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Clinical cardiology

ACC aghast at proposed cuts to cardiology payments in Medicare physician fee schedule for 2010

1 COMMENT - Jul 3, 2009 14:00 EDT

The CMS announced its planned 2010 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule this week, which includes proposals that could result in cuts ranging from 10% to more than 40% in Medicare payments for various cardiology services, says the ACC.

heartbriefs

Warnings for smoking-cessation drugs varenicline, bupropion

Jul 2, 2009 12:45 EDT

Smoking-cessation drugs varenicline and bupropion must carry a boxed warning in their labeling stating that use of the drugs has been associated with serious mental-health events, the US FDA has announced.

Arrhythmia/EP

FDA approves dronedarone for atrial fibrillation

1 COMMENT - Jul 2, 2009 11:45 EDT

Dronedarone is envisioned as a safer alternative to amiodarone, a widely used antiarrhythmic agent in patients with AF.

heartbriefs

ARMYDA-RECAPTURE published: Statin reload before PCI

Jul 2, 2009 11:30 EDT

The rate of major adverse cardiac events was significantly lower among patients "reloaded" with atorvastatin 80 mg 12 hours prior to PCI and 40 mg just before the procedure than in those who did not receive the additional statin boost.

Arrhythmia/EP

Survival after in-hospital CPR static since 1992

Jul 1, 2009 17:00 EDT

An analysis of Medicare records for over 433 000 patients who received CPR between 1992 and 2005 showed that the rate of survival to hospital discharge hovered at around 18%, in spite of efforts to improve CPR delivery.

Clinical cardiology

Progenitor cells identified from human fetal hearts

Jul 1, 2009 13:00 EDT

Human cardiovascular progenitor cells isolated from human fetal hearts can give rise to striated- and smooth-muscle cells as well as endothelial cells, researchers report.

Arrhythmia/EP

Barriers to optimal termination of resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest identified

Jul 1, 2009 10:30 EDT

Insurance-reimbursement rules, state laws, and the public's false perceptions of survival after cardiac arrest may impede emergency medical workers from using best resuscitation attempts, a study finds.

Lipid/Metabolic

New meta-analysis: Statins of benefit in primary prevention

9 COMMENTS - Jun 30, 2009 19:01 EDT

A new meta-analysis including some of the more contemporary statin trials has found that the agents significantly improve survival and reduce coronary and cardiovascular end points in primary-prevention populations, a benefit that extends to all subgroups. But the exact cost/benefit equation for each group remains to be determined.

Clinical cardiology

CRP, other biomarkers, not clinically useful to predict CVD risk

4 COMMENTS - Jun 30, 2009 16:00 EDT

Screening for contemporary biomarkers, such as CRP, will not add much to conventional cardiovascular risk factors in terms of helping to predict future events in the primary-prevention setting, say the authors of a new study.

heartbriefs

Alogliptin delayed; cancer concerns with insulin glargine

1 COMMENT - Jun 30, 2009 15:15 EDT

The makers of alogliptin say it will be two years before they have the cardiovascular data needed by the FDA, while the EASD raises concerns over a possible cancer risk with insulin glargine.

Clinical cardiology

Cardiac rhythms synchronize with music

Jun 30, 2009 14:45 EDT

Music, particularly pieces that contain crescendos or gradual increases in volume, elicits synchronized cardiovascular and respiratory responses in young people, a new study finds.

Clinical cardiology

Anxiety, depression, linked to angina frequency

Jun 30, 2009 10:45 EDT

New research shows that ischemic heart disease patients who suffer significant anxiety have close to a fivefold increased risk of experiencing frequent angina and those with depression have more than a threefold increased risk for these episodes.

Murmurs

Mainly medical unknowns regarding Michael Jackson's apparent cardiac arrest

4 COMMENTS - Jun 29, 2009 17:45 EDT

With concerns raised about the use of prescription painkillers in Jackson's death, as well as the stress he was under with an impending world tour, Dr Douglas Zipes, from the ACC, and Dr Vinay Nadkarmi, from the AHA, both weigh in on some of the speculation for heartwire.

heartbriefs

Massive vitamin-D/omega-3 trial for CVD, cancer prevention

Jun 29, 2009 17:00 EDT

Study participants will be randomized to one of four groups: daily vitamin D (2000 IU) and fish oil (1 g); daily vitamin D and fish-oil placebo; daily vitamin-D placebo and fish oil; or daily vitamin-D placebo and fish-oil placebo and followed for five years.

Hypertension

Wolves in sheep's clothing: Don't ignore white-coat and masked hypertension

1 COMMENT - Jun 29, 2009 16:00 EDT

White-coat hypertension and masked hypertension should not be regarded as benign, say the authors of a new 10-year study. The risk of developing sustained hypertension is higher in people with the above two conditions than in those who have normal blood pressure, they found.

Murmurs

Cardiologist gets 10 years for performing unnecessary interventions

Jun 26, 2009 15:45 EDT

Mehmood Patel, an interventional cardiologist from Louisiana, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for performing unnecessary invasive interventional procedures and falsifying patient records.

Clinical cardiology

CVD risks of HIV infection underestimated

Jun 26, 2009 12:00 EDT

HIV infection per se is an independent risk factor for preclinical atherosclerosis, with the magnitude of the effect being similar to that of known risk factors, such as smoking and diabetes, a new study has shown.

Murmurs

Michael Jackson dies of cardiac arrest

2 COMMENTS - Jun 25, 2009 21:30 EDT

Jackson, who was 50, was pronounced dead at UCLA medical center mid-afternoon, Pacific Time.

Acute Coronary Syndromes

CT-angiography-identified vulnerable plaque associated with higher risk of ACS

Jun 25, 2009 17:00 EDT

Identifying these unstable coronary plaques could be used to aggressively treat patients who are at higher risk for future events, according to researchers. There are skeptics, however, and at present even researchers concede there are no different preventive measures available to treat those with high-risk lesions.

Brain/Kidney/Peripheral

Frequent migraine with aura linked to stroke, lower frequency with MI and revascularization

Jun 25, 2009 16:15 EDT

Researchers are reporting divergent patterns of cardiovascular events associated with the frequency of migraine attacks with aura: more frequent attacks are associated with higher stroke risk, lower frequencies with higher MI and revascularization.

Prevention

Moderate wine, little meat, many vegetables may be key Mediterranean diet items linked to longer life

8 COMMENTS - Jun 25, 2009 14:30 EDT

A population-based cohort study of individuals in Greece has teased out items in the Mediterranean diet that appear to contribute to the increased longevity associated with this diet.

Acute Coronary Syndromes

TRANSFER AMI published: Finding the optimal window for PCI postlysis

Jun 25, 2009 13:45 EDT

Experts suggest that early PCI is beneficial in STEMI patients already treated with fibrinolysis, as long as it is performed at least two hours after the lytic is given.

Imaging

Novel processing technique "freezes" cardiac motion during PET imaging

Jun 25, 2009 11:30 EDT

High-definition PET plus "motion-frozen" imaging technology yields ultraclear pictures of the heart to enhance the diagnosis of myocardial defects.

heartbriefs

Intensive LDL lowering improves carotid plaque stability

3 COMMENTS - Jun 24, 2009 16:30 EDT

Investigators report that echogenicity, an ultrasound-based measure of plaque stability, was significantly improved among patients treated to very low LDL-cholesterol levels.

Arrhythmia/EP

Wide variations in EP practice across Europe

Jun 24, 2009 15:30 EDT

The way in which arrhythmias are treated varies greatly across Europe, a new survey of 40 countries has shown.

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