theHeart.org: Lipid and Metabolic news related to heart conditions.

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Lipid/Metabolic

ACCORD: Fenofibrate no benefit to statin therapy in high-risk diabetic patients

19 COMMENTS - Mar 14, 2010 08:00 EDT

UPDATED // The findings do not support the use of combination fibrate-statin therapy to reduce cardiovascular risk in the majority of patients with type 2 diabetes who are at high risk for cardiovascular disease, according to the ACCORD investigators.

Atlanta, GA (updated) - Combination therapy with fenofibrate and simvastatin failed to reduce the risk of fatal cardiovascular events, nonfatal MI, or nonfatal stroke, according to results from the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) trial [1]. There was a suggestion of benefit observed among patients with dyslipidemia, those with high triglyceride and low HDL-cholesterol levels.

Presented today at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) 2010 Scientific Sessions, the ACCORD investigators, led by Dr Henry Ginsberg (Columbia University, New York), conclude that the "findings do not support the use of combination fibrate-statin therapy, rather than statin therapy alone, to reduce cardiovascular risk in the majority of patients with type 2 diabetes who are at high risk for cardiovascular disease."Read full article »

Topic: Lipid/Metabolic; Clinical

Inside: Lipid/Metabolic

Accredited educational programs, supported by industry, developed by theheart.org

Imaging

Trials and Tribulations: Debating Controversial Topics in Cardiovascular Disease

4 COMMENTS - Dec 21, 2009 09:48 EST

Fellows from The Mayo Clinic, Duke University, and The Cleveland Clinic discuss challenging cases with their mentors.

Other programs

Patients With High- and Very High-Risk Dyslipidemia: Closing the Treatment Gap Between Goal and Reality

Nov 24, 2009 15:01 EST

Do current guidelines provide us with the direction for managing high-risk patients with dyslipidemia? Drs. Blumenthal, Ballantyne, and Ginsberg examine goals and strategies for managing patients at high risk.

Lipid/Metabolic

Lipid Insights From AHA 2009

1 COMMENT - Nov 20, 2009 15:32 EST

Join Drs. Michael Davidson, Christie Ballantyne, Vera Bittner, and Roger Blumenthal for a discussion that advances our knowledge of cardiovascular risk assessment.

Medscape Medical News

Highest simvastatin dose linked to increased risk of muscle injury, FDA warns

Mar 19, 2010 15:45 EDT

Simvastatin 80 mg is associated with increased risk of myopathy compared with lower doses and other statins, according to an FDA review of clinical-trial and other data.

Hypertension

Mar 18, 2010 16:00 EDT

A new BP-lowering drug that acts in a similar way to omapatrilat—an agent that never quite made it to the market—has shown promise in a preliminary trial. Crucially, this dual inhibiting agent, named LCZ696, blocks angiotensin II rather than angiotensin-converting enzyme; there was no indication of angioedema in the study.

Hypertension

INVEST: Mortality hazard with lowest blood pressures in diabetics with CAD?

1 COMMENT - Mar 14, 2010 18:00 EDT

Diabetic patients whose systolic blood pressure was lowered to 130 to 140 mm Hg had a better outcome than those with systolic pressures over 140. But reductions below 130 did not appear to offer any additional benefit and had a higher mortality rate in this retrospective analysis.

Prevention

Psoriasis "firmly established" as risk factor for CV disease

Mar 14, 2010 10:15 EDT

Psoriasis patients should be considered at increased cardiovascular risk and prioritized for earlier medical risk-factor intervention for heart disease, the authors of a new study say.

Lipid/Metabolic

No increased atherosclerotic-plaque burden in cops and firefighters

Mar 14, 2010 08:45 EDT

The atherosclerotic-plaque burden among cops and firefighters is no higher than in a cohort of age-matched controls, suggesting that something else, possibly increased emotional and physical stress, is causing the increased risk of on-the-job cardiac-related events.

Hypertension

ACCORD BP: Intensive BP lowering futile in diabetics

9 COMMENTS - Mar 14, 2010 08:00 EDT

The ACCORD BP study shows that there is no benefit to be gained from intensively lowering systolic blood pressure to less than 120 mm Hg in type 2 diabetics; for now, a goal of <140 mm Hg seems reasonable in this population, say the authors.

Lipid/Metabolic

NAVIGATOR off course to diabetes prevention with valsartan, nateglinide

7 COMMENTS - Mar 14, 2010 08:00 EDT

UPDATED // In a population with impaired glucose tolerance and CV disease or risk factors, the angiotensin receptor blocker had a slight effect and the short-acting insulin secretagogue had no favorable impact on progression to diabetes; neither drug prevented cardiovascular events.

Lipid/Metabolic

Antisense inhibitor of apoB synthesis: A new approach for severe hypercholesterolemia

Mar 13, 2010 18:30 EST

The novel agent was associated with impressive reductions of LDL and Lp(a) in a trial in patients with homozygous FH.

Clinical cardiology

Fitness more important than fatness for thrombotic risk in firefighters

Mar 13, 2010 16:45 EST

Despite looking fit and healthy, a third of firefighters examined in a new study were at high risk of a thrombotic event, and improving their fitness is more likely to reduce this risk than tackling excess body weight, say the researchers.

Medscape Medical News

Clopidogrel receives boxed warning for reduced benefit in poor metabolizers

12 COMMENTS - Mar 12, 2010 17:42 EST

The warning will inform clinicians that tests are available to predict whether a patient will convert the drug to its active form based on the genetic profile of a key liver enzyme.

Lipid/Metabolic

Eprotirome further reduces cholesterol levels in statin-treated patients

1 COMMENT - Mar 10, 2010 17:00 EST

The thyroid hormone analog further reduced total- and LDL-cholesterol levels, as well as triglycerides, without any adverse effects. Commonly observed side effects of past thyroid hormone mimetics have included a rapid heart rate or atrial dysrhythmias, but these were not reported with eprotirome.

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Editorial Programs

The Cardiology Show

ACC 2010 Review from Atlanta: INVEST, ACCORD, EVEREST II, and NAVIGATOR

Mar 17, 2010 16:25 EDT

Dr Valentin Fuster sits down with Drs Peter Berger, Anne Curtis, Tim Gardner, Tony Gershlick, Harlan Krumholz, Darren McGuire, Ileana Piña, and Rita Redberg to discuss the lessons learned at the ACC 2010 Scientific Sessions, including why lower may not be better for blood pressure, why preventing diabetes does not necessarily reduce cardiovascular risk, and the future of the mitral-valve clip.

Editorial series

Informed consent, clinical research, and patient care

1 COMMENT - Mar 11, 2010 14:20 EST

Does informed consent protect patients or shield researchers? Join the debate with Dr Bob Harrington and his guests Drs Deepak Bhatt and Harvey White.

Editorial series

Women in cardiology: Is gender an issue?

5 COMMENTS - Mar 4, 2010 10:15 EST

Do gender perceptions affect the way female physicians are treated in cardiology? Drs Melissa Walton-Shirley, Judith Hochman, Suzanne Oparil, and Lynne Warner Stevenson tackle this important question.