CardioExchange Archive

January 5th, 2015

Healthy Habits of Young Women Lead to Long-Term Health Benefits

Larry Husten, PHD

It may seem obvious, but a new study shows that young women with healthy habits are less likely as they age to get coronary heart disease or go on to develop cardiovascular risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes. Andrea Chomistek and colleagues analyzed data from more than 88,000 women participating in the […]

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June 19th, 2014

Genetic Studies May Help Unravel the Triglyceride Problem

Larry Husten, PHD

The precise role of triglycerides in heart disease has been very difficult to determine. To help untangle the knotty problem two research groups studied large populations and identified rare variations in a gene (APOC3) that encodes for apolipoprotein C3, which is known to increase triglyceride levels. In the first paper, published in the New England Journal […]

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May 29th, 2014

Large Study Uncovers New Details About the Role of Hypertension in CVD

Larry Husten, PHD

Although high blood pressure has long been recognized and studied as a cardiovascular risk factor, a large new study published in the Lancet provides a more detailed, granular view of the specific role of different forms of hypertension. Eleni Rapsomaniki and colleagues in the U.K. analyzed data from 1.25 million people without existing cardiovascular disease age 30 and […]

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April 3rd, 2014

Cardiovascular Disease Declines in Rich Countries but Grows Elsewhere

Larry Husten, PHD

A new Global Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Atlas portrays a divided world where rich countries are gradually freeing themselves from the yoke of CVD but where many poor and middle-income countries are still struggling. Ischemic heart disease and stroke were the two biggest contributors to the global burden of disease in 2010, accounting for 5.2% and 4.1%, […]

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February 4th, 2014

Blood Pressure Trajectory Over 25 Years Predicts Atherosclerosis Risk

Larry Husten, PHD

Everyone knows that blood pressure is one of the most important measurements of cardiovascular risk. Less well known is that most studies of blood pressure have relied on single or isolated measurements of blood pressure. Few studies have even attempted to examine the significance of blood pressure patterns over a long period of time. Now, in […]

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November 12th, 2013

After Long Wait, Updated U.S. Cardiovascular Guidelines Now Emphasize Risk Instead of Targets

Larry Husten, PHD

Updated cardiovascular health guidelines were released today by  the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC). The guidelines are designed to provide primary care physicians with evidence-based expert guidance on cholesterol, obesity, risk assessment, and healthy lifestyle. The new guidelines reinforce many of the same messages from previous guidelines, but also represent […]

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October 28th, 2013

Radiation Dose Linked to Cardiac Risk in Breast Cancer Patients

Larry Husten, PHD

In the past, cardiovascular risk has been linked to the radiation dose received by breast cancer patients. Now, a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine attempts to calculate the cardiac risk of breast cancer patients today undergoing current radiotherapy protocols. David J. Brenner and colleagues calculated the excess cardiac risk for 48 patients who received radiotherapy at New […]

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March 25th, 2013

Emerging Biomarkers: How Reliable Is the Evidence?

Larry Husten, PHD

Novel biomarkers are the subject of intense controversy, with a bewildering variety of factions and perspectives seeking to elevate or dismiss any of a large number of proposed new measures. Now a new examination of the literature published online in JAMA Internal Medicine suggests that the evidence base used to evaluate novel biomarkers may be seriously compromised by selective reporting bias. […]

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December 13th, 2012

Hypertension And Smoking Top List Of Global Risk Factors

Larry Husten, PHD

Worldwide, hypertension and tobacco smoking are the single largest causes of death and disability, according to findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010 (GBD 2010), the largest ever assessment and analysis of global health and disease. In an unprecedented move, the Lancet devoted an entire issue to the study, including seven separate articles and eight comments. GBD 2010 […]

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October 9th, 2012

Observational Study Links Common Household Chemical to Cardiovascular Disease

Larry Husten, PHD

High levels of a man-made chemical widely used in common household products and detectable in more than 98% of people may increase the risk for cardiovascular (CV) disease and peripheral arterial disease (PAD), according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. (The study was published online in September and will appear in this week’s […]

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