Coronary heart disease is the term that describes what happens when the heart's blood supply is blocked or interrupted by a build-up of fatty substances in the coronary arteries.

This is a process called atherosclerosis.

Coronary heart disease can't be cured yet but treatment can help manage the symptoms and reduce the chances of problems such as heart attacks.

However, now experts have found a new gene therapy which targets the heart and requires only one treatment session.

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The treatment has been found safe for patients with coronary artery disease, according to a successful trial carried out in Finland.

It works by enhancing circulation in the oxygen-deficient heart muscle and experts said the effects were visible even one year after the treatment.

A trial was carried out in collaboration between the University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio University Hospital and Turku PET Centre as part of the Centre of Excellence in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases of the Academy of Finland.

The biological bypass is based on gene transfer in which a natural human growth hormones - called a factor - is injected into the heart muscle to enhance vascular growth.

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Cardiovascular disease could be treated with gene therapy

The trial was the first in the world to use a vascular growth factor which has several beneficial effects on circulation in the heart muscle.

Experts also developed a precise method for injecting the gene into the oxygen-deficient heart muscle area.

A customised catheter is inserted via the patients groin vessels to the left ventricle, after which the gene solution can be injected directly into the heart muscle.

The method is as easy to perform as coronary balloon angioplasty, which means that it is also suitable for older patients and patients who are beyond a bypass surgery or other demanding surgical or arterial operations.

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Experts said the biological bypass constitutes a significant step forward in the development of novel biological treatments for patients with severe coronary artery disease.

A new blood test biomarker was also discovered, making it possible to identify patients who are most likely to benefit from the new treatment.

The biological bypass was developed by a research group at the University of Eastern Finland.

Experts said research into the biological bypass will continue with a new trial set to start in 2018.

This trial will also include five other cardiology clinics from Denmark, the UK, Austria, Spain and Poland.

This comes after it was revealed heart disease risk could be determined by your waist size.

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Cardiovascular disease cure? One session of THIS could help treat condition - Express.co.uk