, RN
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
A new type of treatment for cardiac fibrosis is on the horizon. Fibrosis occurs when an excess amount of matrix proteins, like collagen, develops and leaves pathological scarring. The heart becomes “stiff”. With inflexibility, the heart can not work properly, ie. it can not flex and relax.
Cardiac disease is the leading cause of death in the “Western world”. And with heart disease being so prevalent, too many patients deal with cardiac fibrosis on a daily basis.
The National Institutes of Health and the Novartis Corp. have funded an animal study that may lead to a possible treatment…
The animal study, led by the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, demonstrates a bone morphogenic molecule known as rhBMP7 can reverse the cardiac fibrosis process, offering the possibility of a therapeutic target for the debilitating condition.
via Science daily
