Cardiology news: award winning coverage by heartwire

Lipid/Metabolic

Dietary saturated fat has undeserved bad reputation, says review

2 COMMENTS - May 17, 2013 16:45 EDT

It calls for a reappraisal of health recommendations that focus on cutting saturated-fat intake levels, as "mechanisms for adverse health effects are lacking."

Hypertension

Physician inertia to blame for small BP changes in BARBER-1

May 17, 2013 11:45 EDT

A new analysis of BARBER-1 suggests that physician inertia might be the reason African-American men failed to reduce their blood pressure lower than hoped.

Prevention

Never too old to get moving: Aerobic fitness lowers risk of death in elderly

1 COMMENT - May 17, 2013 10:30 EDT

If you don't use it, you're going to lose it—the old chestnut is supported by a new VA Medical Center study showing that fit elderly patients with hypertension had a lower risk of death than those with low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness.

Arrhythmia/EP

HRS members support charitable ICD/pacemaker donation for reuse overseas

May 16, 2013 17:30 EDT

A survey of the society's physician members shows there is wide support for, although also some concerns about, the practice, which remains controversial in the US.

Prevention

How low should you go? Experts debate latest salvo in the war on sodium

6 COMMENTS - May 16, 2013 09:30 EDT

Earlier this week, the Institute of Medicine stirred up controversy when it stated the data are insufficient to recommend lowering sodium levels beyond 2300 mg per day. The AHA came out against the IOM report, but hypertension experts heartwire spoke with say the recommendations are right on the money.

Prevention

IOM: No clear benefits to slashing sodium intake to 1500 mg/day

4 COMMENTS - May 15, 2013 11:40 EDT

Citing a lack of evidence linking lower sodium targets to a reduction in hard events, the IOM concludes that while Americans are consuming more sodium than required for health, the low limits set for certain high-risk groups are not supported by current evidence. The AHA respectfully disagrees.

Interventional/Surgery

Gene-mutation discovery in congenital heart disease spells major shift in care

May 15, 2013 09:15 EDT

The finding will fundamentally alter how congenital cardiac defects are categorized and potentially treated, say the authors of a new report.

Prevention

Sodium levels through the restaurant roof—no reductions in past six years

2 COMMENTS - May 13, 2013 16:30 EDT

A new study published today showed that while the sodium content of processed foods declined from 2005 to 2011, the overall reduction was just 3.5%. Restaurants, on the other hand, fared even worse, with researchers reporting that sodium levels actually increased by 2.6% over the same six-year period.

Interventional/Surgery

High-volume gets demoted in new PCI-competence document

May 9, 2013 11:30 EDT

Professional societies have released an update to the "core competence" required of physicians wanting to perform percutaneous coronary interventions. In it, average annual volumes are lower, while patient-centered care, procedure appropriateness, and awareness of personal stats have moved to the forefront.

Thrombosis

BRUISE CONTROL: Continued warfarin beats heparin bridging in ICD/pacemaker implants

May 9, 2013 11:00 EDT

UPDATED // Guidelines recommend that patients at high risk for thromboembolic events be bridged with heparin therapy, but few randomized trials have compared this strategy with simply maintaining patients on warfarin for their procedures.

Prevention

No benefit of fish oil in high-risk patients

15 COMMENTS - May 8, 2013 17:00 EDT

N-3 fatty-acid supplementation had no effect on the study's primary end point in this group of patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors or atherosclerotic disease, but no previous MI. Researchers also saw no effects on the rate of death from coronary causes or sudden death from cardiac causes or major ventricular arrhythmias.

Interventional/Surgery

TAVR numbers in Europe: High or not high enough?

2 COMMENTS - May 8, 2013 16:00 EDT

Almost 35 000 patients in 11 European countries underwent a transcatheter aortic-valve replacement in the first five years following CE Mark approval of the Edwards Sapien and Medtronic CoreValve, according to a newly published tally.

Imaging

What to do when the patient is hot

1 COMMENT - May 7, 2013 15:30 EDT

Patients who've had a nuclear imaging study with radioactive tracers become, themselves, radiation emitters; now researchers in Boston have tried to quantify that risk to others.

Clinical cardiology

Patient-reported health status underutilized in practice, says AHA

May 6, 2013 16:00 EDT

The AHA is reminding physicians in clinical practice that the domains of patient-reported health status, including symptom burden, functional status, and health-related quality of life, remain underused despite their usefulness in informing clinical decision making and understanding disease burden.

Prevention

Physical activity low among American adults

4 COMMENTS - May 3, 2013 13:15 EDT

Approximately 50% of American adults meet the guidelines for aerobic activity, and only a quarter participate in muscle-strengthening activity.

<i>Lancet</i> antitobacco series launches as ACC chides FDA inaction

Prevention

Lancet antitobacco series launches as ACC chides FDA inaction

2 COMMENTS - May 2, 2013 18:30 EDT

One of the Lancet papers reviews the successes, failures, and ongoing challenges in beating back the "global tobacco epidemic," including a report from FDA scientists touting the impact of the 2009 Tobacco Control Act in the US.

Arrhythmia/EP

ESC issues "practical guide" to new oral anticoagulants in AF

May 2, 2013 16:30 EDT

It used to be easier deciding which oral anticoagulant to use in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. With all the choices now available, a new document sorts out their differences and can guide their use in various clinical settings.

Arrhythmia/EP

No raised azithromycin CV-death risk seen in young or middle-aged adults

1 COMMENT - May 1, 2013 17:00 EDT

A nationwide cohort study in Denmark helps to soften the message from a 2012 study linking the antibiotic to an increased risk of cardiovascular death in the elderly, likely from ventricular arrhythmias, according to researchers; the hazard doesn't seem to apply to younger people in the general population.

Clinical cardiology

Subclinical hyperthyroidism linked to heart-failure deaths

Apr 30, 2013 14:45 EDT

A massive observational study in half a million individuals has found a link between subclinical hyperthyroidism and cardiovascular death, which appears to be predominantly driven by heart failure.

News

Stopping dabigatran ups stroke risk: New boxed warning

1 COMMENT - Apr 30, 2013 13:30 EDT

It raises the profile of a caution already in the oral anticoagulant's prescribing information.

Prevention

To [vitamin] D or not to D? That is the question

23 COMMENTS - Apr 29, 2013 17:00 EDT

In a lighthearted debate on whether everyone needs more vitamin D, endocrinologists here agreed, at least, that there are specific groups of people in whom sufficient vitamin D is mandatory.

Prevention

Addition of naturopathic medicine boosts CV risk reduction

10 COMMENTS - Apr 29, 2013 12:00 EDT

Experts who commented on the study, conducted by Canadian naturopathic physicians, said cardiologists should keep their minds open to whatever strategies might help patients do better at reducing their risk of future events.

Acute Coronary Syndromes

Metabolic syndrome in throes of AMI often confirmed later and may up risk by itself

2 COMMENTS - Apr 26, 2013 17:00 EDT

It's never been clear whether the telltale metabolic signs at hospitalization tell the same prognostic story as in the outpatient setting. Certainly it wasn't known whether they had their own story to tell.

Lipid/Metabolic

CV risk factor management included in new type 2 diabetes treatment plan

Apr 26, 2013 13:30 EDT

Color-coded graphics address obesity, prediabetes, glucose-lowering drugs, and cardiovascular risk reduction in what is described as a "comprehensive" document.

Hypertension

ESC supports renal denervation as an option for treating resistant hypertension

2 COMMENTS - Apr 26, 2013 10:00 EDT

The ESC says that catheter-based renal denervation can be considered a therapeutic option in patients with drug-resistant hypertension who cannot get to goal with a combination of lifestyle and pharmacologic therapy.