NEW ORLEANS — Among patients with obesity who underwent catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation, those who took GLP-1s had lower readmission and mortality than those who had bariatric surgery, new data show. The study was published in JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology and presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. “Atrial fibrillation is strongly linked to obesity, and weight reduction has been shown to improve rhythm control after catheter ablation,” Rutvij Patel, MD, internal medicine resident at Creighton University School of Medicine and incoming cardiology fellow
In a large cohort study, the Predicting Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Events calculator underestimated overall risk for cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis to a greater degree vs. a control group. “Unfortunately, existing general population cardiovascular risk calculators typically underestimate cardiovascular risk, and there is currently no clinically feasible, RA-specific risk calculator that outperforms these general population calculators,” Tate M. Johnson, MD, PhD, assistant professor in the division of rheumatology and immunology at the University of
NEW ORLEANS — In a global cohort of people from 15 countries, 7% had coronary plaque despite a coronary artery calcium score of 0, according to results of a study presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. Race/ethnicity, country and age were independent predictors of “false negatives” of coronary plaque despite a CAC score of 0, Lohendran (Logen) Baskaran, MBBS, from National Heart Centre Singapore, said during a presentation of data from the GPS-CAD study, whose rationale and design were simultaneously published in JACC: Asia. “We previously found that race/ethnicity
NEW ORLEANS — A culturally and medically tailored meal program reduced hospitalizations among Navajo Nation residents with heart failure, primarily by reducing all-cause and heart failure hospitalization, a speaker reported. The intervention reduced food insecurity and financial strain and improved HF symptoms among residents of the rural Navajo Nation with HF, according to results of a pragmatic, open-label, randomized trial presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. “The enduring impacts of settler colonialism have produced adverse structural drivers, particularly
NEW ORLEANS — In stable patients without heart failure, discontinuing beta-blockers beyond the first year after a heart attack was noninferior to continued use for all-cause death, recurrent MI or HF hospitalization, researchers reported. “The SMART-DECISION trial is the first randomized study to demonstrate the noninferiority of beta-blocker discontinuation in post-MI patients without left ventricular systolic dysfunction or heart failure,” Joo-Yong Hahn, MD, a cardiologist at Samsung Medical Center in Seoul, South Korea, said during a press conference at the American College of Cardiology
NEW ORLEANS — Smartphone notifications that alerted patients first, rather than their physicians, of early heart failure decompensation were feasible and safe, according to results from the NOTIFY-HF pilot study. Exploratory analyses suggested this strategy may also reduce HF hospitalization and improve physical function, biomarkers and quality of life, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. The NOTIFY-HF trial evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of patient-directed notifications from a multisensor remote HF monitoring algorithm embedded in
NEW ORLEANS — In high-risk patients with diabetes but without known atherosclerosis, evolocumab reduced risk for a first major CV event compared with placebo, according to a subgroup analysis of the VESALIUS-CV trial. As Healio previously reported, in the main results of VESALIUS-CV, a trial of high-risk patients with diabetes and/or atherosclerosis and no history of MI or stroke, evolocumab (Repatha, Amgen) became the first PCSK9 inhibitor to demonstrate effectiveness for primary and secondary prevention, lowering risk for a 3-point major adverse CV event endpoint by 25%. Nicholas A. Marston,
NEW ORLEANS — In patients with intermediate coronary lesions, an angiography-guided percutaneous coronary intervention strategy was noninferior to a pressure wire-guided PCI strategy for CV outcomes at 1 year, new data show. The ALL-RISE trial, presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine, showed that AI-assisted 3D modeling of the coronary tree could help determine intermediate lesion eligibility for percutaneous coronary intervention, with no need for more invasive diagnostics, Ajay Kirtane, MD, SM,
NEW ORLEANS — New data support the use of mavacamten as a treatment option for adolescents with symptomatic obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, researchers reported at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. The SCOUT-HCM trial is the first to evaluate mavacamten (Camzyos, Bristol Myers Squibb) in adolescents. Mavacamten, a cardiac myosin inhibitor, is currently FDA approved for adults with obstructive HCM. Pediatric-onset HCM is less common than adult-onset HCM, but it is associated with “a far worse prognosis,” Joseph W. Rossano, MD, chief of cardiology at Children’s
NEW ORLEANS — In a phase 2 trial of a novel antihypertensive agent, multiple doses lowered plasma angiotensinogen to a greater extent than a single dose, but did not provide further blood pressure lowering, researchers reported. The KARDINAL study, presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session and simultaneously published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, evaluated the effect of tonlamarsen (Kardigan) on patients with an office systolic BP of 135 mm Hg to 170 mm Hg despite use of two to five antihypertensive medications. “Tonlamarsen is an antisense
NEW ORLEANS — Home-delivered groceries tailored to the low-sodium Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diet improved BP among Black adults already being treated for hypertension, according to results from the GoFreshRx trial. Even the comparator arm of this randomized trial, in which adults being treated for hypertension received stipends to do their own grocery shopping, experienced reductions in BP that persisted months after trial discontinuation, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. The results were simultaneously published in Nature
NEW ORLEANS — In patients with type 2 diabetes and established CVD, tirzepatide conferred lower risk for cardiorenal adverse events compared with dulaglutide, according to a post hoc analysis of the SURPASS-CVOT trial. As Healio previously reported, in the main results of SURPASS-CVOT, risk for major adverse CV events was similar between the tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Eli Lilly) and dulaglutide (Trulicity, Eli Lilly) groups, but risk for all-cause mortality was 16% lower in the tirzepatide group. Healio | Cardiology Today Editorial Board Member Steven E. Nissen, MD, MACC, chief academic officer of
NEW ORLEANS — A combination of left ventricular support plus delayed percutaneous coronary intervention did not reduce infarct size compared with immediate PCI in patients with anterior STEMI without shock, researchers reported. LV unloading with a transvalvular micro-axial flow pump (Impella CP, Johnson & Johnson MedTech) for 30 minutes before PCI lengthened time-to-procedure and was associated with more bleeding and vascular complications compared with immediate PCI alone, according to the STEMI Door to Unload (STEMI-DTU) trial presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific
NEW ORLEANS — In the HI-PEITHO trial, ultrasound-facilitated catheter-directed thrombolysis plus anticoagulation conferred better 30-day outcomes compared with anticoagulation alone in patients with acute intermediate-risk pulmonary embolism. At the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session, researchers reported results from 544 adults (mean age, 58 years; 43% women; 15.8% self-identified as “non-white”; mean symptom duration, 3.7 days) who presented with intermediate-risk pulmonary embolism (PE) and two or more indicators of cardiorespiratory distress. Each patient was randomly
NEW ORLEANS — In patients with atrial fibrillation, those assigned left atrial appendage closure had similar ischemic outcomes and better bleeding outcomes compared with those assigned oral anticoagulation, researchers reported. The CHAMPION-AF trial, presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine, randomly assigned 3,000 patients with AF (mean age, 71 years; 32% women; mean CHA2DS2-VASc score, 3.5) to receive device-based left atrial appendage (LAA) closure (Watchman FLX, Boston Scientific) or a
LOS ANGELES — It is important for primary care providers to understand new federal regulations surrounding wearables, wellness and clinical decision support, especially because it will impact reimbursement, according to a speaker here. Aubrey Shick, a former official in the FDA’s Digital Health Center of Excellence, offered a presentation on FDA’s January 2026 updates, and how they “change the game” for wearables, clinical decision support and wellness at Cedars-Sinai’s eighth annual iteration of its Virtual Medicine Conference, vMed. Healio spoke with Shick to learn more about the changes, the
Some GLP-1 receptor agonists, particularly semaglutide, reduced the risk for worsening mental health in people with anxiety or depression, data show. “As mental health is now the most common reason people are on sick leave, or absent from work due to ill-health, this has major implications for public health,” Mark Taylor, MD, a study co-author and professor at Griffith University School of Medicine and Dentistry in Australia, told Healio. Multiple studies have indicated that GLP-1s may improve a wide range of mental health outcomes, such as depressive symptoms and alcohol and substance use
PHILADELPHIA — Among adults hospitalized for anaphylaxis, outcomes were worse for those who also had cardiovascular disease, according to a poster presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Annual Meeting. Integrated cardiovascular risk assessments and multidisciplinary care strategies should be considered in managing severe allergic reactions, Diala Merheb, MD, second year internal medicine resident, University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita, and colleagues wrote. “We did analyze if inpatient mortality or other complications like acute respiratory failure,
NEW ORLEANS — The effect of low to moderate alcohol consumption on mortality varied by alcohol type, according to findings presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. Low to moderate wine consumption was linked to reduced mortality risk while low to moderate consumption of spirits, beer or cider and high consumption of any type of alcohol were associated with increased mortality risk, according to the analysis of 340,924 participants from UK Biobank. “We undertook this study because the health effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption remain highly controversial and
NEW ORLEANS — Deaths among young women due to hypertensive heart disease have increased over the past 2 decades, with disparities reported among Black women and those living in the southern U.S., researchers reported. These findings highlight the need for increased CVD screening — particularly high blood pressure — among U.S. women aged 25 to 44 years, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session. “Women have historically been underrepresented in CV research. The 25- to 44-year age range represents a critical period when hypertension may emerge due to
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