News Tips for Monday, Nov. 9
From the American Heart Association's 71st Scientific Sessions Nov. 8-11, 1998, Dallas County Convention Center, Dallas, Texas
To complement our news releases, here are additional news tips reported by News Media Relations from more than 4,000 abstracts. Note: Stories are embargoed until papers are presented or poster sessions begin. For more information, Nov. 8-11, call Cathy Yarbrough, Carole Bullock, Brian Henry, Bruce Lewis (broadcast), Darcy Spitz or Berna Creel in Room A215-217 of the Dallas County Convention Center: (214) 853-8056. Before or after those dates, call News Media Relations in Dallas: (214) 706-1279 or 706-1135.
1:30 p.m. -- #1437 (poster)-- In black men, high blood pressure awareness is high, but priority is low. In East Baltimore, which has the nation's highest death rate from high blood pressure (HBP) among young African-American men, a survey finds a contradiction: 81 percent of the 309 young black men with HBP questioned said they realize that their condition is "extremely dangerous." But only 2 percent rated dealing with the potentially deadly disease as their "main priority in life." Family, general health concerns and finding work ranked far higher. Despite the young men's awareness of the danger of HBP and related illnesses, researchers say for these men to benefit from HBP treatment, this life-threatening disease needs to become a priority in their lives. Mary C. Roary, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore: phone (410) 614-1449, x 41449; fax (410) 614-7128; e-mail: [email protected]. See abstract #1435 (1:30 p.m.) from the same research group "addressing environmental factors affecting young black men" The two-year study examined 309 young black men with high blood pressure and was designed to identify barriers to treatment. The interventions -- which included providing free medication, regular monitoring of high blood pressure and home visits -- resulted in a 44 percent increase in the number of men receiving treatment. See #2717 (2:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov 10) for a report showing that control of HBP among African Americans can be achieved by using a unique combination of home blood pressure monitoring, lifestyle and medication information -- all transmitted via the telephone. Mary D. Bondmass, University of Illinois, Chicago: phone (312) 996-4409; fax (312) 413-2948.
4:15 p.m. -- #1066 -- Congestive heart failure: distress and detachment. Husbands of women with congestive heart failure seem to be detached from their wives' distress from having the disease, University of Michigan researchers report. A basic test determined levels of psychological distress among 149 men and 52 women with congestive heart failure (CHF). Test scores showed that both males and females with CHF, as well as wives of the males, experience "extreme levels of psychological distress" that can inhibit following doctor's orders, functional ability and even survival. "However," the scientists found, "husbands appear to be detached from the distress associated with [their wives'] CHF." John M. Nicklas, Ann Arbor: phone (734) 936-5265; fax (734) 936-5256; e-mail: [email protected].
4:45 p.m. -- #899 -- When seconds count, police may provide faster defibrillation. In a trial encompassing four Indiana counties, 119 police officers trained and equipped with automated external defibrillators (AEDs) were at the scene of potential deaths from cardiac arrest four minutes faster than the average emergency medical service (EMS) response time in the area. Police achieved a six-minute average interval from receipt of a 911 call to administering the first shock to a patient experiencing ventricular fibrillation (VF), a quivering irregular heartbeat that causes cardiac arrest and death. Seconds count in such situations because the odds of successful defibrillation fall by seven to 10 percent for each minute VF continues. William J. Groh, Krannert Institute of Cardiology, Indianapolis, Ind.: phone (317) 630-6629; fax (317) 278-0688. See #893 (2:45 p.m.) for report of initial experience with on-board domestic airline use of AEDs on a domestic commercial airline. During a nine-month period, one passenger was resuscitated from a potentially fatal ar! rhythmia -- an irregular heartbeat -- and survived. Use of AEDs also helped avoid unnecessary flight diversion for ill passengers who weren't experiencing life-threatening heart problems. Richard L. Page, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas: phone (214) 590-5055; fax (214) 590-5032; e-mail: [email protected].
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