Congestive Heart Failure News and Research

RSS

Congestive Heart Failure is a condition in which the heart can't pump blood the way it should. In some cases, the heart can't fill with enough blood. In other cases, the heart can't send blood to the rest of the body with enough force. Some people have both problems. "Heart failure" doesn't mean that your heart has stopped or is about to stop working. However, it's a serious condition that requires medical care. Heart failure develops over time as the pumping of the heart grows weaker. It can affect the right side of the heart only or both the left and right sides of the heart. Most cases involve both sides of the heart.

Leg wounds can be accurately assessed using photographs taken at a patient's home

A pilot study has shown that leg wounds can be accurately assessed using photographs taken at a patient's home, adding one more example to a growing list of medical conditions that can be successfully monitored remotely.

8 Dec 2004

Venom from one of the world’s deadliest snakes is being developed as a new drug to treat heart failure

“The team has isolated a unique set of active molecules from Taipan venom and research shows they are extremely effective at easing the heart’s workload,” he said.

29 Nov 2004

Cells linked to asthma and eczema also help cure deadly illness in mice

Mast cells are immune cells known mostly for their unwanted effects: they cause the wheezing of asthma, the itching of eczema, the sneezing and runny nose of hay fever and, in extreme cases, the life-threatening shock of anaphylaxis.

20 Nov 2004

Computer vignette effective at measuring quality of physician practice

A new measurement tool called the computerized clinical vignette can help clinicians and policymakers assess and improve the quality of physician practice while potentially reducing costs, according to a study led by a researcher at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).

16 Nov 2004

Mast cells can provide protection from a potentially deadly condition known as sepsis

14 Nov 2004

Calcium channel blocker reduces adverse cardiovascular events

The calcium channel blocker amlodipine decreases the risk of cardiovascular events (such as heart attack or heart-disease related deaths) in patients with coronary artery disease and normal blood pressure, as does the ACE inhibitor enalapril, but to a lesser extent, according to a study in the November 10 issue of JAMA.

10 Nov 2004

A new medication has dramatically reduced mortality among African-American patients suffering from heart disease

A new medication has dramatically reduced mortality among African-American patients suffering from heart disease, according to results of a study including UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas researchers.

9 Nov 2004

BiDil demonstrates significant improvement in survival rates in African American heart failure patients

"African Americans suffer disproportionately from heart failure and until A-HeFT have been underrepresented in heart failure trials," said Malcolm Taylor, M.D., Chair of the Association of Black Cardiologists Committee on Heart Failure. "A-HeFT represents a significant step forward in addressing these disparities."

9 Nov 2004

Doctors must choose and manage implanted cardiac defibrillators patients carefully

Implanted devices that can shock a failing heart back into regular rhythm do an excellent job of keeping patients alive, two new University of Michigan studies find.

8 Nov 2004

Do cholesterol-reducing drugs decrease the risk of heart attacks and strokes in diabetics?

International researchers will, for the first time, present findings from the landmark 4D trial about whether a cholesterol-reducing drug decreases the risk of heart attacks and strokes with type 2 diabetics on dialysis at the American Society of Nephrology’s 37th Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri.

1 Nov 2004

Influenza is a contagious disease caused by an RNA virus of the orthomyxoviridae family

Influenza (or as it is commonly known, the flu) is a contagious disease caused by an RNA virus of the orthomyxoviridae family (The orthomyxoviridae is a family of RNA viruses which infect vertebrate).

6 Oct 2004

Postmenopausal women with heart disease have three fold increased risk of heart failure if they also have diabetes

In addition, diabetic women in the study who also had kidney disease or obesity, or whose diabetes was poorly controlled (fasting blood sugar levels above 300 mg/dL) had a risk of heart failure 6-10 times higher than that of women without diabetes.

7 Sep 2004

COX2 inhibitor lumiracoxib could be an effective treatment for osteoarthritis

The use of non-selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is widespread to reduce the pain associated with osteoarthritis; however the sideeffects of these drugs can be severe, sometimes leading to gastro-intestinal ulcer complications which account for around 7000 US and 1000 UK deaths each year.

21 Aug 2004

Heart pump improves quality of life in congestive heart failure patients

The most seriously ill congestive heart failure patients live longer and have a better quality of life if implanted with a heart pump, researchers report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Aug 2004

A quarter of all adults aged over 40 could develop an irregular heartbeat

Atrial fibrillation is the most common heart rhythm disorder in the U.S., affecting more than 2 million adults. The prevalence of the condition is rising and scientists predict that about 5.6 million Americans will have the disorder by 2050. Known causes of AF include abnormalities in the heart’s structure and long-term uncontrolled high blood pressure.

17 Aug 2004

Important for physicians to identify patients at risk for hyperkalemia and implement corresponding measures when using ACE inhibitors

Some patients with hypertension or other cardiovascular diseases should be closely monitored in order to maintain safe potassium levels in the body when prescribed certain medications, counsels a nephrologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

11 Aug 2004

Half of the complications and deaths due to in-hospital DVT can be prevented with once daily dalteparin

Current research supports the use of blood-thinners to help acutely ill, hospitalized patients minimize the risk of death from a pulmonary embolism (PE) and its precursor deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

3 Aug 2004

Hormone previously identified in the venom of the green mamba snake may play role in stroke research

A Mayo Clinic research team is focusing on a hormone previously identified in the venom of the green mamba snake for the role it may play in a dangerous blood vessel narrowing in stroke patients that can lead to a second stroke, reduced blood flow and brain damage.

2 Aug 2004

Left atrium neasurements may predict future for heart attack patients

Ultrasound measurements of the volume of the left atrium taken soon after a heart attack can help physicians predict a patient’s five-year mortality rate, according to a new study in the July 21, 2004 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

22 Jul 2004

Tinned tuna lowers the risk of an irregular hearbeat

A new study out today suggests that tuna or broiled/baked fish lowers the risk of an irregular hearbeat among elderly people.

19 Jul 2004