Inflammation overload: It could be a sign of trouble

The evidence is strong for a link between atherosclerosis and inflammation, and it is building for diabetes, with new studies in search of treatment options.

By Susan J. Landers, AMNews staff. March 5, 2007.

Inflammation in the body is a good, protective and healing mechanism -- except when it isn't. In other words, the white blood cells that hurry to the site of infection and injury actually might be possible harbingers of trouble ahead.

Investigators are examining the cascading series of events initiated by long-term inflammation that, they suspect, may culminate in such serious chronic illnesses as heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's.

But ascertaining the practical results of this insight is still a matter of inquiry. For instance, new clinical trials are being launched to explore inflammation's role in heart disease and whether a commonly used anti-inflammatory medication can reduce blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes. Researchers already have determined that obesity is associated with a state of chronic low-level inflammation.

"Over the past five to eight years, it's becoming increasingly clear that a lot of these chronic diseases that were thought to be unique have similarities in that they are mediated by inflammatory processes that persist over many years," said Achsah Keegan, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Maryland and a researcher at the school's Center for Vascular and Inflammatory Diseases in Baltimore.

The common wisdom eventually could be summed up with this statement: Unhealthy lifestyles can trigger chronic inflammation, and a body on fire provides a scary visual. Thus, understanding this dark side may help answer many "why" and "how" questions in the exam room -- such as "Why should I walk more and lose weight?" and "How do diet and exercise lower the risk for heart disease, diabetes, and perhaps cancer and Alzheimer's?"