Top news from AHA Hypertension: Trends in BP control, hypertension in COVID-19 and more
September 20 ,2020
Overview:Healio and Cardiology Today have compiled a list of the top-read news from the American Heart Association Hypertension Scientific Sessions.Our readers were most interested in recent trends in uncontrolled BP, the impact of hypertension in COVID-19 and more.Between 2013 and 2018, the number of patients with hypertension who had their BP under control dropped more than 11%, researchers reported. Read moreThe most prevalent comorbidity in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 was hypertension, which was also a risk factor for acute kidney injury in the ED and mortality in these patients, more
Top news from ESC: Impact of naps on CV health, results from DAPA-CKD, LoDoCo2 and more
September 19 ,2020
Overview:Healio and Cardiology Today have compiled a list of the most-read news from the virtual European Society of Cardiology Congress.Readers were most interested in the CV impact of long naps, saliva-based testing for MI, results from the LoDoco2 trial and more.Adults who napped longer than 1 hour per day had elevated risk for CVD and mortality compared with those who did not nap at all, according to a meta-analysis. Read moreUsing a novel saliva-based rapid cardiac troponin I test to diagnose MI was feasible, according to the results of a preliminary study. Read moreIn patients with chronic more
AAP: Kids with COVID-19 may need ECG before returning to sports
September 18 ,2020
Overview:In updated guidance, the AAP said some children with COVID-19 may need an ECG before they return to playing sports, based on growing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 infection can severely damage the heart.The AAP originally published interim guidance on July 23 that advised pediatricians and parents on the risks and benefits of children returning to sports.Before returning to play, children who experienced severe presentations of COVID-19 or who had multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) “must be treated as though they have myocarditis and restricted from exercise and more
Study shows ‘meaningful’ link between perivascular spaces, intracranial hemorrhage
September 18 ,2020
Overview:Enlarged perivascular spaces within the basal ganglia represented a novel risk factor for intracranial hemorrhage among patients taking oral anticoagulants, according to a post hoc analysis of the CROMIS-2 (AF) study published in Neurology.Ten or more enlarged perivascular spaces within the basal ganglia, as well as diabetes, remained significant risk factors for intracranial hemorrhages in a multivariable model, according to the study findings.“Cross-sectional studies of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) survivors have associated enlarged basal ganglia perivascular spaces (BGPVS) with more
Pursuing your Passion: WHF President Karen Sliwa’s Story
September 18 ,2020
Overview:In this video, Prof Karen Sliwa reflects on her journey at the helm of the World Heart Federation and tells us about her remarkable career in Africa. She opens up about her 18 years in a hospital in Soweto, a township in Johannesburg, and about her subsequent move to Cape Town, where she became the […] The post Pursuing your Passion: WHF President Karen Sliwa’s Story appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
Increased BP in young adulthood could influence future CV event risk
September 18 ,2020
Overview:High BP in young adulthood may slightly increase the risk for CV events later in life, researchers found.“Despite the relatively low absolute risk in this analysis, the difference in absolute risk above normal blood pressure in comparison to optimal blood pressure was persistent and should not be ignored,” Dongling Luo, physician in the department of cardiology at Guangdong Cardiovascular Institute at Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital at Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences in Guangzhou, China, and colleagues wrote in the study published in The BMJ.In this systematic more
Procedure deferrals during COVID-19 pandemic may affect clinical practice, CV events
September 18 ,2020
Overview:Cardiac procedural deferrals during the COVID-19 pandemic were linked with the severity of hospital COVID-19 burden and procedural urgency, according to the results of a survey of cath lab directors and interventional cardiologists.Interventional cardiologists also reported increases in patients with STEMI presenting late during the pandemic, even in institutions that did not have high COVID-19 burden, according to the results published in Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions.“This suggests that patient fears may be driving behaviors more than actual risk,” Celina M. more
Ticagrelor plus aspirin reduces ischemic limb events in diabetes, stable CAD: THEMIS
September 18 ,2020
Overview:Among patients with diabetes and stable CAD, ticagrelor plus aspirin reduced ischemic limb events compared with aspirin alone, according to new data from the THEMIS randomized controlled trial.The absolute risk reduction with the ticagrelor-based regimen was greatest in patients with preexisting peripheral artery disease, researchers reported.As Healio previously reported, in the main results of THEMIS, among patients with diabetes and stable CAD but no history of MI or stroke and no high risk for bleeding, aspirin plus ticagrelor (Brilinta, AstraZeneca) reduced ischemic events but increased more
Insulin-treated diabetes tied to elevated MACE risk 1 year after PCI
September 18 ,2020
Overview:At 1 year after PCI, patients with insulin-treated diabetes experienced greater risk for MACE compared with patients with no diabetes, researchers reported.Patients with noninsulin-treated diabetes also had greater MACE risk than those without diabetes, but to a lesser degree, according to the researchers.“The negative prognostic effect of diabetes following contemporary PCI is heightened in the presence of insulin treatment, compared to non-diabetes patients,” Jaya Chandrasekhar, MBBS, MS, postdoctoral research fellow at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and colleagues more
Nearly 500 institutions recognized as leaders in LGBTQ health care equality
September 18 ,2020
Overview:The Human Rights Campaign has named 495 U.S. health care institutions as “Leaders in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality,” meaning they encourage “equitable and inclusive care for LGBTQ patients and their families,” according to the organization.The organization said this is the 13th year that facilities have been scored on foundational elements of LGBTQ patient-centered care: patient services and support; employee policies and benefits, including transgender inclusive health care benefits; and patient and community engagement. The maximum score that an institution can receive more
Common hypertension drug linked to increased need for dialysis in patients with CKD
September 17 ,2020
Overview:Use of alpha-blockers – commonly prescribed to treat hypertension – was associated with eGFR decline in patients with chronic kidney disease, leading to an increased need for dialysis or transplantation.Conversely, study results showed use of alpha-blockers decreased the risk for cardiac events in this patient population.“Alpha blockers are commonly prescribed as add-on therapy for resistant or refractory hypertension in patients with and without chronic kidney disease,” Gregory L. Hundemer, MD, MPH, of Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa in Canada, and more
Elevated LDL confers risk for CV events after PCI
September 17 ,2020
Overview:Among patients who underwent PCI, an LDL level of 70 mg/dL or more was associated with elevated risk for subsequent CV events, according to data published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.From a cohort of 47,884 patients from Ontario, Canada, who had their first PCI from October 2011 to September 2014, the researchers analyzed the 52% for whom there were LDL measurements within 6 months of the procedure. Among those who had their LDL measured, 57% had LDL less than 70 mg/dL, in accordance with current guidelines.Patients were stratified by post-PCI LDL (< 70 mg/dL, 70 more
Continued on-site CPR could improve survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest
September 17 ,2020
Overview:On-scene resuscitation of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest may provide a better chance of survival to hospital discharge compared with intra-arrest transport, researchers reported.According to findings published in JAMA, on-scene resuscitation may also confer better neurological outcomes for patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest compared with intra-arrest transport.“These data demonstrate a marked heterogeneity in intra-arrest transport practices across emergency medical services (EMS) systems,” Brian Grunau, MD, MHSc, assistant professor in the department of more
Azithromycin with QT-prolonging drugs may elevate cardiac event risk
September 17 ,2020
Overview:According to findings published in JAMA Network Open, the combination of azithromycin and QT-prolonging drugs was associated with a 40% increase in cardiac events compared with amoxicillin and QT-prolonging drugs.However, in a large cohort, there was no difference between use of azithromycin and amoxicillin in risk for cardiac events, researchers reported.“In this large cohort study including more than 4 million episodes of both azithromycin and amoxicillin use, we found no increased odds of cardiac events with azithromycin in the overall cohort but a significantly higher odds among more
Smoking may play causal role in fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage
September 17 ,2020
Overview:Smoking may increase the risk for fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage and potentially affect the familial manifestation of this event, researchers found in an analysis of the Finnish Twin Cohort.“Our study provides further evidence about the link between smoking and bleeding in the brain,” Ilari Rautalin, BM, 6th-year medical and PhD student at University of Helsinki, said in a press release.Researchers analyzed data from 16,282 same-sex twin pairs from the Finnish Twin Cohort enrolled from 1976 to 2018. Surveys were conducted at baseline to collect information about hypertension, more
Link between ibrutinib-related hypertension, heart problems necessitates close monitoring
September 17 ,2020
Overview:Ibrutinib — a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor that inhibits B cell-receptor signaling — has demonstrated long-term efficacy as treatment for many mature B-cell malignancies, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia and mantle cell lymphoma.Ibrutinib (Imbruvica; Janssen, Pharmacyclics) requires continuous dosing and is taken until disease relapse or progression.Although most patients tolerate therapy well, cardiovascular complications — such as hypertension and atrial fibrillation — have emerged as significant treatment-associated adverse events. Atrial fibrillation is a more
Improved CV health may lower risk for hypertension
September 16 ,2020
Overview:Improving CV health by meeting components of Life’s Simple 7 may reduce the risk for incident hypertension when the lower hypertension threshold of 130/80 mm Hg is used, researchers found.“The clinical implication for practice is that the risk of high blood pressure drops with each point higher,” Timothy B. Plante, MD, MHS, professor in cardiovascular research at Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, told Healio. “That means that a patient might be less receptive to quitting smoking but is interested in starting to get moderate-intensity exercise on more
Adverse pregnancy outcomes could increase late ASCVD risk
September 16 ,2020
Overview:Adverse pregnancy outcomes, particularly hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and low birth weight, were independently linked to atherosclerotic CVD in postmenopausal women, researchers found.“The American Heart Association and [American College of Cardiology] have recommended taking key parts of the pregnancy history and using it potentially as a risk enhancer when you’re discussing statin initiation for patients,” Nisha I. Parikh, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in the division of cardiology at University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine and senior more
Donor obesity may not affect outcomes in heart transplantation
September 16 ,2020
Overview:Transplant recipients of hearts from donors with severe obesity experienced no more adverse events and similar 1-year survival as those who received hearts from donors without severe obesity, according to researchers.Researchers reported that with the rising prevalence of obesity in the U.S., these findings may support the inclusion of donors with obesity and larger hearts to the already critically low donor pool.“Transplantation of hearts from obese individuals and utilization of oversized hearts have both been associated with no increase in adverse outcomes and represent a promising, more
Likeability, acceptance in childhood may affect circulatory disease risk in adulthood
September 16 ,2020
Overview:Children with low peer status and marginalization at school may have increased risk for circulatory diseases in adulthood, researchers found.“The findings of the study might help to understand (in a rather retrospective way) why some people have a higher risk to develop circulatory diseases than others do,” Alexander Miething, PhD, researcher in the public health department at Stockholm University, told Healio. “Probably more important is the role of early intervention when children are in trouble. Although problematic experiences with peers do not automatically lead to more
The Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission: Bridging a gap in universal health coverage for the poorest billion
September 16 ,2020
Overview:Non-communicable diseases & injuries (NCDIs) cause more death and disability at every age among the world’s poorest billion than in wealthy countries, according to the newly published Lancet Commission on NCDs and injuries among the poorest billion, which features WHF Emerging Leaders Ana Mocumbi and Jaime Miranda among its authors. The Commission argues that the current […] The post The Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission: Bridging a gap in universal health coverage for the poorest billion appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
AHA: Risk reduction, appropriate action critical with drug-induced arrhythmias
September 15 ,2020
Overview:Several drugs may exacerbate or cause arrhythmias, but risk reduction, drug discontinuation and treatment when appropriate may help prevent these conditions, according to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association.“The scientific statement is important to raise awareness of the issue of drug-induced arrhythmias among clinicians,” James E. Tisdale, PharmD, FAHA, professor of pharmacy practice at Purdue University College of Pharmacy, adjunct professor at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis and chair of the writing committee, told Healio. “While more
Perio & Cardio campaign highlights links between gum and cardiovascular diseases
September 15 ,2020
Overview:The Perio & Cardio educational campaign offers clear messages on the links between periodontal and cardiovascular diseases and the steps dentists, doctors, and patients need to take in prevention and treatment The initiative includes the site perioandcardio.efp.org and educational material addressed at dentists, cardiologists, medical professionals, and the public. It builds on the scientific input […] The post Perio & Cardio campaign highlights links between gum and cardiovascular diseases appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
Announcing Heart Talks: A Series of the 5th Global Summit on Circulatory Health
August 24 ,2020
Overview:Since 2016, the World Heart Federation has been convening leaders and innovators in cardiovascular health at its annual Global Summit on Circulatory Health. The Summit is an exclusive annual event where government, civil society, industry, and academia from around the world come together to discuss, debate and explore the future of cardiovascular health. This year, […] The post Announcing Heart Talks: A Series of the 5th Global Summit on Circulatory Health appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
AstraZeneca and the World Heart Federation partner to tackle gaps in heart failure awareness and care
August 24 ,2020
Overview:New initiatives will raise public awareness of the burden of heart failure to drive a transformation in HF prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. 24 AUGUST 2020 AstraZeneca today announced a new partnership with the leading voice in cardiovascular (CV) health, the World Heart Federation (WHF), to drive global action to prevent, control and reduce the burden […] The post AstraZeneca and the World Heart Federation partner to tackle gaps in heart failure awareness and care appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
Colombian Heart Foundation celebrates the Blood Pressure Month
August 11 ,2020
Overview:Hypertension is one of the most frequent disorders in medical consultations. It is also one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disorders, the leading causes of death globally. In order to tackle this burden, great efforts have to be made to diagnose, control and treat patients with hypertension early. Arterial hypertension is […] The post Colombian Heart Foundation celebrates the Blood Pressure Month appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
World Heart Day 2020 is now LIVE!
July 29 ,2020
Overview:Use Heart … for society, your loved ones and you. We are living in unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on the healthcare profession, national healthcare systems and our individual responsibilities – for our own health and for the vulnerable in society. We don’t know what course the pandemic will take in […] The post World Heart Day 2020 is now LIVE! appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
Rwanda Heart Foundation raises awareness on cardiovascular risk factors and the importance of heart disease prevention
July 22 ,2020
Overview:The Rwanda Heart Foundation (RHF) launched an educational campaign to raise awareness on cardiovascular risk factors and the importance of heart disease prevention. The campaign, which took place in two phases, in the lead up of the World Heart Day 2019 celebration and over the next months, received the support of the World Heart Federation […] The post Rwanda Heart Foundation raises awareness on cardiovascular risk factors and the importance of heart disease prevention appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
Understanding the COVID-19 heart connection in low-resource settings
July 21 ,2020
Overview:This article is based on a paper published in Global Heart and developed through consensus by an international group of specialists, including WHF Emerging Leaders and members of the WHF Science Committee. The document aims to support WHF Members, especially those working in low-resource settings. By summarizing links between cardiovascular disease and illnesses impacting the […] The post Understanding the COVID-19 heart connection in low-resource settings appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
The diabetes-heart connection and the threat of COVID-19
July 17 ,2020
Overview:Most or all viruses often affect those with underlying illnesses more critically than those in relatively good health. COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease-2019) is caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2) which was identified at the end of 2019. The underlying illnesses that exacerbate risk to patients are diabetes, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and lung […] The post The diabetes-heart connection and the threat of COVID-19 appeared first on World Heart Federation. more
ACC.20/WCC Virtual continues!
April 05 ,2020
Overview:The World Heart Federation and American College of Cardiology held their first ever virtual congress March 28-30. But it’s not over. All of the ACC.20/WCC Virtual live sessions are now available on demand, along with additional videos, abstracts and slides — all for FREE. This includes Late-Breaking Clinical Trials, Featured Clinical Research, Young Investigator Awards, Keynotes, and more. All content will […] more
2020 ISCP Annual Meeting cancelled
February 26 ,2020
Overview:Notice of Cancellation We regret to have to inform our colleagues and friends that the 2020 ISCP Annual Scientific Meeting in Miami will now be cancelled. The Board of Directors of ISCP was forced to take the decision based on advice from different sources raising concern about the threat posed by the Covid-19 virus which […] more
European Cardiology Review (ECR) now on PubMed and PubMed Central
October 30 ,2018
Overview: European Cardiology Review (ECR) confirms that it has been accepted for indexing on PubMed Central and PubMed. All ECR articles starting from the first issue in July 2014, will now be published online in full on PubMed Central, providing greater access for our authors’ articles amongst the global cardiology community. ECR is a […] more
WHF to attend the WHO Executive Board meeting in January 2017
January 23 ,2017
Overview:From 23 January to 01 February 2017, the World Health Organization(WHO) will host the 140th session. From 23 January to 01 February 2017, the World Health Organization(WHO) will host the 140th session. From 23 January to 01 February 2017, the World Health Organization(WHO) will host the 140th session. From 23 January to 01 February 2017, […] more