CardioExchange Archive

July 28th, 2014

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: July 28th

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include a comparison of catheter-directed thrombolysis plus anticoagulation and anticoagulation alone to treat DVT, several papers on dabigatran and bleeding risk, and more.

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July 23rd, 2014

More Questions Raised About Dabigatran

Larry Husten, PHD

Once again, dabigatran (Pradaxa) has raised the wrath of the critics. Several articles (see here, here, and here) and an editorial published today in The BMJ raise more questions and concerns about the drug, which is the first of the new oral anticoagulants. Relying on new evidence along with previously disclosed data, Deborah Cohen, the investigations editor for The […]

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February 25th, 2014

Study Raises Questions About Transfusions in PCI Patients

Larry Husten, PHD

A very large observational study raises important questions about the role of transfusions in PCI patients in the U.S. In a study published in JAMA, researchers from Duke and Yale analyzed data from more than 2.25 million percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures at more than 1400 hospitals. The data came from the CathPCI Registry, a large ongoing study […]

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December 3rd, 2012

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: December 3rd

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include the association between aldosterone-antagonist therapy and mortality and readmission among patients with HF and reduced EF, warfarin therapy after bioprosthetic AVR, and more.

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September 24th, 2012

‘Dramatic’ Increase in Bleeding Accompanies Addition of Oral Anticoagulant Therapy in ACS

Larry Husten, PHD

The newer oral anticoagulants may help reduce ischemic events after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), but only at the cost of a “dramatic” increase in bleeding complications, according to a new meta-analysis published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Hungarian researchers performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of seven trials in which 31,286 ACS patients were […]

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September 19th, 2012

Studies Examine Less Burdensome Dual Antiplatelet Regimens

Larry Husten, PHD

Two new studies published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology offer hope but not, yet, compelling evidence to support less burdensome requirements for dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. In the first study, Spanish investigators followed 1622 consecutive patients who received a DES for 1 year. They found that 10.6% of the patients interrupted […]

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August 20th, 2012

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: August 20th

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include studies on the benefits of drug-eluting vs. bare-metal stents, using walking speed and blood pressure measurements to predict mortality in the elderly, stroke and bleeding in AF with chronic kidney disease, and the diagnosis and management of peripheral artery disease.

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June 6th, 2012

Real-World Bleeding Risk with Aspirin in Primary Prevention Examined

Larry Husten, PHD

A new study published in JAMA provides substantial new evidence about the real-world effects of aspirin, including the risk for  bleeding, in a broad  population. The study also sheds important new light on the effects of aspirin in a diabetic population. Giorgia De Berardis and colleagues analyzed data from more than 4 million people in Puglia, Italy […]

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September 6th, 2010

What’s at the Heart of This Patient’s Problem?

Anju Nohria, MD and James Fang, MD

The patient is a 53-year-old lawyer with no cardiac risk factors other than a 70 pack-year history of smoking. He has a known history of diverticulitis with prior gastrointestinal bleeding and presented with lightheadedness and bright red blood per rectum. Initial evaluation revealed a drop in his hematocrit from 43% to 39%. He underwent a […]

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