Editor’s Note: This is part one of a two-part Healio Exclusive series on Lp(a). A single lipoprotein(a) screening in a person’s lifetime could significantly reduce their risk for heart disease-related morbidity and mortality, yet this opportunity is often missed. Screening for elevated Lp(a) and targeting modifiable risk factors and lifestyle could meaningfully lower risk for atherosclerotic CVD and potentially thrombosis, even in people with very high levels. No targeted therapies are currently approved to lower Lp(a) levels, but that does not mean nothing can be done to mitigate its
Adding prednisolone to standard therapy for Kawasaki disease failed to prevent coronary artery lesions 1 month following disease onset, according to data published in the New England Journal of Medicine. “The current standard primary treatment for Kawasaki disease is high-dose intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) with aspirin,” Siyuan Lin, MD, of the Children’s Hospital of Fudan University and National Children’s Medical Center, in Shanghai, and colleagues wrote. “However, coronary-artery lesions develop in approximately 10% to 20% of treated patients, and 8% to 25%
A rewritten charter for the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee that would have loosened the rules for membership to allow for less qualified members has been withdrawn. A document published in the Federal Register on May 19 states that the renewal for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices charter was withdrawn due to “an administrative error in meeting the revised public notification timing requirements under the revised Federal Advisory Committee Act regulations, as amended in December 2025. As a result, the charter lapsed and the committee must be re-established.” The previous
In high-risk patients without prior heart attack or stroke who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention, evolocumab reduced risk for major adverse CV events compared with placebo, according to new data from the VESALIUS-CV trial. As Healio previously reported, in the main results of VESALIUS-CV, the PCSK9 inhibitor evolocumab (Repatha, Amgen) lowered risk for major adverse CV events by 25% compared with placebo in patients with atherosclerosis or high-risk diabetes and LDL 90 mg/dL or more but no prior MI or stroke. At EuroPCR, Brian A. Bergmark, MD, interventional cardiologist at Brigham
Healio has partnered with the Nurse Practitioner Associates for Continuing Education, or NPACE, to integrate its Healio AI tool into NPACE’s in-person and on-demand CME. “NPACE is excited to further our collaboration with Healio and the new Healio AI tool,” NPACE Chief Operating Officer Josh Plotkin said in a press release. “AI is quickly ascending to the forefront of being used by advanced practice providers. Healio’s AI tool, being predicated on medical research, studies and professional insights, will enhance professional development and learning across NPACE
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired the chair and vice chair of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, according to letters obtained by Healio. The vice chair was Esa M. Davis, MD, MPH, FAAFP, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and the chair was John B. Wong, MD, MACP, a professor at Tufts University School of Medicine. According to the task force’s website, Davis was appointed vice chair in March 2025. She previously served as a member from January 2021 to December 2024. Wong was appointed chair in March. He had served in the task force since
CHICAGO — GLP-1 receptor agonists may help mitigate progression of at least some obesity-related cancers, according to retrospective study results presented at ASCO Annual Meeting. A database analysis of individuals diagnosed with stage I to stage III cancers showed those who used GLP-1 medications had lower risk for developing metastatic disease than those who used dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors. The protective effects for four malignancies — breast, colorectal, liver and lung cancers — reached statistical significance, with risk reductions ranging from 31% to 50%. Researchers also
Doctors who have not yet started using AI tools should first get comfortable using them in everyday life before adopting them in clinical practice. That is the advice from optometrist Scott A. Edmonds, OD, FAAO, a member of the Healio AI Advisory Board who has been using AI in various areas of his practice. “You learn to use the tool in a much less stressful environment,” Edmonds said. “You learn how the model works and how it thinks. ... Then when I go to use it in the real world, in the clinic, I’m more attuned. I’m not afraid of it. I know what to ask it. “Play with it in everyday life first,
In patients with advanced heart failure, left ventricular assist device implantation was linked to better 2-year survival than heart transplantation when wait-list time was accounted for, researchers reported at Heart Failure 2026. However, the transplantation group had a higher survival rate at 2 years than the LVAD group when survival was measured from the time of treatment, according to the study, which was simultaneously published in JACC: Heart Failure. The researchers analyzed survival and adverse events in patients with advanced HF who were middle-aged (aged 50-64 years) or older (aged
CHICAGO — Pediatric patients with stroke often had psychiatric concerns even if they did not have an active diagnosis, and most did not receive treatment, according to a poster presented at the American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting. “They have new deficits that they’re navigating,” Sofia Schlozman, a student at University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, told Healio. “They’re very young. They had no other major medical things going on. And then this thing happened.” Schlozman and colleagues said that pediatric hemorrhagic stroke
Since the introduction of durable left ventricular assist devices for advanced heart failure, management of antithrombotic medications has been the single most pivotal facet of the care of patients with these devices. As the devices have evolved — from pulsatile to continuous and from axial flow to centrifugal — much has been learned about the appropriate intensity of antithrombotic therapies. The overarching trend of the past 20 years of durable LVAD antithrombotic management has been toward reduced intensity. Culminating with the contemporary era, in which the HeartMate 3
Only a third of cancer survivors receive advice on weight control and improving their diet from health care professionals, and less than half are informed about the benefits of physical activity. Individuals who do receive advice on losing weight, salt and fat intake, and exercise are three to eight times more likely to engage in healthy behaviors than those who did not. “We need more effort to deliver lifestyle behaviors to patients,” Chao Cao, PhD, MPH, instructor in the department of medical oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, told Healio. ASCO, American Cancer Society and American
Guideline-concordant thromboprophylaxis significantly reduces both venous thromboembolism and death in patients at high risk for blood clots. Data from a multidisciplinary VTE prevention program instituted at University of Vermont showed high-risk patients beginning systemic cancer therapy who received thromboprophylaxis had a 64% lower likelihood of VTE and 54% lower likelihood of death. “By adhering to the guidance, we’re improving patient outcomes,” Karlyn A. Martin, MD, MS, a hematologist at Larner College of Medicine at University of Vermont, told Healio. “People should see if they can
Digitalis glycosides may be a safe and tolerable addition to optimal guideline medical therapy to reduce worsening heart failure events in patients with HF with mildly reduced or reduced ejection fraction, researchers reported. Despite recent data from the DECISION study showing digoxin did not reduce the composite endpoint of HF outcomes and mortality, a meta-analysis presented at Heart Failure 2026 indicated digitalis glycosides may improve outcomes by primarily reducing risk for worsening HF events, with no impact on mortality. “These results suggest digitalis glycosides may be used as
ORLANDO — Ralinepag, a prostacyclin receptor agonist, added to background therapy decreased the risk for a clinical worsening event in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, according to phase 3 ADVANCE OUTCOMES trial results. These findings were presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference. “The primary efficacy endpoint of delayed time to first clinical worsening event was met,” Vallerie V. McLaughlin, MD, Kim A. Eagle, MD, Endowed Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, director of the pulmonary hypertension program at University of Michigan and chair of the
A substantial number of retracted randomized clinical trials can be linked to a small group of scientists, results of a retrospective cohort study showed. Six “super-retractors” have coauthored more than 20% of retracted randomized clinical trials. Additionally, a group of top-cited scientists in their respective fields who have at least 10 retractions have coauthored 25% of retracted randomized clinical trials. Altered or fabricated data from these sources have lasted significantly longer in the literature than retracted trials that did not come from these sources. “The literature is much more
AstraZeneca announced the FDA approved baxdrostat for uncontrolled hypertension as add-on therapy on top of standard care. Baxdrostat (Baxfendy) is the first treatment for uncontrolled high blood pressure designed to inhibit production of aldosterone, a hormone that promotes sodium and water retention, according to a company press release. The approval was based on the results of the phase 3, multinational, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled BaxHTN trial presented at the 2025 European Society of Cardiology Congress and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
In patients with stable coronary artery disease, colchicine 0.5 mg per day did not impact low-attenuation plaque volume but did improve other plaque metrics, according to the results of the EKSTROM study. For the prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, Matthew J. Budoff, MD, FACC, FAHA, investigator at The Lundquist Institute for Biomedical Innovation, and colleagues enrolled 84 patients with stable CAD as confirmed by invasive coronary angiography, coronary CT angiography or a coronary artery calcium score of more than 400 Agatston units and randomly assigned them to
The time from outpatient imaging to interpretation by a radiologist more than doubled over the past decade, and most of that increase occurred in 2022 and 2023, which are the most recent data. An evaluation of more than 2 million Medicare claims between 2014 and 2023 showed that time from CT to interpretation increased over 300%, MRI more than 250% and ultrasound nearly 150%, with disenfranchised communities experiencing longer delays. “We’ve reached a critical juncture with the workforce,” Eric W. Christensen, PhD, research director at Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute, told Healio.
Adults with moderate to severe psoriasis and overweight or obesity were more likely to achieve complete skin clearance plus improvement in body weight with combination tirzepatide plus ixekizumab vs. ixekizumab monotherapy, data show. Data from TOGETHER-PsO — a 52-week, phase 3b, randomized, double-blind, open-label study — demonstrated that participants who received combination therapy with ixekizumab (Taltz, Eli Lilly), an IL-17a inhibitor, and tirzepatide (Zepbound, Eli Lilly), a dual GLP-1/glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide agonist, were more likely to achieve a multicomponent
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