CardioExchange Archive

November 12th, 2013

After Long Wait, Updated U.S. Cardiovascular Guidelines Now Emphasize Risk Instead of Targets

Larry Husten, PHD

Updated cardiovascular health guidelines were released today by  the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC). The guidelines are designed to provide primary care physicians with evidence-based expert guidance on cholesterol, obesity, risk assessment, and healthy lifestyle. The new guidelines reinforce many of the same messages from previous guidelines, but also represent […]

---

November 9th, 2013

Yet Another Blow to Combination Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System Blockade

Larry Husten, PHD

ACE inhibitors and angiotensin-receptor blockers have been found to effectively slow progression of kidney disease. It has been theorized that dual blockade of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) might prove even more beneficial, but these hopes have not been realized. Now a new trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine throws further cold water on the once-promising hypothesis. […]

---

November 7th, 2013

FDA Seeks to Eliminate Trans Fat from Food in the U.S.

Larry Husten, PHD

The FDA said today that it would begin to take efforts to remove trans fat from food in the U.S. The agency has made the “preliminary determination that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), the primary dietary source of artificial trans fat in processed foods, are not ‘generally recognized as safe’ for use in food.” If the FDA’s preliminary determination is made final then manufacturers […]

---

November 5th, 2013

Should You Be Worried About the Treatment for Low-T?

Larry Husten, PHD

The ubiquitous ads ask: “Should I be worried about Low-T”? But now there’s a good chance there’s a more important question: “Should I be worried about the treatment for low-T?” A new study published in JAMA raises the distinct possibility that testosterone therapy may increase the risk for death, heart attack, and stroke. The findings are hardly definitive, but they may […]

---

November 4th, 2013

Healthy Diet in Middle Age Leads to Healthier Old Age

Larry Husten, PHD

New results from a long-running study offer fresh evidence that a “healthy” diet is actually good for you. The study shows that women who followed a healthy diet while in middle age had a much better chance of reaching age 70 without any of the major illnesses or impairments usually associated with old age. In a […]

---

October 31st, 2013

Prolonged Dual Antiplatelet Therapy May Not be Necessary for Second-Generation Drug-Eluting Stents

Larry Husten, PHD

The precise duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) following implantation of a drug-eluting stent (DES) has been the subject of considerable controversy. On the one hand, prolonged therapy may help prevent late stent thrombosis, which was particularly evident in first generation DESs. On the other hand, the risk of stent thrombosis may have diminished in […]

---

October 31st, 2013

EUROMAX Meets Primary Endpoint But Editorialist Raises Questions

Larry Husten, PHD

When started during transport to the hospital during a heart attack, bivalirudin (Angiox, Medicines Company) improves clinical outcomes and reduces major bleeding, though at the cost of a small but significant risk in stent thrombosis. The results of the European Ambulance Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) Angiography) Trial (EUROMAX) were presented on Wednesday by Phillippe Gabriel […]

---

October 29th, 2013

Pivotal Results for Medtronic’s CoreValve

Larry Husten, PHD

Key data on what will likely be the second transcatheter aortic valve to gain approval in the U.S. were presented today at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) 2013 Conference in San Francisco. Jeffrey Popma, co-principal investigator of the trial, presented the major results from the CoreValve U.S. Pivotal Trial in patients who were too ill or frail for traditional open […]

---

October 28th, 2013

Radiation Dose Linked to Cardiac Risk in Breast Cancer Patients

Larry Husten, PHD

In the past, cardiovascular risk has been linked to the radiation dose received by breast cancer patients. Now, a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine attempts to calculate the cardiac risk of breast cancer patients today undergoing current radiotherapy protocols. David J. Brenner and colleagues calculated the excess cardiac risk for 48 patients who received radiotherapy at New […]

---

October 25th, 2013

FDA Approves Abbot’s MitraClip for Patients at Prohibitive Surgical Risk

Larry Husten, PHD

The FDA today approved Abbott’s catheter-based MitraClip device for patients with significant symptomatic degenerative MR who are at prohibitive risk for mitral valve surgery. The company said it would launch the device immediately in the United States. The device is the first percutaneous nonsurgical therapy approved for the treatment of mitral valve disease. Surgery remains the option […]

---