CardioExchange Archive

March 20th, 2012

Meta-Analysis Adds New Evidence for Cancer Benefits of Daily Aspirin

Larry Husten, PHD

Although daily aspirin was originally proposed to reduce cardiovascular events, aspirin’s effects on cancer have become increasingly apparent while the vascular benefits, especially in primary prevention, have become less clear. Now a meta-analysis in the Lancet adds important new details to our understanding about the effects of aspirin and increases the evidence in support of a long-term beneficial […]

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March 19th, 2012

Questions Raised About Antiplatelet Therapy in Chronic Kidney Disease

Larry Husten, PHD

Many people develop chronic kidney disease (CKD) as they grow older, and many people with CKD take antiplatelet agents to prevent cardiovascular events. However, the efficacy of antiplatelet therapy in CKD has not been examined, despite the fact that people with CKD are more likely to die from nonatherosclerotic conditions and are more likely to […]

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March 16th, 2012

Helping Patients Understand the Statins Controversy

Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM

After the Topol op-ed in the New York Times last week I began to get a lot of inquiries about the safety of statins. At the beginning of his piece he emphasizes that our use of statins could cause a “sharp increase in the incidence of Type 2 diabetes.” At the end, he states emphatically that “the […]

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March 15th, 2012

Strongest Evidence to Date for Causative Role of Inflammation in Heart Disease

Larry Husten, PHD

Two large new meta-analyses published in the Lancet provide the first strong evidence demonstrating a cause-effect relationship between a specific inflammatory protein and the development of coronary heart disease (CHD). Both studies illuminate the role of interleukin-6 receptor (IL6R) by focusing on the common Asp358Ala variant of the IL6R gene. The variant is known to dampen the inflammatory effect […]

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March 15th, 2012

Hospital Readmission Calculator? There’s an App for That!

Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM

Want to calculate the risk of readmission for MI, heart failure, or pneumonia? There’s an App for that!

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March 12th, 2012

Bad News for Red Meat Lovers

Larry Husten, PHD

New results from studies following more than 120,000 health care professionals link red meat consumption to higher mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. In a paper published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, An Pan and colleagues report findings from up to 22 years of observation among 37,698 men enrolled in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study and […]

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March 6th, 2012

Another Round in the Debate on Diabetes and Statins

Yoni Freedhoff, MD

Let me start by saying that I am proud to have Eric Topol as a friend and a trusted advisor over the past 20 years. His work has been an inspiration to cardiovascular health professionals for several decades. His new book, The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Health Care, […]

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March 5th, 2012

Statins and Diabetes: Real Concern or Much Ado About Nothing?

Larry Husten, PHD

In a New York Times Op-Ed piece on Monday, Eric Topol comments on last week’s announcement by the FDA that it was changing the label for statins. Topol focuses on the new warning that statins raise the risk of diabetes. He opens with a provocative statement: We’re overdosing on cholesterol-lowering statins, and the consequence could be a sharp increase […]

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March 5th, 2012

New Insight Into Obesity and Physical Activity in Children

Karen Dorsey, MD, PhD

As obesity has increased among children, a clear link has been established between obesity and cardiovascular risk factors including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes. However, less is known about whether being more physically active might protect children from developing these risk factors. Among adults, physical activity has been shown to reduce cardiovascular risk […]

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March 2nd, 2012

Statins and Protease Inhibitors May Interact, Causing Rhabdomyolysis

Physician's First Watch, CardioExchange Staff

The FDA is warning again about interactions between protease inhibitors and certain statins that can lead to rhabdomyolysis. Protease inhibitors are used to treat HIV and hepatitis C. In a safety communication, the agency published a list of statins that should either be avoided or whose dosing levels should be limited when coadministered with protease inhibitors. […]

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