WALTHAM, Mass., Nov. 9, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BG Medicine, Inc. (Nasdaq:BGMD), a company focused on the development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics, today announced that results of retrospective analyses of the BioImage Study cohort were presented this week at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2012 in Los Angeles. These presentations resulted from research sponsored by the company and included data on the CardioSCORE™ test, a proprietary blood test currently being developed by the company.
In four scientific presentations, investigators from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine and the Baptist Hospital of Miami jointly presented the following findings:
"BioImage Study: Value of Novel Biomarker Panel (CardioSCORE) in Predicting Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events among those with Absence of Coronary Calcification" assessed the value of the CardioSCORE test for predicting near-term cardiovascular risk among the 1,832 study participants who were found to be free of coronary arterial calcification as determined by computed tomography. For this group, otherwise assessed to be at low risk for cardiovascular events, investigators reported that elevated CardioSCORE test results were associated with a significantly increased risk of major cardiovascular events, including heart attack and ischemic stroke, in the near-term follow-up period of 2.5 years.
"BioImage Study: Reclassification and Discrimination by Novel Biomarker Panel (CardioSCORE), Coronary Calcium Score, Carotid Intima-Media Thickness & Plaque Burden in Asymptomatic Individuals" compared the predictive power of the CardioSCORE test to three atherosclerosis imaging modalities including coronary artery calcium evaluation by computed tomography, ultrasound carotid intima-media thickness assessment, and ultrasound carotid atherosclerotic plaque quantification. Across the entire study cohort, investigators reported that the CardioSCORE test yielded near-term cardiovascular event prediction significantly better than conventional ultrasound imaging methodologies, and was of comparable predictive power as coronary artery calcium evaluation.
"BioImage Study: Novel Biomarker Panel (CardioSCORE) for the Prediction of First Major Cardiovascular Events across the Full Range of Framingham Risk Scores" assessed the extent of the additive predictive value of the CardioSCORE test to traditional risk factor scoring as aggregated in the Framingham Risk Score, in 6,600 study participants. Investigators reported that the addition of the CardioSCORE test to the Framingham Risk Score significantly increased the accuracy with which individuals at high risk for near-term events were correctly identified, particularly within the low and intermediate risk categories.
"BioImage Study: Combined Use of Novel Biomarker Panel (CardioSCORE) and Computed Tomography Coronary Calcium Scores in Predicting Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events" assessed 5,763 study participants to determine the extent of the additive predictive value of the CardioSCORE Test to coronary artery calcium scoring by computed tomography. Investigators reported that the addition of CardioSCORE test results to coronary artery calcium scoring significantly increased the accuracy with which individuals at high risk for near-term events were correctly identified across all levels of coronary calcification.
"These results suggest that the CardioSCORE test has the significant potential to provide valuable information about an individual's risk of experiencing a near-term heart attack or stroke," said Eric Bouvier, President and CEO of BG Medicine. "There is a critical need for a simple and easy-to-use blood test to more accurately determine a patient's risk for these types of catastrophic events."
About The CardioSCORE™ Test
The CardioSCORE test is a proprietary blood test that measures the levels of several protein biomarkers and integrates the results to yield a single numerical score that is related to an individual's risk for near-term major cardiovascular events. The CardioSCORE test is not yet commercially available and is currently under development in the United States.
About the BioImage Study
The ongoing BioImage study is a prospective, epidemiological study comprising more than 7,000 community-dwelling individuals. It was designed to investigate the relationship between imaging and blood biomarkers and major cardiovascular event rates, in order to develop more reliable and simple means of identifying individuals before their first major event.
About BG Medicine, Inc.
BG Medicine, Inc. (Nasdaq:BGMD) is a life sciences company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics to address significant unmet medical needs, improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs. The Company's first commercialized product, the BGM Galectin-3® test for use in patients with chronic heart failure, is available in the United States and Europe. BG Medicine is also developing the CardioSCORE TM test, a blood test designed to aid in the assessment of an individual's risk for near-term major cardiovascular events. For additional information about BG Medicine, heart failure and galectin-3 testing, please visit www.bg-medicine.com and www.galectin-3.com.
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Special Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements made in this news release contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the "safe harbor" created by those sections. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies and expectations, can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as "believe," "expect," "may," "will," "should," "could," "seek," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "anticipate" or other comparable terms. Forward-looking statements in this news release address our belief in the significant potential of the CardioSCORE test to provide valuable information about an individual's risk of experiencing near-term major cardiovascular events; our belief that there is a critical need for a simple and easy-to-use blood test to more accurately determine patients' risks for near-term major cardiovascular events; our belief that the CardioSCORE test may improve the identification of individuals at high risk for near-term major cardiovascular events over conventional risk factor scoring; our expectations regarding the impact of the BioImage Study cohort data on potential sales and marketing of the CardioSCORE test. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, as a result of various factors including those risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors and in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of our recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. We urge you to consider those risks and uncertainties in evaluating our forward-looking statements. We caution readers not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as otherwise required by the federal securities laws, we disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein (or elsewhere) to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.