CardioExchange Archive

September 1st, 2010

Long-Term Effect of Intensive BP Control in Blacks

Larry Husten, PHD

The African-American Study of Kidney Disease and Hypertension (AASK) investigated the role of intensive blood-pressure control in slowing the progression of chronic kidney disease in black patients. In the previously reported results of the randomized portion of AASK, intensive BP control had no effect on the progression of CKD. Now the AASK Collaborative Research Group reports the […]

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August 31st, 2010

Apixaban Beats Aspirin for Stroke Prevention in AF

Larry Husten, PHD

The AVERROES (Apixaban Versus Acetylsalicylic Acid (ASA) to Prevent Strokes) trial randomized 5600 AF patients who were unable to take warfarin to receive either aspirin or apixaban, a factor Xa inhibitor. (Another trial still underway, ARISTOTLE, is a direct comparison of warfarin and apixaban in AF.) AVERROES was stopped early after the Data Monitoring Committee […]

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August 31st, 2010

Positive Results for Rivaroxaban in EINSTEIN-DVT

Larry Husten, PHD

The EINSTEIN-DVT study tested the effect of the new oral anticoagulant rivaroxaban in the setting of DVT. The open-label, non-inferiority study randomized more than 3,400 patients with acute, symptomatic DVT to either oral rivaroxaban or conventional therapy with enoxaparin followed by warfarin or acenocoumarol for 3, 6, or 12 months, based on the attending physician’s […]

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August 29th, 2010

Superiority of Dabigatran More Evident in Places Where INR Is Not Well Controlled

Larry Husten, PHD

At last year’s ESC meeting, the RE-LY trial heightened interest in the prospect of dabigatran as a potential replacement for warfarin. Now the RE-LY investigators have analyzed the trial data in an attempt to see whether the local standard of care has an impact on the beneficial effects of switching to dabigatran. In a presentation […]

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August 29th, 2010

Alpha Omega Trial Tests Omega-3 Fatty Acids in CV Disease

Larry Husten, PHD

To test the effect of omega-3 fatty acids in cardiovascular disease, Kromhaut and colleagues with the Alpha Omega Trial Group randomized 4837 patients with a history of MI to treatment with one of four margarine preparations: one containing EPA and DHA; one with ALA; one with EPA, DHA, and ALA; or placebo. After 40 months, […]

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August 25th, 2010

Studies Probe Cardiovascular Risks of Migraines

Larry Husten, PHD

Two new studies in BMJ provide important new details about the elusive relationship between migraines and cardiovascular disease. In the first study, researchers in Iceland analyzed data from 18,725 middle-aged men and women who were followed for a median of 25.9 years. Larus Gudmundsson and colleagues found that people with migraine with aura were at […]

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August 23rd, 2010

AHA Science Advisory Calls for More Research on CVD in Asian-Americans

Larry Husten, PHD

In a “Call to Action” contained in a new scientific statement, the American Heart Association says that more research is needed on cardiovascular disease in Asian-Americans. “Available research shows that subgroups of Asian-Americans are at increased risk of complications and death from cardiovascular disease; however, Asian-Americans are often studied as a group, which masks the differences within […]

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August 20th, 2010

A “Good” Heart…

John Mandrola, MD, FACC

John Mandrola, an electrophysiologist and avid cyclist, usually writes about cycling in the Wednesday posts to his blog, Dr. John. Here he examines how antagonism relates to carotid thickness. This Wednesday, it will be easy to combine cycling and medicine. When I saw this study that linked antagonistic personality traits and cardiovascular risk, it was simply impossible […]

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August 16th, 2010

A Treat for Chocolate Lovers from Sweden

Larry Husten, PHD

In a report that will surely provide comfort to millions, a study of 31,823 Swedish women found that over 9 years of follow-up, women who regularly consumed moderate amounts of chocolate had a lower risk for developing heart failure than those who ate no chocolate at all. However, no protective effect was observed in women […]

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August 16th, 2010

Study Suggests Benefits in Replacing Red Meat with Healthful Alternatives

Larry Husten, PHD

New data from the Nurses’ Health Study suggest that replacing red meat with healthier protein alternatives may reduce the risk for heart disease. Adam Bernstein and colleagues, writing in Circulation, found that women who replaced one daily serving of red meat with a serving of poultry, fish, nuts, or low-fat dairy had significantly lower risk. […]

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