CardioExchange Archive

June 21st, 2011

Study Finds Critical Delay in Most MI Patients Transferred for Primary PCI

Larry Husten, PHD

MI patients who arrive at hospitals unable to perform primary PCI need to be promptly transferred to another hospital in order to receive the full benefits of reperfusion. Unfortunately, these patients often have prolonged door-to-balloon times. A key element in the delay is the time spent at the first hospital, referred to as the door-in […]

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June 16th, 2011

FDA: Varenicline (Chantix) May Increase Risk for CV Events

Larry Husten, PHD

The FDA said that the anti-smoking drug varenicline (Chantix) may increase the risk for cardiovascular events in people who already have cardiovascular disease. The new information will be added to the drug’s label and Medication Guide for patients. The FDA does not recommend that people with cardiovascular disease stop taking varenicline, but it says that physicians […]

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June 16th, 2011

FDA Says Pioglitazone Use Is Linked to Bladder Cancer

Larry Husten, PHD

The FDA has issued a safety announcement stating that the use of pioglitazone (Actos) for more than 1 year may be  associated with increased risk for bladder cancer. The FDA announcement follows last week’s suspension of the drug in France and Germany by regulatory authorities in those countries. The FDA said that pioglitazone should not be […]

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June 15th, 2011

NEJM: FDA Officials Explain the New Simvastatin Label

Larry Husten, PHD

In a perspective published in the New England Journal of Medicine, two FDA officials, Amy Egan and Eric Colman, explain in some detail the recent changes made by the FDA regarding simvastatin. They note that in the SEARCH trial, myopathy developed in 52 (0.9%) patients in the 80-mg group compared with only 1 (0.02%) patient […]

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June 15th, 2011

Johnson & Johnson Steps Out of the Stent Market

Larry Husten, PHD

Johnson & Johnson announced today that it is exiting the stent business. The company will discontinue development of its Nevo sirolimus-eluting stent and will end sales of its Cypher family of stents by the end of the year. The company was the manufacturer of both the first stent, the Palmaz-Schatz stent, in the 1990s and […]

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June 14th, 2011

CRT for HF Patients with Moderately Prolonged QRS Interval: Unethical?

Larry Husten, PHD

Approximately 40% of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices are implanted in patients with QRS intervals below 150 msecs, but a meta-analysis published in Archives in Internal Medicine finds that these patients may not benefit from the device. Ilke Sipahi and colleagues performed a meta-analysis that included five CRT clinical trials (COMPANION, CARE-HF, REVERSE, MADIT-CRT, RAFT) with […]

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June 13th, 2011

Increased Mortality Found in MI Patients During Ambulance Diversion

Larry Husten, PHD

MI patients who are diverted to other emergency departments (EDs) while their local EDs are closed have an increased risk for death, according to a new study published in JAMA. Yu-Chu Shen and Renee Hsia analyzed data on all Medicare patients with MI from four California counties who were admitted to the hospital between 2000 […]

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June 10th, 2011

A New Biomarker From the Lungs

Larry Husten, PHD

A new study raises the possibility that a protein produced in the lungs may improve the prediction of cardiovascular disease. In a paper in the European Journal of Cardiology, John Hill and colleagues report on their research with surfactant protein-D (SP-D). Produced in the lungs, SP-D levels increase in the general circulation following lung injury […]

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June 9th, 2011

Pioglitazone (Actos) Suspended in France Over Cancer Concerns

Larry Husten, PHD

Sales of the popular diabetes drug pioglitazone (Actos, Takeda) have been suspended in France after a study carried out by the French health insurance fund (CNAM) found that it may increase the risk of bladder cancer. The French regulatory agency (AFSSAPS) said that new prescriptions for drugs containing pioglitazone may no longer be written, but […]

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June 8th, 2011

SHARP Results Published in Lancet

Larry Husten, PHD

The main results of SHARP (Study of Heart and Renal Protection) have now been published in the Lancet, following their preliminary presentation last November at the American Society of Nephrology meeting. The results are also posted online on the trial’s website. In brief, SHARP randomized 9270 patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) — one-third of whom were on […]

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