New Delhi: An 85 per cent year on year surge in calcium scoring CT scans between 2024 and 2025, along with a 36 per cent increase in advanced cardiac imaging volumes, is signalling a growing shift toward preventive cardiology and earlier risk detection among Indians, including younger populations, according to Mahajan Imaging & Labs.
The findings were discussed during a virtual conference titled “Young Hearts at Risk: The Case for Early Cardiac Screening,” where clinicians highlighted the changing age profile of cardiovascular disease and the urgent need to integrate structured early screening into routine healthcare.
National trends mirror these observations. More than 25 per cent of heart attacks in India now occur in individuals under 40, while 15 to 20 per cent of sudden cardiac arrests are reported in those below 50. Experts noted that Indians tend to develop coronary artery disease nearly a decade earlier than Western populations due to a combination of diabetes, hypertension, obesity, chronic stress, sedentary lifestyles and dyslipidemia.
A virtual session featured Dr Harsh Mahajan, Mentor at FICCI Health Services and Founder Chairman of Mahajan Imaging & Labs; Dr Praveen Chandra, Chairman, Interventional Cardiology at Medanta; and Dr Shoma Mukerjee, Senior Consultant and Head of Department at Mahajan Imaging & Labs, Dwarka.
Emphasising that in younger patients coronary artery disease often presents suddenly without prior warning symptoms, Dr Chandra said, “Non invasive diagnostics such as CT coronary angiography, calcium scoring, stress imaging and biomarker assessment enable early risk stratification and timely intervention, significantly reducing long term myocardial damage.”
Attributing the sharp rise in calcium scoring largely to increasing awareness around preventive medicine, Dr Mahajan said, “CT based calcium scoring can predict future cardiac risk even before symptoms emerge, allowing clinicians to detect plaque burden and vascular changes at a pre symptomatic stage.”
Experts underlined that calcium scoring CT is particularly valuable in quantifying coronary artery calcification, an early indicator of atherosclerosis, enabling more accurate risk classification in asymptomatic individuals.
Internal data also pointed to a steady increase in preventive cardiac investigations including ECG, stress echocardiography and treadmill testing. Around 20 to 21 per cent of individuals undergoing cholesterol testing were found to have abnormal lipid levels, reflecting a significant hidden burden of dyslipidemia even among those seeking routine health checks.
Dr Mukerjee observed that many younger individuals with underlying atherosclerotic disease remain clinically silent. Targeted screening of those with metabolic risk factors or a family history of premature heart disease allows early therapeutic intervention through medication and lifestyle modification, significantly improving long term outcomes.
The experts called for integrating advanced cardiac diagnostics into preventive healthcare pathways, particularly for high risk populations, as clinicians push for a transition from opportunistic testing to protocol driven early screening to counter India’s rising cardiovascular burden among the young.
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