CardioExchange Archive

April 29th, 2013

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: April 29th

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include the association of perioperative beta-blockade with mortality and CV morbidity following major noncardiac surgery, intestinal microbial metabolism of phosphatidylcholine and CV risk, and more.

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April 25th, 2013

Another Cleveland Clinic Study Links TMAO to Atherosclerosis

Larry Husten, PHD

A new study from the Cleveland Clinic research group headed by Stanley Hazen offers more evidence in support of the hypothesis that TMAO (trimethylamine-N-oxide) may play a role in the development of heart disease. The new research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, follows closely on a related study published recently in Nature […]

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April 24th, 2013

Quinidine In Ireland: Rarely Needed, Hard To Find

Gerard J Fahy, MD, Niamh O'Hanlon, BPharm MSc Grad Dip Risk Mgmt Cert Pharm Prac and John Ryan, MD

Recently in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology Viskin et al published the results of a survey  looking at the worldwide availability of quinidine. They found that the drug — the only effective oral antiarrhythmic in Brugada syndrome and idiopathic ventricular fibrillation — is readily available in only 19 countries and is unavailable or […]

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April 24th, 2013

Adiposity and Natriuretic Peptides: Where Does the Fat Go?

Ian Neeland, MD

In a study recently published online by JACC, investigators assess the association between natriuretic peptide levels and body-fat distribution. Ian Neeland, the lead author of the study, responds to John Ryan’s questions.

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April 23rd, 2013

Study Suggests Benefit for Beta Blockers During Noncardiac Surgery

Larry Husten, PHD

The use of perioperative beta-blockade for noncardiac surgery has been declining as a result of the controversial POISE study, which turned up evidence for harm associated with extended-release metoprolol in this setting. Now a large new observational study published in JAMA offers a contrary perspective by suggesting that perioperative beta-blockade may be beneficial in low- […]

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April 22nd, 2013

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: April 22nd

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include the prevalence of a healthy lifestyle among those with CV disease in high-, middle-, and low-income countries, nonemergency PCI at hospitals with or without on-site cardiac surgery, and coronary artery calcium score prediction of all-cause mortality and CV events in those with type-2 diabetes.

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April 22nd, 2013

Actelion Executive to Head American College of Cardiology

Larry Husten, PHD

Shalom “Shal” Jacobovitz will be the new chief executive officer of the American College of Cardiology, the ACC announced today. Jacobovitz is currently the president of the U.S. division of Actelion Pharmaceuticals, best known for its pulmonary hypertension drugs. Jacobovitz worked at Hoffmann La Roche, Abbott Canada, Nordic Labs, and Marion Merrill Dow before joining Actelion.  He joins the […]

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April 22nd, 2013

The FDA, Surrogate Endpoints, and Blood Pressure Drugs

Larry Husten, PHD

In recent years the FDA has come under increasing fire for approving drugs on the basis of surrogate endpoints without any evidence of greater clinical benefit. The most famous example of this is the diabetes drug rosiglitazone. Despite strong evidence demonstrating that it was effective at lower blood glucose levels — the surrogate endpoint — serious questions […]

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April 22nd, 2013

The Science of Management and The Art of Medicine

Kenneth John McConnell, PhD and John Ryan, MD

K. John McConnell discusses his research group’s study of standard management practices as they relate to quality of care in hospital cardiac units.

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April 18th, 2013

Advice for Physicians: How to Behave Online

Larry Husten, PHD

Although the internet represents “a new frontier in medicine” for physicians and patients, it also presents numerous and novel challenges to professionalism, according to a position paper from the American College of Physicians and the Federation of State Medical Boards published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The paper offers physicians a new conceptual “framework for analyzing […]

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