Cardiology

Public health researchers have long believed that if patients could take one pill instead of several they would be more likely to comply with the drug regimens prescribed by their physicians. The US Food and Drug Administration's cardiovascular and renal drugs advisory committee is evaluating the "potential clinical utility" of a single pill that would contain an anti-hypertensive drug, aspirin, and a statin. The goal would be to prevent strokes and heart attacks in patients with a history of cardiovascular disease.

The makeup of a person's brain chemistry could play a role in their environmental food cues, according to the results of a new study.

A study finds that new national guidelines can improve the way statins are prescribed to patients at risk for cardiovascular disease, and produce only a modest increase in the number of patients being given the medication.

Symptomatic severe aortic valve stenosis reduces life expectancy and prompts the need for aortic valve replacement, which can be done 2 ways.

Staff scientists at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have concluded that there's no "convincing evidence" linking testosterone replacement therapy with adverse cardiovascular events.

It may be too early to determine whether a new generation of ultra-thin stents do a better job than standard stents, but a Swiss study concluded the new product is at least not inferior.

Contrary to the recommendations of the American Heart Association, the American College of Cardiology, and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), a UK study found it pays to treat more than the lesions in the "culprit" artery after a heart attack.

Heart failure patients are routinely given beta blockers, but the drugs appear to have no effect on patients who also have atrial fibrillation, a meta-analysis showed.

Not all patients who meet indications for statin therapy are at equal risk for the development of diabetes. What would you tell this 58-year-old man who just learned he’s a candidate for a high-potency formulation?

Is this 58-year-old man going to be at risk?

Hypertension has long been linked to obesity, but a new study shows that where that fat is matters. A team of researchers at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX conclude that when that fat is in the viscera-as opposed to accumulating under the skin-there is a strong chance patients will develop hypertension.

AstraZeneca's beleaguered anti-platelet drug ticagrelor (Brilinta) may get a boost from a French study published online Sept. 3 in the New England Journal of Medicine. In findings also reported at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Gilles Montalescot, MD, found that in a group of 1862 patients, the drug appeared to offer greater protection from stent thrombosis when administered by ambulance personnel than when given later in a cardiac cath lab.

The end of September will mark the deadline set for hospitals across the country to reach Stage 2 of the Meaningful Use program for the year and that means the clock is ticking for health care professionals around the country to meet the goals set for them.

Insurers and disaster relief organizations are still tallying the bill for Super Storm Sandy, the weather disaster that caused an estimated $68 billion in damage in the Northeastern US on Oct. 2012.

Results of a large international study known as SIGNIFY showed ivabradine offered no benefit to patients who had stable coronary artery disease without clinical heart failure (CHF).

Novartis plans to soon file a new drug application with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its investigational heart failure drug LCZ696. A report showing the drug works better than enalapril to prevent adverse cardiac events was released at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Barcelona, Spain Aug. 30 and published online in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

This study was designed to determine the dose-response relation between fruit and vegetable consumption and risk of all cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality.

Taking a closer look at the relationship between running and cardiovascular mortality

A 3-year study of a product meant to help patients dealing with a wide range of conditions including diabetes, hypertension, and weight loss showed positive results according to manufacturer EnteroMedics, Inc.

Patients who do not have coronary artery disease but have fat around their hearts appear more likely to develop atherosclerosis, a team of researchers in Germany found.

On June 7, 2014, the state of Missouri passed State Bill 716, a piece of legislation creating a new category of health care provider in the state, known as the, "Assistant Physician."

For patients with hypertension, finding the right course of treatment can be critically important especially when other health factors are taken into consideration.

Revised guidelines recommend athletes to drink when they are thirsty and to supplement post-training fluids with "recovery foods."

The US Food and Drug Administration announced it will give priority review status to Amgen's application to market ivabradine as a treatment for chronic heart failure.

As the nation tries to cut its health-care costs critics of reform have worried that some patients who need expensive though risky procedures like coronary artery bypass graft surgery might not get them. But a new Harvard School of Public Health study could allay those fears.

Over the past decade, lifestyle changes, better treatment and effective preventive measures have led to a dramatic decrease in deaths and hospitalizations from heart disease in the United States.

The nation's youth, and its smoke-free air need federal protection from vapors from e-cigarettes, according to a set of recommendations released Aug. 25 by the American and Heart Association.

As cardiac devices improve and need to be replaced, leads left behind in the patient's body could lead to critical illnesses caused by infections.

As a part of the Choosing Wisely campaign, 6 organizations representing surgeons have contributed lists of tests and procedures that can be unnecessary and a waste of money.

New research suggests that most patients who have suffered a stroke can be taught to reliably detect the first signs of atrial fibrillation by measuring their peripheral pulse at the radial artery.