CardioExchange Archive

July 17th, 2014

Clinical Events vs. Quality of Life: An Insider’s View of TACT

Gervasio Antonio Lamas, MD

TACT investigator Gervasio Lamas provides perspective on two new TACT papers that appear to have contradictory results.

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December 16th, 2013

Case Closed: Multivitamins Should Not be Used

Larry Husten, PHD

The editorialists are fed up: “Enough is enough.” Writing about three new papers in the Annals of Internal Medicine that find no benefits for the use of multivitamins — only the latest in a long line of negative findings — Eliseo Guallar and colleagues write: …we believe that the case is closed — supplementing the diet of well-nourished adults […]

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November 19th, 2013

An Insider’s Look at TACT

Gervasio Antonio Lamas, MD

TACT investigator Gervasio Lamas provides an inside look at how the TACT trial began, the controversial journey so far, and what he hopes it will accomplish.

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November 19th, 2013

TACT Substudy Suggests Possible Strong Benefit for Chelation in Diabetics

Larry Husten, PHD

One year ago the results of the TACT trial were published in JAMA, sparking an enormous controversy over the propriety of publishing a trial suggesting that chelation therapy might be beneficial in people with cardiovascular disease. Chelation therapy has long been a staple of alternative medicine, but until the publication of TACT it had received […]

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April 9th, 2013

The TACT Investigators Respond to Questions

Gervasio Antonio Lamas, MD, Daniel Mark, Christine Goertz, DC, PhD, Robin Boineau, M.D., M.A., Kerry L. Lee, Ph.D. and Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM

The publication in JAMA of the NIH’s Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) has reignited a heated debate about the trial. The TACT investigators have generously agreed to respond to questions posed by Harlan Krumholz.

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April 2nd, 2013

Selections from Richard Lehman’s Literature Review: April 2nd

Richard Lehman, BM, BCh, MRCGP

This week’s topics include the TACT study of chelation therapy, off-pump vs. on-pump CABG, clopidogrel with or without aspirin in those taking oral anticoagulants and undergoing PCI, and more.

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April 2nd, 2013

Perspective On The Controversy About The TACT Trial

Sanjay Kaul, MD

The NIH TACT trial of chelation therapy has been the subject of intense criticism. In my opinion, the arguments that the TACT results are dubious or not valid are overstated. While the debate surrounding TACT is clearly warranted and welcome, I hope it generates more light than heat.

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March 26th, 2013

Controversial NIH Chelation Trial Published in JAMA

Larry Husten, PHD

Final results of the troubled NIH-sponsored Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) testing chelation therapy for coronary disease have now been published in JAMA. Last November, when the preliminary results were presented at the American Heart Association meeting, the positive finding in favor of chelation therapy surprised many observers, though the investigators and senior AHA representatives expressed considerable caution […]

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November 6th, 2012

What Tack to Take in Thinking about TACT?

Reva Balakrishnan, MD, MPH

A fellow encounters a little-understood intervention and startling study results; can informal discussions with senior faculty at AHA provide insight?

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November 4th, 2012

NIH Trial Gives Surprising Boost to Chelation Therapy

Larry Husten, PHD

The TACT trial finds that cardiovascular endpoints were lower with chelation therapy than placebo in patients with prior MI, but trial investigators and others have expressed considerable caution about the proper interpretation of the results.

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