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Uncovering the hidden retinal risks of modern dentistry

Dentists are exposed to intense lighting for long hours, but its long-term impact on eye health is often overlooked. This study evaluates whether chronic exposure to dental lighting, especially blue and white LEDs, can damage the retina and disrupt its normal function. By combining human data with advanced imaging and animal models, the research uncovers hidden occupational risks and highlights the need for safer lighting practices to help protect dentists' vision.

31 Mar 2026

Dual imaging reveals hidden causes of heart attacks without blockages

When Ashley Perlow felt a sharp pain shoot across her chest and into both wrists, she didn't think it could be a heart attack. She was 36, a new mom, and otherwise healthy.

30 Mar 2026

Study links atrial fibrillation to poorer brain clearance and cognitive decline

Researchers found that people with atrial fibrillation had lower MRI-based glymphatic activity and poorer cognitive performance than healthy controls, with the greatest impairment seen in non-paroxysmal AF. In patients who underwent catheter ablation, glymphatic activity improved after sinus rhythm was restored, suggesting a possible link between heart rhythm, brain waste clearance, and cognition.

30 Mar 2026

AI eye exams accurately identify heart disease risk during routine visits

A new system that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to assess cardiovascular risk based on images of the eye captured during eye exams demonstrated strong correlation with a standard cardiovascular risk assessment, according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.26).

30 Mar 2026

New clinical guideline adopts holistic approach to brain and heart health

A new brain–heart clinical practice guideline takes a holistic approach, integrating neurologic and mental health evidence with guidance for cardiovascular disease as many brain and heart conditions overlap and share similar risk factors.

30 Mar 2026

Minimally invasive valve repair lowers hospitalizations in heart failure patients

At two years of follow-up, patients with a poorly functioning tricuspid valve in the heart who received optimal medical therapy plus a minimally invasive procedure using a clip to repair the valve were significantly less likely to die, have a heart attack or stroke and 40% less likely to be hospitalized for heart failure compared with similar patients who were randomly assigned to optimal medical therapy alone.

29 Mar 2026

New drug sotatercept shows benefit in CpcPH-HFpEF patients

Patients who have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and high blood pressure in the lungs (pulmonary hypertension) experienced significant improvements in blood pressure and vascular health after taking the drug sotatercept, according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.26).

29 Mar 2026

Angioplasty improves symptoms in chronic total coronary occlusion patients

In what is believed to be the first randomized placebo-controlled trial of its kind, patients with a chronic total blockage of a coronary artery who received a nonsurgical procedure to reopen the artery showed statistically significant reductions in chest pain and improvements in quality of life compared with patients who received a placebo procedure.

29 Mar 2026

APOE4 alters brain immunity and cognition differently in females and males

APOE4 drove sex-specific changes in meningeal immunity, lymphatic drainage, brain lipids, neuroinflammation, and cognition in mouse models, with females showing greater inflammatory and cognitive vulnerability. Suppressing innate immunity improved some cognitive outcomes in female E4/E4 mice but worsened them in male E4/E4 mice, underscoring the need for sex-tailored approaches.

29 Mar 2026

Intensive cholesterol‑lowering therapy reduces first major cardiac event in high‑risk patients with diabetes

Mass General Brigham researchers found that the intensive cholesterol‑lowering therapy evolocumab reduced the risk of a first major cardiovascular event in high‑risk patients who did not have known atherosclerosis (the build-up of plaque inside artery walls) but did have diabetes.

28 Mar 2026

Hypercortisolism found in many patients with resistant hypertension

The MOMENTUM study found 27 percent of patients with resistant hypertension have hypercortisolism. This is a significant finding, demonstrating that hypercortisolism is more common in these patients than previously understood by researchers and clinicians.

28 Mar 2026

Microaxial flow pump fails to reduce heart damage in STEMI trial

Using a microaxial flow pump prior to and during cardiac stenting procedures for patients with severe heart attacks who don't have cardiogenic shock does not significantly reduce heart damage.

28 Mar 2026

Temporary heart pump before PCI shows no significant benefit

The first randomized trial to test whether adding a small, temporary pump to allow the heart to rest and intentionally delaying percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), also known as coronary angioplasty, for 30 minutes to reduce heart damage compared with standard immediate PCI in patients with heart attacks at risk for a large amount of heart damage found no significant difference between the two groups, the study's primary endpoint. The research was presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.26).

28 Mar 2026

New mother’s experience highlights importance of postpartum heart care

At 35, Brooklyn resident Luyba Caloras was healthy, with no history of heart problems and no reason to think she was at risk of them. But pregnancy can act as a stress test on the heart—and soon after delivering her son at NYU Langone Health on February 3, 2024, she was diagnosed with a complication she never expected.

27 Mar 2026

Diverse biobank study links genetics to disease risk and treatment

A new study by UCLA Health published in Cell presents a major advancement in the future of personalized medicine by pinpointing new connections between people's genes, disease risk and medicine response by using a clinically well-characterized and diverse population-represented biobank.

27 Mar 2026

Drugs targeting TIE2 protein could help prevent formation of cerebral cavernous malformations

Researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have identified a cell surface receptor protein called TIE2 as the missing link between two key signaling pathways that drive the growth of blood vessel abnormalities known as cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs).

27 Mar 2026

Updated heart guidelines urge earlier screening for high blood cholesterol

For the first time since 2018, a clinical guideline from the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association for screening and managing blood cholesterol levels has been updated and jointly published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Circulation.

27 Mar 2026

Microfluidic chips enable realistic modeling of tumor immune environments

The challenge is that the tumor immune microenvironment is not a static backdrop but a constantly shifting ecosystem shaped by cancer cells, immune cells, stromal cells, cytokines, and physical barriers.

26 Mar 2026

Heart failure and atrial fibrillation share underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms

New research published in Nature Cardiovascular Research reveals that heart failure and atrial fibrillation share underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms, suggesting that the two cardiovascular conditions may be less distinct than previously thought.

26 Mar 2026

Heavily processed foods may raise heart disease risk beyond poor nutrition alone

A 2026 review in Cardiology in Review reports that higher intake of ultra-processed foods is consistently associated with greater risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cardiovascular mortality across cohort studies and meta-analyses. The paper also highlights plausible mechanisms involving gut dysbiosis, oxidative stress, and NF-κB-driven inflammation, with additives such as emulsifiers, preservatives, dyes, and sweeteners discussed as potential contributors.

26 Mar 2026