Heart Disease
31 May Proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) Linked to Increased Risk of Death
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49463" align="alignleft" width="145"] Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly[/caption]
Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, FASN
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Director of the Clinical Epidemiology Center
Chief of Research and Education
Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care System
Saint Louis
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: In 2017, we published a paper showing increased risk of death associated with Proton-pump inhibitors (PPI) use. Following the publication of that 2017 paper, several key stakeholders including patients, doctors, research scientists, medical media folks, mainstream media folks, and others asked us: what do these people die from? Did you study causes of death attributable to PPI use? In the study published today, we developed a causal inference framework to answer this question.
31 May Glucosamine Supplements Might Reduce Cardiovascular Risk
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_32341" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Lu Qi[/caption]
Lu Qi, MD, PhD, FAHA MD, PhD, FAHA HCA Regents Distinguished Chair and Professor Director, Tulane University Obesity Research Center Department of Epidemiology Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine New Orleans, LA 70112
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There is evidence from previous experimental studies or cross-sectional analyses in humans linking glucosamine and a variety potentially protective effects such as improving lipids, inhibiting inflammation, and mimic a low-carb diet.
30 May Does Genetic Information Encourage Doctors to Switch Anticoagulation Medications?
Posted at 15:39h
in Author Interviews, Clots - Coagulation, Duke, Genetic Research, Heart Disease, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
[caption id="attachment_49440" align="alignleft" width="133"] Dr. Povsic[/caption]
Thomas J. Povsic, MD, PhD
Interventional Cardiologist
Duke Clinical Research Institute
Duke University School of Medicine
Durham, North Carolina
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: The background for this study is that it is unknown how mandatory reporting of CYP2C19 metabolizer status affects how doctors treat patients or to what degree provision of this information would affect choice of a P2Y12 inhibitor within a clinical trial.
As part of the GEMINI-ACS trial, all patients underwent CYP2C19 metabolizer testing. This trial enrolled patients with a recent acute coronary syndrome and randomized them to aspirin or a low dose of rivaroxaban. All patients were also to be treated with ticagrelor or clopidogrel, which was at the discretion of the investigator. Investigators were given information regarding the CYP2C19 metabolizer status about a week after randomization. Importantly prior to randomization, all investigators were asked how they expected to use this information, and then we followed what they actually did.
27 May Silent Heart Attack Associated with Increased Risk of Embolic Stroke
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49363" align="alignleft" width="128"] Dr. Launer[/caption]
Lenore J. Launer, PhD.
Chief Neuroepidemiology Section Intramural Research Program
National Institute on Aging
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The prevalence of cerebral infarction on MRI can be as high as 30% in community-based studies. These lesions detected on brain MRI, are often clinically silent, but are associated with impairments in cognitive and physical function and can increase the risk for clinical events. For a large number, the origin of these brain lesions is unknown. There is also a lack of population-based data on unrecognized myocardial infarction, which is associated with an increased for clinical coronary disease and mortality.
Unrecognized MI was detected in 17% of participants using state-of-the-art cardia MRI, a more sensitive measure of the lesions, than the standard ECG. We investigated the contribution to these lesions of recognized and unrecognized myocardial infarction [MI] identified on cardiac MRI.
We found both recognized and unrecognized myocardial infarction increased the risk for cerebral infarction, and that in particular unrecognized MI was associated with cerebral infarction of embolic origins of an unknown source. Given their prevalence, unrecognized MI may be an underestimated contributor to the risk for cerebral infarction in older persons.
19 May Mortality Rate Increases With Each Sugary Drink
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jean A. Welsh, RN, MPH, PhD Departments of Epidemiology and Pediatrics Emory University Wellness Department, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Atlanta, Georgia MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: As the evidence has accumulated regarding the health risks associated with sugar-sweetened beverages, I’ve wondered about fruit juices. Though they have a kind of healthy halo, their main ingredients are the same as sugar-sweetened beverages, sugar and water. We know that young children drink a lot of fruit juice, and I’ve wondered if older children and adults might switch to drinking more as concern grows about soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages.
14 May Grapefruit Juice Can Cause an EKG Change, Prolonged Q-T Interval, Aggravated by Some Medications
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49157" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Electrocardiogram showing QT interval calculated by tangent method - Wikipedia image[/caption]
Sami Viskin MD
Tel-Aviv Medical Cente
Sackler School of Medicine
Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: There are >200 medications with reported QT-prolonging risk. The majority of these medications do not even have cardiac indications, yet cause unintended QT-prolongation because they block IKr potassium channels in myocardial cells. With so many drugs, of such varied composition, blocking the IKr channel, it is reasonable to assume that food compounds also have IKr-channel-blocker properties, raising the possibility that proarrhythmic food exists.
We tested the effects of grapefruit on the QT interval with the rigorous methodology used by the pharmaceutical industry to test new medications before they are released to the market.
13 May Caffeine and Heart Disease: Is There a Right Amount of Daily Coffee?
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Elina Hypponen Professor in Nutritional and Genetic Epidemiology Director: Australian Centre for Precision Health Australian Centre for Precision Health| University of South Australia Cancer Research Institute | South Australian Health & Medical Research Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: In Randomised controlled trials caffeine, which is a key constituent of coffee, has been shown to increase blood pressure. There is also some past evidence to suggest that higher coffee consumption may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, but only in individuals who are slow caffeine metabolisers. We used information from about 350,000 individuals from the UK, to look at the association between patterns of habitual of coffee consumption and the subsequent risk of cardiovascular disease. As we also know that people are genetically different with respect to their ability to metabolise caffeine, a further aim for our study was to look at whether those people who are able to metabolise caffeine effectively, may also be more resistant to possible cardiovascular effects of coffee, compared to those who metabolise caffeine more slowly.
07 May COPD: Aclidinium Bromide (Tudorza Pressair) Has Favorable Safety Profile in Patients with CVD
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48985" align="alignleft" width="80"] Dr. Wise[/caption]
Robert A. Wise, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Pulmonary and Critical Care
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Baltimore, MD
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: There has been a lingering controversy about the safety of long-acting anti-muscarinic agents (LAMA) as maintenance treatment for COPD in patients who have increased cardiovascular risk. This study enrolled participants with COPD who also had increased cardiovascular risk or known cardiovascular disease. Participants were randomly treated with either aclidinium bromide (Tudorza Pressair) or placebo.
Over 3 years of follow up there was no increased risk of adverse cardiovascular events. Moreover, the medication had a significant benefit in terms of reducing exacerbations and COPD hospitalizations.
29 Apr Higher Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Linked to Long Term Antibiotic Use in Women
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Lu Qi MD PhD Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine Tulane University New Orleans, LA 70112 Department of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School Boston, MA 02115 Yoriko Heianza RD, PhD Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University New Orleans, LA MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Growing data suggest that antibiotic exposure is associated with a long-lasting alteration in gut microbiota, and may be related to subsequent cardiovascular disease (CVD). We investigated associations of duration of antibiotic use in different phases of adulthood (young, middle and late adulthood) with the CVD incidence among women at usual risk. This new analysis from the Nurses’ Health Study shows that women who take antibiotics for long periods, especially during more recent adulthood (such as in middle- and late adulthood) had a higher risk of CVD in later life.
29 Apr Elevated PCBs Associated with Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48834" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Lind[/caption]
Monica Lind, PhD,
Professor, Environmental toxicologist
Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Uppsala University Hospital
Visiting adress: Dag Hammarskjölds väg 60
Uppsala Sweden
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Previous studies in workers exposed to very high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have suggested hazardous health effects. However, circulating PCB levels are detected in almost all indivuduals in industrialized countries, but the health effects of moderately elevated levels as seen in the general population are not well established.
We investigated levels of PCBs in around 1,000 individuals, all aged 70 years, randomly chosen from the City of Uppsala, Sweden.
25 Apr Genetic Studies Can Help Determine How Low LDL Should Go With Treatment
[caption id="attachment_48766" align="alignleft" width="130"] Dr. Kronenberg[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Florian Kronenberg, MD
Division of Genetic Epidemiology
Department of Medical Genetics, Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology
Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Lp(a) is one of the most prevalent lipoprotein risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Roughly 20% of the general Caucasian population have concentrations above 50 mg/dL and the 10% with the highest concentrations have a 2 to 3-fold increased risk for myocardial infarction.
There is strong evidence from genetic studies that high Lp(a) concentrations are causally related to cardiovascular outcomes. Until recently there was no drug available which lowers Lp(a) without any effects on other lipoproteins. This has recently changed by the development of drugs that block the production of Lp(a) in an impressive way. These drugs have to be studied in randomized controlled trials whether they not only lower Lp(a) concentrations but also cardiovascular outcomes. For the planning of such studies it is crucial to estimate the amount of Lp(a) lowering required to show a clinical benefit.
22 Apr It’s Not Just Avoiding Red Meat, It’s the Substitute Diet That Influences Heart Health
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48738" align="alignleft" width="158"]
Dr. Guasch-Ferré[/caption]
Marta Guasch-Ferre, PhD
Research Scientist, Dept of Nutrition
Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health
Instructor of Medicine, Channing Division of Network Medicin
Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA, 02115
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Previous findings from randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of red meat on cardiovascular disease risk factors have been inconsistent.
But our new study, which makes specific comparisons between diets high in red meat versus diets high in other types of foods, shows that substituting red meat with high-quality protein sources lead to more favorable changes in cardiovascular risk factors. That is, to properly understand the health effects of red meat, it’s important to pay attention to the comparison diet. People do not simply eat more or less meat – it will almost always be in substitution with other foods.
19 Apr Stroke: Experimental Antiplatelet Antibody Only Attacks Clots, Without Increasing Bleeding Risk
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48722" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Jandrot-Perrus[/caption]
Martine Jandrot-Perrus MD, PhD.
Emeritus Research Professor
Inserm University Paris Diderot
Acticor Biotech
Hôpital Bichat
France
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Blood platelets are key actors in thrombosis a leading cause of global mortality estimated to account for 1 in 4 death worldwide in 2010.
Thrombosis is associated with cardiovascular diseases (myocardial infarction, stroke, lower limb ischemia, venous thromboembolism), and with numerous pathologies such as cancer, infections or inflammatory diseases. Currently available antiplatelet drugs are the cornerstone of therapy for patients with acute coronary syndromes. However, these drugs all carry an inherent risk of bleeding that restricts their use in sensitive populations and when arterial thrombosis occurs in the cerebral territory. At present the only acute treatment option available for ischemic stroke consists in revascularization by thrombolysis, and/or mechanical thrombectomy. But the number of patients eligible to these treatments is low (» 15% of all patients) and the success rate does not exceed 50%. The responsibility of platelets in the failure for thrombolysis / thrombectomy to restore vascular patency is strongly suspected.
There is thus a clear medical need for new antiplatelet drugs with an improved safety profile. We set out to develop ACT017, a novel, first in class, therapeutic antibody to platelet glycoprotein VI with potent and selective antiplatelet effects. The interest of GPVI resides in the fact that it's a receptor involved in the development of occlusive thrombi but that it is not strictly required for physiological hemostasis.
15 Apr Is Immediate Cardioversion Necessary in New Onset Atrial Fibrillation?
Recent-onset symptomatic atrial fibrillation usually terminates spontaneously and therefore an acute cardioversion is not always necessary, as a wait-and-see approach is equally effective and safe...
14 Apr Suboptimal Physical Activity in Women Associated With Increased Healthcare Spending
Posted at 21:41h
in Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Gender Differences, Heart Disease, JAMA, Johns Hopkins, Women's Heart Health
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Erin D. Michos, MD, MHS, FACC, FAHA, FASE
Associate Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology
Associate Director of Preventive Cardiology
Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Victor Okunrintemi, MD, MPH
Department of Internal Medicine
East Carolina University
Greenville, North Carolina
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Women are less physically active than men on average, and the lack of regular physical activity has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and poorer health outcomes. Although recommendations encouraging regular physical activity has been in place for decades, we do not know how much of these recommendations are met, particularly among high risk women with established cardiovascular disease for secondary prevention.
This study was therefore designed with the aim of describing the 10-year trends for the proportion of women with cardiovascular disease who do not meet these recommend physical activity levels, overall and by key sociodemographic groups, and the associated cost implications.
11 Apr Stress from Traumatic Events Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_42513" align="alignleft" width="150"] Huan Song[/caption]
Huan Song, PhD
Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine,
University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) presents a group of diseases that are common and sometimes fatal in general population. The possible role of stress-related disorders in the development of CVD has been reported. However, the main body of the preceding evidence was derived from male samples (veterans or active-duty military personnel) focusing mainly on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or self-reported PTSD symptoms. Data on the role of stress-related disorders in CVD in women were, until now, limited. Although incomplete control for familial factors and co-occurring psychiatric disorder, as well as the sample size restriction, limit the solid inference on this association, especially for subtypes of CVD.
10 Apr Collagen Biomarker Associated With Atrial Fibrillation and Heart Failure Risk
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Susana Ravassa PhD Program of Cardiovascular Diseases, CIMA University of Navarra, and IdiSNA Navarra Institute for Health Research Pamplona, Spain MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an evolving epidemic responsible for substantial morbidity, mortality and health-care expenditure. In particular, when AF and heart failure (HF) occur in combination, clinical evolution is particularly poor. Left atrial (LA) myocardial interstitial fibrosis (MIF) is the main structural lesion in AF and considered as the main factor responsible for the perpetuation of this pathology. In addition, it is known that MIF is associated with a lower effectiveness of the treatment of AF by pulmonary vein isolation with catheter ablation. Therefore, the identification of biomarkers related to MIF, as an affordable and minimally invasive approach, is of great interest to detect patients at risk of AF, as well as to monitor their response to the LA ablation therapy. We had previously demonstrated that the deleterious impact of MIF in the heart is due to alterations in both the quality (i.e., extent of cross-linking among collagen fibrils and type of collagen fibers that determine their rigidity and resistance to degradation [collagen cross-linking or CCL]) and the quantity (i.e., extent of collagen fibers that occupy the myocardial tissue [collagen deposition or CD]) of fibrotic tissue. We have shown that certain circulating biomarkers related to collagen type I metabolism are associated with CCL and CD. On the one hand, the serum carboxy-terminal propeptide of procollagen type I (PICP), released during the conversion of procollagen type I into fibril-forming mature collagen type I, is directly correlated with myocardial CD. On the other hand, the ratio of serum carboxy-terminal telopeptide of collagen type I to serum matrix metalloproteinase-1 (serum CITP:MMP-1 ratio) is inversely correlated with myocardial CCL, as the higher is the cross-linking among collagen type I fibrils the lower will be the cleavage of CITP by MMP-1 during the process of degradation of the fiber. Interestingly, we have previously reported that the combination of these biomarkers identifies patients with heart failure presenting with a complex pattern of MIF characterized by both increased CCL and CD (CCL+CD+) showing a higher risk of adverse clinical evolution as compared with heart failure patients without this combination of biomarkers. As both increased CCL and CD have been found in the left atrial myocardium in patients with AF, we designed this investigation to explore whether the CCL+CD+ combination of biomarkers is associated with AF.
04 Apr Even Small Amounts of Red and Processed Meat Linked to Increase in Cardiovascular Mortality
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Saeed Mastour Alshahrani, MPH, PhD School of Public Health, Loma Linda University, California, USA College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Khalid University Abha, Saudi Arabia MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: -The consumption of red and processed meat has been associated with risks of importance to public health including cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Several studies have found that red and processed meat intake was associated with an increased risk of mortality. However, levels of meat intake in those studies were relatively high. It remains of interest whether even relatively low intake levels of red and processed meat might be associated with greater mortality, compared to zero intake.
03 Apr Contact Allergic Reactions to Implanted Cardiac Devices
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48345" align="alignleft" width="133"] Dr. Reck Atwater[/caption]
Amber Reck Atwater, M.D.
Dermatology Residency Program Director
Associate Professor of Dermatology
Director, Contact Dermatitis Clinic
Duke Dermatology
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: We completed an evaluation of our Duke Dermatology patients who underwent patch testing for possible allergy to their cardiac devices - pacemakers and defibrillators.
From March 1, 2012 to September 15, 2017 we saw 11 patients with suspected allergy to their devices. Concern for allergy, skin eruption, skin symptoms, and concern for infection were common. 73% of patients had erythema at their implant scars; pruritus and pain were also noted. Six of our patients had relevant reactions, and the most common allergies were metals, silicone and rubber accelerators.
02 Apr Hands-Only CPR Increases Bystander Participation and Survival After Cardiac Arrest
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48328" align="alignleft" width="120"] Hands only CPRAHA image[/caption] Gabriel Riva, Graduate Student Department of Medicine, Solna (MedS), Karolinka Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: During the last decade there has been a gradual adoption of compression-only CPR, as an option to conventional CPR with chest compressions and rescue breaths, in international CPR guidelines. The simplified technique is recommended for bystanders who are untrained and in "telephone assisted CPR". One of the reasons was the assumption that more people would actually do CPR with the simplified technique. We could in this nationwide study running over 3 guideline periods demonstrate a 6-fold higher proportion of patients receiving compression-only CPR and a concomitant almost doubled rate of CPR before emergency medical services arrival over time. This very large increase in simplified CPR was surprising to us, especially considering there has never been any public campaigns promoting compression-only CPR in Sweden and training still include compressions and ventilations. New first aid certified students will go through these updates to ensure the best possible assistance for emergencies.
02 Apr Shorter Individuals at Greater Risk of Heart Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48320" align="alignleft" width="150"] Eirini Marouli[/caption]
Eirini Marouli
William Harvey Research Institute
Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Epidemiological studies suggest that shorter stature is associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) or type 2 diabetes (T2D). It is not clear though whether these associations are causal or there are other factors mediating these effects. When randomized trials are inappropriate or impossible, we can use Mendelian Randomisation as a good alternative to study the causal relationship between a trait and a disease. Here, we examined over 800 places in the human genome known to be associated with adult height and evaluated how genetically predicted height can affect the risk of CAD or T2D. Furthermore, we evaluated the role of several risk factors including, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, body mass index, fat percentage, socio-economic parameters including education and income as well as lung function. Lung function was assessed by spirometry measures including FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 second, FVC: forced vital capacity.
02 Apr Dietary Cholesterol from Eggs Linked to Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48314" align="alignleft" width="160"]
Dr. Zhong[/caption]
Victor Wenze Zhong, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow
Department of Preventive Medicine
Feinberg School of Medicine
Northwestern University
Chicago, IL 60611
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Dietary cholesterol is a common nutrient in human diet. Eggs, specially egg yolks, are the single richest source of dietary cholesterol among all commonly consumed foods. The associations between dietary cholesterol consumption and cardiovascular disease and mortality remain controversial despite decades of research. Eating less than 300 mg of dietary cholesterol per day was the guideline recommendation before 2015. However, the most recent 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans no longer include a daily consumption limit for dietary cholesterol and recommend weekly egg consumption as part of the healthy US-style eating pattern. Whether these recommendations are appropriate have been intensely debated.
29 Mar Exercise: A Non-Pharmaceutical “Drug” To Reduce Heart Disease in Breast Cancer Patients
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48187" align="alignleft" width="179"] Dr. Dieli-Conwright[/caption]
Christina M. Dieli-Conwright, PhD, MPH, FACSM, CSCS
Assistant Professor of Research
Director, Integrative Center for Oncology Research in Exercise
Division of Biokinesiology & Physical Therapy, Ostrow School of Dentistry
Department of Medicine, Keck School of Medicine
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA 90033
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: This study was designed to assess the effects of an aerobic and resistance exercise on metabolic dysregulation in sedentary, obese breast cancer survivors, however we further examined the effects on cardiovascular disease risk measured by the Framingham Risk Score, reported here.
Our findings indicated that exercise, indeed, reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease in this population.
28 Mar Gene Transfer Improved Cardiac Function in Diabetic Mouse Model
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48235" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Hammond[/caption]
H. Kirk Hammond, MD
Professor of Medicine at University of California
San Diego
Basic research scientist and cardiologist
San Diego Veterans' Affairs Healthcare System
Dr. Hammond is winner of the 2017 William S. Middleton Award – the highest research honor in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Worldwide, 9% of adults have diabetes, predominantly due to insulin resistance, known as Type 2 diabetes. It is associated with obesity and diets high in fat and carbohydrates. In this gene transfer study we showed that a single injection of a vector encoding a natural hormone (urocortin 2, Ucn2) increased glucose disposal and improved heart function in a model of diet-induced Type 2 diabetes in mice.
27 Mar Cardiac Surgery: No Difference in Outcomes Between Inhaled and IV Anesthesia
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48112" align="alignleft" width="200"]
Dr. Landoni[/caption]
Dr. Giovanni Landoni
Intensive Care and Anesthesia Unit
Associate professor
Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Patients undergoing cardiac surgery are still at risk for perioperative complications. Studies to improve clinical outcomes this setting are important. Inhaled anesthetics have pharmacological properties which reduce myocardial infarction size by 50% in laboratory and animal studies and which might decrease postoperative mortality according to aggregated published randomized data.
27 Mar Psoriasis: No Difference Found in Cardiovascular Risk Between Ustekinumab vs TNF Inhibitor Therapy
Posted at 15:23h
in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Dermatology, Heart Disease, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
[caption id="attachment_48184" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Kim[/caption]
Seoyoung C. Kim, MD, ScD, MSCE
Director, Program in Rheumatologic, Immunologic, and Musculoskeletal PharmacoEpidemiology
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacoeconomics
Division of Rheumatology, Immunology and Allergy
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Harvard Medical School
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Given a high cardiovascular (CV) risk among patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, it is important to have more information with regard to potential effect of different treatment agents on CV risk.
As the number of treatment options for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis has been rising over the few decades, it is even more crucial to have high-quality evidence on comparative safety of different treatment options so physicians and patients can choose an agent based on the benefit-risk profile of each drug they are considering.
27 Mar Flu Linked to Marked Increase in Heart Failure Admissions
Posted at 15:13h
in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Flu - Influenza, Heart Disease, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
[caption id="attachment_48142" align="alignleft" width="150"] Sonja Kytomaa[/caption]
Sonja Kytomaa MA
Research Associate
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
[caption id="attachment_48143" align="alignleft" width="126"]
Dr. Scott Solomon[/caption]
Scott D. Solomon, MD
The Edward D. Frohlich Distinguished Chair
Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Senior Physician
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
International Associate Editor, European Heart Journal
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Influenza is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events, yet few studies have explored the temporal association between influenza activity and hospitalizations, especially due to heart failure (HF).
Our aim with this study was to explore the temporal association between influenza activity and hospitalizations for HF and myocardial infarction (MI) in the general population. We related the number of MI and HF hospitalizations by month, which were sampled from 4 US communities and adjudicated in the surveillance component of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study, to monthly influenza-like illness activity, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We found that a 5% increase in influenza activity was associated with a 24% increase in HF hospitalizations rates, while overall influenza was not significantly associated with MI hospitalizations. Influenza activity in the months before hospitalization was not associated with either outcome.
26 Mar Mesenchymal Stem Cells May Reduce Complications in Heart Failure Patients with LVAD
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48147" align="alignleft" width="114"] Dr. Gelijns[/caption]
Annetine C. Gelijns, PhD
Professor and System Chair
Population Health Science and Policy
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
[caption id="attachment_48148" align="alignleft" width="114"]
Dr. Moskowitz[/caption]
Alan J Moskowitz, MD
Professor of Population Health Science and Policy
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Where do these mesenchymal cells come from?
Response: Implantable LVADs significantly improve the survival and quality of life of advanced heart failure patients. However, these devices are associated with substantial adverse events, including infection and thromboembolic events. Moreover, whereas these devices improve myocardial function, few patients recover sufficient function to be explanted from their LVAD. These observations have focused attention on stem cells as a possible adjunctive therapy to further augment cardiac recovery.
Mesenchymal precursor cells (MPCs), which are obtained from healthy donors and culture-expanded, have been shown in animal and early human studies to improve cardiac function. Using temporary weaning as a signal of cardiac recovery, we conducted an exploratory trial in the Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network (CTSN), which found that MPCs increased the probability of temporary weaning from full LVAD support compared to sham-control patients. Therefore, this signal of efficacy led the CTSN to design our current follow-up trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of a higher dose of MPCs in LVAD patients.
21 Mar Atrial Fibrillation: Antithrombotic Therapy after Acute Coronary Syndrome or PCI
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_20394" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Renato Lopes[/caption]
Renato D. Lopes MD, MHS, PhD
Professor of Medicine
Division of Cardiology
Duke University Medical Center
Duke Clinical Research Institute
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: In patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS), approximately 20% to 30% of those with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) have concomitant coronary artery disease (CAD), and 5 to 10% of patients who undergo PCI have NVAF. These patients often receive both antiplatelet therapy and oral anticoagulants; and how best to combine these agents to minimize bleeding risk without compromising protection against thrombosis is an important unanswered question.
Analysis of results for bleeding indicated no significant interaction between the two randomization factors permitting independent analysis of results for the two key comparisons. The first showed that apixaban was both non-inferior and significantly superior to VKA for the primary outcome with a 31% reduction in the relative risk for bleeding. Aspirin significantly increased the relative risk for bleeding versus placebo by 89%.
Results for the composite of death and hospitalization showed that apixaban resulted in a relative risk reduction of 17%, primarily driven by a reduction in all cause hospitalization. There was no significant difference between results for aspirin versus placebo for this outcome.
Analysis of the composite of death and ischemic events indicated no significant differences in results for apixaban versus VKA or aspirin versus placebo.