How to assess the risk of premature death in the coming years? There is no need for complicated and expensive devices or analyzes. Danish scientists have found that one of the tests usually performed during routine blood counts may alert you to the risk. And although this happened in 2020, it is worth recalling these findings.

  1. In 2020, scientists in Denmark discovered that a simple blood test could help doctors predict who is at risk of premature death
  2. They found that (during the study period) patients with low lymphocyte counts were 1,6 times more likely to die (from any cause) than those with normal lymphocyte counts
  3. A Danish study found that low lymphocyte counts were associated with a higher risk of death, including due to cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, infections
  4. Scientists also point to the limitations of the study. First of all, the fact that causality has not been clarified
  5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

How do scientists estimate the risk of premature death?

Scientists are still working on methods to estimate the risk of premature death. It has recently been established that middle-aged and elderly people who cannot balance for 10 seconds while standing on one leg die almost twice as often (from any cause) within 10 years than those who succeed. These conclusions were reached by a team of researchers from the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Finland and Brazil after 12 years of observation. Interestingly, every fifth respondent (21%) failed this test. And the higher their age, the poorer the results were.

Previously, the stair test was developed to assess the likelihood of an early death. According to scientists, the state of our heart can be judged by whether we are able to quickly climb to the third floor without stopping. It is also worth mentioning the “handshake test”. It has been established that grip strength is a measure of the condition of skeletal muscles – their weakening is associated with the risk of many diseases and, consequently, the risk of death.

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Another way is a smell test. In 2015, scientists found a link between the loss of sense of smell in the elderly and the risk of dying in the next 10 years. It is suspected that a weaker sense of smell may herald the onset of certain neurodegenerative diseases: Alzheimer’s disease, parkinson’s disease, and dementia in general.

Lymphopenia detected during routine blood counts

In 2020, Dr. Stig Bojesen and his colleagues at the University of Copenhagen discovered that a simple blood test could help doctors predict who is at risk of premature death. But from the beginning.

The researchers analyzed the data of 108 Danes between the ages of 135 and 20 who participated in the Copenhagen General Population Survey. A total of 100 people died during the study period. Researchers searched the medical records of these people for abnormal blood test results.

They found that Danes who died during the study period had lower levels of lymphocytes (one type of leukocytes, or white blood cells). This condition is known as lymphopenia. After further analysis, it was found that patients with low lymphocyte counts were 1,6 times more likely to die (from any cause) during the study period than those with normal lymphocyte counts.

Relationship between lymphopenia and the risk of death. Theories and limitations

What might be the link between lymphopenia and a higher risk of early death? There may be several reasons for this. A Danish study found that low lymphocyte counts were associated with a higher risk of death, including due to cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases and infections, which are problems that are quite common in older patients.

Note:

Always discuss the morphology results with your doctor. Remember that you cannot analyze one result in isolation from the rest.

Lymphocytes are part of the immune system and this is essential to help patients fight disease. So the researchers speculated that a weak immune system might be one of the reasons why the incidence of diseases such as cancer and respiratory disorders increases with age. “Lymphopenia may also be a more passive indicator of general weakness, which is associated with a high risk of death from any cause,” emphasized the Danish researchers.

Regular preventive examinations are a prerequisite to detect the disease in time. Do not neglect it, take advantage of preventive examinations in the minimum, medium or maximum version. Choose an e-packet for everyone available on Medonet Market.

Scientists also point to the limitations of the study. First of all, the fact that causality has not been clarified. “The participants may have had a subclinical and potentially fatal disease on the day of the study, which could have had an impact on their lymphocyte counts and risk of death,” the paper reads. ‘However, since the association between lymphopenia and high mortality persisted for several years after the participants were tested, it is unlikely that this would affect our results,’ the researchers say.

We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time Kamila Wykrota, the resilience trainer, will tell us about what resilience is. How does the ability to adapt to changing circumstances and react to adversities affect our quality of life? You will find out by listening to the latest episode of our podcast.

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