Chronic Inflammation May Link Frailty, Social Disadvantage, and Heart Disease: Study Finds - Video

A new study led by researchers at King's College London, in collaboration with the University of Nottingham, has uncovered a potential biological link between chronic inflammation, frailty, social disadvantage, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The findings, published in Communications Medicine, could help inform more targeted public health strategies to reduce heart disease among vulnerable groups.

Frailty is a condition often associated with ageing, marked by reduced physiological resilience and an increased vulnerability to health complications, including heart disease. CVD remains one of the leading causes of death globally, with previous research showing that both frailty and social deprivation raise the risk of poor cardiovascular outcomes. However, the biological mechanisms connecting these factors have remained unclear.

In this study, researchers focused on inflammation—a natural immune response that becomes persistent and low-grade with age, a phenomenon known as ‘inflammaging’. Chronic inflammation is linked to a range of age-related diseases and has been found to be higher among individuals living in more disadvantaged conditions.

To explore this further, the team analysed blood samples from more than 2,000 women aged between 37 and 84 years, all part of the TwinsUK cohort. They examined 74 inflammation-related proteins and identified 10 that were significantly associated with both frailty and living in a deprived area. Of these, four proteins—TNFSF14, HGF, CDCP1, and CCL11—were also linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Notably, CDCP1 was found to be strongly associated with future heart disease events such as artery blockage or narrowing.

The results were validated in an independent sample of women from the Nottingham Osteoarthritis Study, confirming the robustness of the findings across different populations.

These inflammation-related proteins could serve as biomarkers to help clinicians identify individuals at greater risk of heart disease. The study also suggests a dual-pronged approach may be most effective in reducing cardiovascular risk—combining medical treatments aimed at lowering inflammation with broader social policies that address inequality and deprivation.

Reference: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/research-shows-inflammatory-link-between-frailty-social-deprivation-and-heart-disease-risk-in-women