Hypertension
Déjà vu? Experts debate new data on diuretic/CCB combo and MI risk
5 COMMENTS - Feb 2, 2010 14:00 EST
Low-risk hypertensive patients taking a combination of diuretics and calcium-channel blockers had a higher risk of MI than users of other common two-drug BP-lowering regimens in a new case-control study. The authors say a large clinical trial is needed to examine the best options for second-line therapy; others disagree.

Seattle, WA - Low-risk hypertensive patients taking a combination of diuretics and calcium-channel blockers (CCBs) had a higher risk of MI than users of other common two-drug BP-lowering regimens in a new case-control study published online January 25, 2010 in BMJ [1].

Lead author Dr Inbal Boger-Megiddo (University of Washington, Seattle) told heartwire she cannot determine "whether the findings indicate a positive effect of one group of drugs or a negative effect of another." But the new study "raises a good clinical question that we should address in further trials," she says. "We should definitely look into secondary hypertension and the fact that all drug groups, while being comparable in terms of their BP-lowering effects, are not necessarily comparable in terms of cardiovascular outcomes."Read full article »

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Heart failure
African Americans have highest risk of peripartum cardiomyopathy
Feb 8, 2010 17:00 EST
African American women have much higher odds of developing peripartum cardiomyopathy than non-African Americans, a new US study shows; the findings illustrate that race is by far the largest risk factor for this disease, say the researchers.
Clinical cardiology
From the heart: Call for better African CV research
Feb 8, 2010 17:00 EST
Two doctors from Mozambique are calling for concerted efforts to foster multidisciplinary research into neglected cardiovascular diseases that predominantly occur in Africa. These include newly emerging cardiac manifestations of infectious diseases, say the authors.
Arrhythmia/EP
Stand up and be counted: ECG-based test for long-QT syndrome proposed
1 COMMENT - Feb 3, 2010 17:15 EST
Easily added to any other tests performed, a positive finding suggests the patient is susceptible to potentially fatal ventricular arrhythmias, according to researchers.
News
Procedure volume is a close proxy for popular hospital quality rankings
1 COMMENT - Feb 3, 2010 14:30 EST
A study comparing cardiovascular outcomes at the "best hospitals," according to two popular hospital ranking systems, shows that the systems do identify high-quality hospitals, but not all of them.
News
Opportunity lost: 400 000 US CHD deaths predicted for 2010, as risk-reduction goals fall short
Feb 2, 2010 16:15 EST
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Herbal heartache: New review reminds cardiologists to query supplement use
Feb 1, 2010 17:00 EST
More than 15 million people in the US alone take herbal remedies and/or vitamins at doses that may be interacting with their cardiovascular medications, potentially putting them at risk.
Features
Ripe for change: US ponders populationwide salt-reduction policies
19 COMMENTS - Jan 29, 2010 14:15 EST
Most experts agree that reducing salt intake will cut blood pressure and in turn reduce the number of heart attacks and strokes. But messages to limit the amount of salt added to food have had little impact on sodium intake in the West, as more than 75% of salt in the diet there is contained in readily prepared foods. The UK has recently gotten tough with the food industry and cut salt intake by 10%; is it time the US and others took a similar stance? heartwire examines the issues.
Hypertension
Beta blockers: Less effect on pulse pressure than diuretics
1 COMMENT - Jan 28, 2010 13:30 EST
A new review of the use of beta blockers as second-line therapy for primary hypertension has shown that they appear to lower BP differently from thiazide diuretics, with less of an effect on pulse pressure.
Hypertension
ARBs, ACE inhibitors, and Alzheimer's
Jan 28, 2010 09:30 EST
Although ARBs bested ACE inhibitors in this observational cohort, the data suggest that the lowest risks for Alzheimer's disease and nursing-home admission were seen in those taking both agents.
Hypertension
Weight loss important in BP management: ENCORE published
Jan 27, 2010 12:45 EST
The ENCORE study, illustrating how weight management augments the blood-pressure-lowering effects of the DASH diet, has been published.
News
How to get "clinically significant" randomized trials
9 COMMENTS - Jan 25, 2010 17:00 EST
A new review notes that unlike well-established standards for statistical significance, no guidelines exist for deciding what magnitude of difference is clinically meaningful or practically important. Composite end points and subgroup analyses also pose problems for clinicians trying to understand trial results.
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