CardioExchange Archive

October 3rd, 2011

Guidelines for Managing Peripheral Artery Disease Updated

Larry Husten, PHD

The ACC and the AHA have released updated guidelines for managing peripheral artery disease (PAD). The document is available online in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and in Circulation. The new guidelines place a greater emphasis on tobacco cessation, requesting healthcare providers to consistently ask patients about their smoking status and to offer support to help them […]

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September 29th, 2011

Rivaroxaban Meets Primary Endpoint in ATLAS ACS TIMI 51

Larry Husten, PHD

Bayer AG announced today that in the ATLAS ACS TIMI 51 trial, rivaroxaban (Xarelto, Bayer and Johnson & Johnson) had met the primary efficacy endpoint  in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The drug was associated with “a statistically significant reduction in the rate of events for the primary composite endpoint of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction […]

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September 29th, 2011

Meta-Analysis Explores Real World CV Risk of NSAIDs

Larry Husten, PHD

A new meta-analysis sheds additional light on the cardiovascular risk of NSAIDs as used in the real world, including low doses of the most popular drugs, over short periods, and in low-risk populations. In a paper published online in PLoS Medicine, Patricia McGettigan and David Henry analyzed data from 30 case-control studies including 184,946 CV events and […]

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September 28th, 2011

Study Finds Noncardiac Sources of Positive Troponin T Tests

Larry Husten, PHD

Cardiac troponin T (cTnT) is not always cardiac specific and in some cases may lead to a false-positive diagnosis of cardiac injury, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The study was prompted by a case seen by a senior clinician at the Mayo Clinic in which a patient, who was […]

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September 27th, 2011

Experience Counts in Carotid Artery Stenting

Larry Husten, PHD

Experience really does count when it comes to carotid artery stenting, and that may be a big problem, since most current operators do not have substantial experience with the procedure.

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September 26th, 2011

Statins for Primary Prevention: The Debate Continues

Larry Husten, PHD

Several leading cardiologists have taken issue with the assertion made by Rita Redberg and the editors of the Archives of Internal Medicine that using statins for primary prevention is an example “of the widespread use of medications with known adverse effects despite the absence of data for patient benefit for these indications.” In a research letter published in the […]

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September 23rd, 2011

Rivaroxaban (Xarelto) Gets Positive Recommendation for AF and DVT in Europe

Larry Husten, PHD

The European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has recommended that rivaroxaban (Xarelto) be approved for the prevention of stroke and systemic embolism in AF, according to Bayer HealthCare. CHMP has also recommended the drug’s approval for the treatment of DVT and for the prevention of recurrent DVT and PE following acute DVT. […]

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September 22nd, 2011

Dronedarone (Multaq) Gets Another Drubbing in Europe

Larry Husten, PHD

The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has recommended new restrictions on dronedarone (Multaq), Sanofi’s embattled and controversial antiarrhythmic drug. CHMP says that dronedarone should only be used for maintaining sinus rhythm in patients with paroxysmal or persistent AF after successful cardioversion. The drug should no longer be used in […]

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September 22nd, 2011

Diet Drugs Get a New Slim Chance at Approval

Larry Husten, PHD

Contrave, the investigational diet pill combination of naltrexone and bupropion, has been granted a possible new lease on life by the FDA. In January of this year, the FDA issued a complete response letter to Orexigen, the drug’s sponsor. Now Orexigen says that it has received guidance from the FDA that could lead to approval of the […]

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September 21st, 2011

More Data but No Answers About Platelet Function Testing

Larry Husten, PHD

The RECLOSE 2–ACS (Responsiveness to Clopidogrel and Stent Thrombosis 2–ACS) trial from Italy provides new information about platelet reactivity but doesn’t answer any of the key questions about the possible role of platelet function testing in clinical practice. In a paper published in JAMA, Guido Parodi and colleagues report on 1,789 ACS patients who underwent PCI and who […]

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