Vitamins and mineral supplements are of no proven benefit, and neither are plant stanols or sterols.Public health measures may also act at a population level to reduce the risk of myocardial infarction, for example by reducing unhealthy diets (excessive salt, saturated fat, and trans fat) including food labeling and marketing requirements as well as requirements for catering and restaurants, and stimulating physical activity. This may be part of regional cardiovascular disease prevention programs or through the health impact assessment of regional and local plans and policies.Most guidelines recommend combining different preventive strategies. A 2015 Cochrane Review found some evidence that such an approach might help with blood pressure, body mass index and waist circumference. However, there was insufficient evidence to show an effect on mortality or actual cardio-vascular events. Medication
Statins, drugs that act to lower blood cholesterol, decrease the incidence and mortality rates of myocardial infarctions. They are often recommended in those at an elevated risk of cardiovascular diseases.Aspirin has been studied extensively in people considered at increased risk of myocardial infarction. Based on numerous studies in different groups (e.g. people with or without diabetes), there does not appear to be a benefit strong enough to outweigh the risk of excessive bleeding. Nevertheless, many clinical practice guidelines continue to recommend aspirin for primary prevention, and some researchers feel that those with very high cardiovascular risk but low risk of bleeding should continue to receive aspirin.
Weakening of the hair associated with pili torti also causes alopecia in approximately 80% of patients.The severity of hearing loss associated with Björnstad syndrome varies. Some individuals are unable to hear sounds at certain frequencies, while others are completely deaf. Their hearing loss is caused by tissue damage of the inner ear. Genetics
Björnstad syndrome is caused by a mutation in the BCS1L gene (position 2pq35) and is inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern. BCS1L is a protein that adds Rieske Fe/S to complex III during oxidative phosphorylation of cellular respiration. Mutations of BCS1L gene prevents the protein product from aiding in complex III formation, which reduces oxidative phosphorylation and increases the production of reactive oxygen species.Two missense mutations linked to Björnstad syndrome have been documented, but several other variants are suspected to be pathogenic. The clinical severity of different BCS1L mutations may be caused by the varying production of reactive oxygen species. The symptoms of Björnstad syndrome may be attributed to a particular sensitivity of inner ear and hair tissues to reactive oxygen species, but more research is needed. Mutations of the BCS1L gene may also result in GRACILE syndrome, which is an inherited lethal metabolic disease. Diagnosis
Roar Theodor Björnstad first noticed a correlation between pilli torti and hearing loss in 1965, and subsequently diagnosed eight patients with Björnstad syndrome. Out of these eight patients with pili torti, five experienced sensorineural deafness.