Jason Katz, MD, MHS, associate professor of medicine at UNC School of Medicine and medical director of the cardiac intensive care unit, was the lead author of a recently published manuscript that examined the early growth and maturation of critical care cardiology, and the challenges and uncertainties that threaten to stymie the growth of this fledgling discipline.
PinnacleHealth became the first hospital in the country to implant the EDWARDS INTUITY Elite valve, a rapid deployment device for surgical aortic valve replacement, after U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.
A type of heart failure caused by a build-up of amyloid can be accurately diagnosed and prognosticated with an imaging technique, eliminating the need for a biopsy, according to a multicenter study.
PHILADELPHIA — Each year more than 300,000 Americans will succumb to out-of-hospital sudden cardiac death (SCD) – the immediate and unexpected cessation of the heart’s ability to function properly – one of the leading causes of death in the United States. For the first time, a team of researchers led by Rajat Deo, MD, MTR, an assistant professor of Cardiovascular Medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has developed and validated a prediction model to determine sudden cardiac death risk in adults without a history of cardiovascular disease (CVD).
For patients in rehabilitation after a stroke, walking on an underwater treadmill produces better measures of exercise performance compared to conventional treadmill walking, reports a study in the American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, the official journal of the Association of Academic Physiatrists. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
A growing body of research points to the involvement of inflammation and the immune system on the development of cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular physiologists and immunologists will meet to explore how these mechanisms interact at the Inflammation, Immunity and Cardiovascular Disease conference in Westminster, Colo., on Aug. 24–27, 2016.
A study by Johns Hopkins researchers of more than 13,000 people has found that even after accounting for such risk factors as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, so-called morbid obesity appears to stand alone as a standout risk for heart failure, but not for other major types of heart disease.
In a study being published in the August 19 issue of Science, researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in collaboration with scientists from Tartu University Hospital in Estonia, the Karolinska Institutet and Science for Life Laboratory (SciLifeLab) in Sweden, and AstraZeneca, have identified a profound new level of complexity and interaction among genes within specific tissues responsible for mediating the inherited risk for cardiometabolic diseases, including processes that lead to heart attack and stroke.
Genetic testing has greatly improved physicians’ ability to detect potentially lethal heart anomalies among asymptomatic family members of people who suffer cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death. But a study from Harvard Medical School published in the Aug. 18 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine shows that over the last decade these lifesaving tools may have disproportionately misdiagnosed one cardiac condition — hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) – in black Americans.
Joanna Chikwe, MD, has been appointed as Chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery in the Department of Surgery at Stony Brook University School of Medicine. Henry J. Tannous, MD, has been named Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery in the Department of Surgery.
New research from a fluid mechanics team in Greece reveals how blood flow dynamics within blood vessels may influence where plaques develop or rupture this week in Physics of Fluids. The findings could one day help doctors identify weak spots on a vessel wall that are likeliest to fail, and lead to early interventions in treating heart disease.
The Mount Sinai Hospital is the first site in the New York metropolitan area to pioneer a new approach for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias using the EpiAccess® system.
Researchers at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, with expertise running large clinical trials, and at Mayo Clinic, are leading the Tailored Antiplatelet Therapy to Lessen Outcomes after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (TAILOR-PCI) study. This study has received $7 million in additional funding from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
A UCLA study is the first to show that Latinos age at a slower rate than other ethnic groups. The findings may one day help scientists understand how to slow the aging process for everyone.
Though mortality from heart disease is decreasing, some groups are at increased risk for developing heart disease, including African Americans in the southeastern U.S. Nearly 44 percent of all African American men, and 48 percent of African American women have some form of cardiovascular disease, including heart disease or stroke.
Commonly touted as “good cholesterol” for helping to reduce risk of stroke and heart attack, both high and low levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol may increase a person’s risk of premature death, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System. Conversely, intermediate HDL cholesterol levels may increase longevity, according to the research.
A Cornell study recently published online in the peer-reviewed journal Molecular Nutrition and Food Research reports new results that raise questions about whether circulating TMAO causes heart disease or whether it is simply a biomarker, or a sign, of developing disease.
On top of offering sound advice, NYU Lutheran also provides pregnant women with important clinical information about their pregnancies — using the most advanced ultrasound technology to assess how their baby is developing inside the womb.
Mayo Clinic has launched a new type of blood test that will be used to predict adverse cardiovascular events in patients with progressing coronary artery disease (CAD). The test measures blood concentrations of plasma ceramides, a class of lipids that are highly linked to cardiovascular disease processes.
Previous research has shown that sitting for an extended period of time at a computer or during a long airline flight reduces blood flow to the legs, which may contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease. Now, researchers from the University of Missouri have found that fidgeting while sitting can protect the arteries in legs and potentially help prevent arterial disease.
Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have successfully tested a prototype conducted electrical weapon (CEW) capable of recording a subject’s heart rate and rhythm while still delivering incapacitating electrical charges.
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the U.S. With one in every four deaths occurring each year, the five-year survival rate after a heart attack is worse than most cancers. A big part of the problem is the inability of the human heart to effectively repair itself after injury. A team of University of Houston researchers is trying to change that.
Researchers have uncovered how genes identified from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) affect high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), a biomarker of cardiovascular disease, after comparing several animal models with human patient data. A large team from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Copenhagen, Bristol-Myers Squibb and several others institutions detail their findings in a paper published today in Cell Metabolism.
Patients with sickle cell anemia (SCA) develop heart complications and nearly a quarter die a sudden death. Now, researchers have linked malfunctioning molecular pathways to specific heart anomalies in SCA that result from progressive fibrosis and result in sudden death.
A study published online this week by PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) reports the findings open a path to earlier non-invasive diagnosis and development of new targeted therapies to help SCA patients live longer with better quality of life.
Among patients with severe aortic stenosis (narrowing of the aortic valve) undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation, the use of a cerebral protection device (a filter that captures debris [tissue and plaque] dislodged during the procedure) reduced the number and volume of brain lesions, according to a study appearing in the August 9 issue of JAMA.
The new testing method is a significant improvement for patients because it utilizes a simple blood sample, eliminating the need for a much more invasive lung biopsy that was previously required to test for the genetic mutation.
Though the health systems in Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico and Panama have considerable strengths, citizens still reported gaps in the way primary care is organized, financed and delivered in those countries. Those who had better experiences were less likely to say that their health system needed major reforms.
Scientists have shown that people who exercise for even a few hours each week can enlarge their hearts. This is a normal and beneficial response to exercise, but until now has only been recognised in athletes. The researchers say that doctors should now consider an individual’s activity level before diagnosing common heart conditions.
Warfarin prescribed to prevent strokes in atrial fibrillation may not adequately control blood clotting over the long-term, even when patients have been historically stable on the drug, according to a study from the Duke Clinical Research Institute.
Eliminating racial disparities in the outcomes of programs to control blood pressure can be accomplished with a few one-on-one coaching sessions delivered by health professionals —but not if the program requires people to get to a clinic, according to results of a new Johns Hopkins Medicine study. The finding, described in the current issue of the Ethnicity & Disease journal, adds to mounting evidence that health and wellness programs work best when medical practitioners go out to people in their communities.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has provided $299,954 in funding to the research team led by Penn State's Hui Yang for research focused on improving health care delivery to patients who have had cardiac surgery.
Women who have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)—a common cause of female infertility—may be able to improve their metabolic and cardiovascular health by consuming soy isoflavones, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Using cardiac CT scans, researchers found an association between higher inflammatory biomarkers and a significantly higher prevalence of coronary artery disease in men infected with HIV
Patients who suffer heart attacks, or flare-ups of congestive heart failure, can be cared for in a variety of hospital locations. But a new study suggests that they’ll fare worse in hospitals that rely heavily on their intensive care units to care for patients like them.
Hidden dental root tip infections are very common: as many as one in four Finns suffers from at least one. Such infections are usually detected by chance from X-rays.
In an attempt to correct defects in the energy generation that contribute to poor pump function among heart failure patients, researchers examined whether the diabetes drug liraglutide, could improve the condition of patients with advanced heart failure. Despite improvements in blood sugar control, the therapy did not improve the clinical stability or pumping action of the heart in patients with advanced heart failure. A team of researchers led by Kenneth B. Margulies, MD, a professor of Medicine and research director for Heart Failure and Transplantation, and Thomas Cappola, MD, ScM, chief of the division of Cardiovascular Medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, detailed findings from the Functional Impact of GLP-1 for Heart Failure Treatment (FIGHT) study in a paper published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Data from this study was initially presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2015 in
The high levels of caffeine in energy drinks may lead to cardiac complications, suggests a case report in the July/August Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
Ranked No. 1 in San Diego, UC San Diego Health and its hospitals have been recognized among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for 2016-17.
Patients suffering from deadly heart attacks can be spared more extensive heart damage when emergency responders and hospitals work together to standardize their treatment processes, according to a study published August 1 in Circulation, a journal of the American Heart Association (AHA).
Marilyn Cotter recently needed a stress test following a bout of chest tightness. Unable to withstand exercise because of foot problems, Cotter, a 68-year-old grandmother from Delhi Township, wasn’t a candidate for a normal stress test that uses a treadmill. Instead, her physicians at University of Cincinnati Medical Center used a space-age option: an anti-gravity treadmill.
Researchers at The University of Nottingham have been involved in one of the largest international studies of congenital heart disease, which has discovered gene mutations linked to three new rare congenital heart disorders (CHD).
ROCHESTER, Minn. — Which antiplatelet medication is best after a coronary stent? The Tailored Antiplatelet Therapy to Lessen Outcomes After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (TAILOR-PCI) Study examines whether prescribing heart medication based on a patient’s CYP2C19 genotype will help prevent heart attack, stroke, unstable angina, and cardiovascular death in patients who undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), commonly called angioplasty.
MINNEAPOLIS – An updated recommendation from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) states that catheter-based closure should not be routinely recommended for people who have had a stroke and also have a heart defect called a patent foramen ovale (PFO), a channel between the top two chambers in the heart. The practice advisory, which updates a previous AAN guideline, is published in the July 27, 2016, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Five University at Buffalo research projects aim to study how the interplay of the human microbiome – the collection of microorganisms that reside in and on the human body – and the environment affect a person’s risk for certain diseases.
A number of states – including Massachusetts and New York – mandate public reporting of mortality outcomes following certain cardiac procedures. While such reporting was originally intended to increase transparency and improve quality of care, a new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and the University of Washington has shown that public reporting may in fact disincentivize physicians from offering potentially lifesaving treatment to patients who are at the greatest risk of mortality and poor outcomes. However, reforms to public reporting policies can mitigate these undesired effects, the authors report in a paper published online today in JAMA Cardiology.
The short-term risk of developing cardiovascular disease following a first pregnancy is higher for women experiencing placental syndromes and a preterm birth or an infant born smaller than the usual size, a University of South Florida study reports. The USF researchers also found a five-fold increase in health care costs for women with placental syndromes who developed cardiovascular disease as soon as three to five years following delivery, compared to those who did not.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson will be a special keynote speaker at TCT 2016 (Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics), the annual scientific symposium of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF). TCT is the world’s premier educational meeting specializing in interventional cardiovascular medicine, attracting nearly 12,000 attendees from all over the world.