February 21st, 2012
More Rigorous Assessment of Family History Improves CV Risk Determination
Larry Husten, PHD
Although family history has long been recognized as an important cardiovascular risk factor, usual methods to assess risk have not incorporated family history in a rigorous manner. A new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine finds that systematically collecting family history in a primary practice setting significantly increases the identification of high-risk people. Nadeem Qureshi and […]
January 19th, 2012
Are We Ready to Stop Treating Cholesterol Levels and Start Treating Risk?
Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM
With the advent of ATPIV, should we stick with determining treatment based on LDL levels or is time for a new paradigm based on a more nuanced understanding of risk?
July 25th, 2011
Adding HbA1c Measurements Improves CV Risk Prediction in Diabetics
Larry Husten, PHD
Current risk prediction models classify diabetes as equivalent to established cardiovascular disease. Now, a new report from the Women’s Health Study and the Physician’s Health Study II suggests that adding HbA1c measurements to the model can improve risk prediction and lead to downward classification of some diabetics. In a paper published in Archives of Internal Medicine, […]
March 10th, 2011
Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk: Does Size Matter?
Larry Husten, PHD
A very large new study finds that obesity — no matter how it is calculated — is not an important independent predictor of cardiovascular disease. A report from the Emerging Risk Factors Collaboration published online in the Lancet analyzed individual records from more than 220,000 people without known cardiovascular disease and found that none of the […]
October 1st, 2010
Chronic Kidney Disease and Cardiovascular Risk
Larry Husten, PHD
People with early-stage chronic kidney disease are at elevated risk for cardiovascular disease, according to a new study published in BMJ. Researchers from the U.K. and Iceland followed 17,000 adults in Reykjavik for a median of 24 years and found that people with chronic kidney disease at baseline had significantly elevated risk for cardiovascular events, […]
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 […]