Cardiology

For many years, there were no good treatments for patients with pulmonary hypertension. That has changed recently, but there is still much more work to be done.

Unlike other conditions, pulmonary hypertension has symptoms that can be hard to identify in order to give the patients the right diagnosis. Misdiagnosis can not only worsen the symptoms, but also make treatment that much harder in the long run.

For cardiologists, treating a patient with hypertension is becoming a more common and less complicated effort. However, a similar condition, called pulmonary hypertension, is not nearly as well understood, managed, or treated.

The search for newer antimicrobial agents is a focus of those looking to help prevent patients from developing potentially dangerous conditions while admitted to the hospital.

In many hospitals there is a consistent effort to monitor how patients are responding to various treatments. This can be done at different increments which can determine in some cases how effective treatments are against pathogens which can affect a patients' health.

There are more and more challenges facing patients and doctors in hospital settings as "superbugs," or those conditions which are resistant to medications and antibiotics become a greater problem.

Authors of a new meta-analysis of warfarin use in ESRD patients raised concerns that the anticoagulant may not lower stroke risk in these patients, and as such, might itself be an unnecessary risk.

Phase 3 trials showed that empaglifloxin (Jardiance/Boehringer Ingelheim and Lilly) can reduce blood pressure in type 2 patients.

Several studies have ranked states by how fat its residents are. A new one looks at diabetes rates as well, and paints a picture of "diabesity" in the US.

“We found that the risk of ischemic stroke...the most common stroke subtype, is increased in overweight and obese women,” study author Gillian Reeves, explained. “By contrast, the risk of hemorrhagic stroke...is decreased in overweight and obese women.

Acupuncture has been used and studied as an alternative pain management method, and although it appears to offer some benefit as a treatment for some forms of chronic pain, the evidence supporting its positive effect on other health conditions is uneven at best.

The MD Magazine editors rounded up the 10 best stories from October – did you read them all?

Researchers calculate that more than 300,000 people in the US are now affected by the parasitic illness Chagas Disease, once limited to Latin and South America.

A large registry study has found that short bouts of atrial fibrillation (AF) are not associated with any adverse events and, therefore, may not require anticoagulation or any other treatment.

For patients living a sedentary lifestyle, adding a little extra physical activity can go a long way in improving their overall health.

There have been many times where exercise has been shown to be important in a person's life. This is especially true for people with diabetes in order to best manage their symptoms.

About a quarter of stroke patients were diagnosed with depression within two years of their stroke, researchers learned. Additionally, half of the cases of stroke patients who developed depression were diagnosed within the first three months.

What do you suspect in a 45-year-old woman presenting with hypotension, bradycardia, and no significant medical history? ECG, here.

The new study joins previous works that have found a significant connection between ablation and improved outcomes in atrial fibrillation patients.

Socioeconomic status is associated with stroke prevalence, and can be mapped by neighborhood. These geographic patterns could be useful in designing interventions for people at risk of stroke.

Although there are difference in how and to whom oral anticoagulants (OACs) are prescribed, UK researchers have found that those taking apixaban seem to have higher persistence rates.

Three New York City area medical centers teamed up with the FDNY to launch the Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit (MSTU), an emergency transport vehicle specifically fitted to answer to patients who experiencing symptoms of strokes.

A robotic device designed for use in the home could improve outcomes for stroke survivors.

The mortality rate of AMD patients who received a bevacizumab injection 3 or 6 months after stroke was, in the study’s words, “worrying” compared to the rate of those who did not.

PCSK9 inhibitor therapy in high-risk groups would avert 1.9-2.8 million deaths, save $3.4-$5.1 trillion.

This first episode of arrhythmia occurs after completion of a customary 4-mile run. HR: 172 beats/min. View ECG here.

Stroke patients stayed in the rehabilitation facilities for an average of about 16 days, but half of the patients were discharged about one day earlier than expected. Patients without social support were typically associated with lower odds of a short stay in the group of stroke patients.

Controlling blood pressure may be more important in stroke prevention in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation than thought.

A new tool called X-map may be useful to supplement a standard computed tomography (CT) scan, but cannot replace it in diagnosing acute cerebral infarction.

After an ischemic stroke, oral anti-coagulants reduce the risk of recurrence, but does giving these drugs early increase the risk of intracranial bleeding? A study found such early dosing does not appear to add to the chances of such a hemorrhage.