November 13th, 2012
Expert Consensus Document Offers Advice on Troponin Tests
Larry Husten, PHD
A newly published document provides practical advice on the use of the popular and potent troponin tests. The Expert Consensus Document on Practical Clinical Considerations in the Interpretation of Troponin Elevations was developed by the American College of Cardiology Foundation in collaboration with several other societies to help address the many complex issues raised by the introduction […]
October 8th, 2012
Triple Antithrombotic Therapy: What — and When — Is the Bleeding Risk?
Morten Lamberts, MD and John Ryan, MD
Morten Lamberts, MD, lead investigator of a recent registry study of various combinations of antithrombotic agents in patients with AF and CAD, answers John Ryan’s questions about the study and its implications.
October 2nd, 2012
Long-Term Use of Beta-Blockers Questioned in Certain Patients
Sripal Bangalore, MD, MHA
Dr. Sripal Bangalore discusses his JAMA study, which found beta-blocker use was not associated with a reduced rate of cardiovascular eventsin patients who have, or are at risk for, stable coronary artery disease.
August 25th, 2012
New Universal Definition of MI Unveiled at ESC 2012
Larry Husten, PHD
The new definition specifies the troponin levels required to make a diagnosis of myocardial infarction in various situations.
August 22nd, 2012
NHLBI Announces 7000-Patient Trial to Test Inflammation Hypothesis
Larry Husten, PHD
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has announced the launch of a large clinical trial testing the inflammation hypothesis. Paul Ridker is the principal investigator of the trial, which will be known as the Cardiovascular Inflammation Reduction Trial (CIRT). CIRT will enroll 7,000 patients who are stable following a heart attack but are at high risk for a […]
August 13th, 2012
Troponin Test May Allow Rapid MI Rule-Out in the Emergency Department
Larry Husten, PHD
More than three-quarters of people with chest pain can be triaged within an hour of arrival at the emergency department with a novel strategy utilizing high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTnT), according to a study from Switzerland published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The strategy is promising, according to an accompanying editorial, but much work remains before […]
August 7th, 2012
Reducing MI Readmissions: Time to Turn Objectives into Practice
Betsy Bradley, Ph.D.
A survey finds that while most hospitals have a stated objective to reduce AMI readmissions, adoption of actual strategies to achieve that goal is another matter.
June 21st, 2012
PTSD Relatively Common Among Patients with Heart Disease
Roughly 1 in 8 patients with acute coronary syndromes subsequently suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a meta-analysis in PLoS ONE.
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!
March 13th, 2012
Cause for Concern: Heart Disease and Breast Cancer in Young Women
Aakriti Gupta, MD
For ages, myocardial infarction (MI) has been dismissed as an ‘old man’s disease’. However, not only is it one of the leading causes of mortality in old women, it also afflicts a sizeable proportion of young women. Data from the American Heart Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that more than 10,000 […]
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