Heart Failure News and Research

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Heart failure (HF) is a condition in which a problem with the structure or function of the heart impairs its ability to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the body's needs. It should not be confused with cardiac arrest or myocardial infarction.

Research: Digoxin reduces hospital admission of older, acute heart failure patients

Digoxin significantly reduces the likelihood of hospital admission due to all causes among ambulatory older patients with chronic heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

13 Mar 2013

Aliskiren and standard therapy not associated with reduced CV death or HF rehospitalization

Among patients hospitalized for heart failure (HF) with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF; a measure of how well the left ventricle of the heart pumps with each contraction), initiation of the medication aliskiren in addition to standard therapy did not reduce cardiovascular death or HF rehospitalization at 6 or 12 months after discharge, according to a study published online by JAMA.

12 Mar 2013

$Sildenafil does not improve exercise capacity in HF patients with preserved ejection fraction$

Sildenafil does not improve exercise capacity in HF patients with preserved ejection fraction

Among patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (a measure of heart function), administration of sildenafil for 24 weeks, compared with placebo, did not result in significant improvement in exercise capacity or clinical status, according to a study published online by JAMA.

12 Mar 2013

ECMO and mechanical CPR use can lead to unexpected survival in severe heart attack patients

The use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), accompanied by mechanical CPR, in patients with massive myocardial infarctions can lead to unexpected survival. These study findings are being presented March 9 at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Sessions.

12 Mar 2013

$Sildenafil does not help heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction$

Sildenafil does not help heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction

A commonly used erectile dysfunction drug, sildenafil, doesn't help patients who have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, a condition in which the heart's lower chambers are stiff and cannot relax and fill fully between beats.

12 Mar 2013

New Sapien XT aortic valve reduces rate of death and strokes

The new Sapien XT aortic valve showed a non-significantly lower rate of death and strokes at 30 days than the original model, and both valves demonstrated notably better short-term outcomes than seen with the Sapien system in PARTNER I, according to the first results from the PARTNER II study presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

12 Mar 2013

New tool uses evidence-based care to improve quality of care for heart failure patients

Researchers at the Intermountain Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center have developed an innovative tool designed to eliminate 30-day hospital readmissions for heart failure patients and improve the quality of medical care a patient receives in the hospital.

11 Mar 2013

Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy can also be deadly when compounded by other co-morbidities

Even though a newly recognized cardiomyopathy, which mainly impacts women, is typically treatable, Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy can also be deadly when compounded by other co-morbidities, such as heart failure, according to a study being presented March 9 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Scientific Sessions.

11 Mar 2013

GLP1 medications appear to protect diabetic patients from heart failure

A class of medications commonly prescribed to lower blood sugar in diabetic patients appears to protect them from developing heart failure, according to a study at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.

11 Mar 2013

Aarbepoetin alfa does not improve anemic heart failure patients' health

Researchers from Cleveland Clinic and Sweden-based Sahlgrenska University Hospital have found that a commonly used drug to treat anemia in heart failure patients -darbepoetin alfa - does not improve patients' health, nor does it reduce their risk of death from heart failure.

11 Mar 2013

Abbott announces data from MitraClip system study on mitral regurgitation

Abbott today announced data from the EVEREST II (Endovascular Valve Edge-to-Edge REpair STudy) High Surgical Risk cohort evaluating the company's first-in-class catheter-based MitraClip System for the treatment of mitral regurgitation (MR).

11 Mar 2013

Heart failure risk identified in people with insomnia

People with insomnia appear to be at increased risk for developing heart failure, findings from a large Norwegian cohort study show.

8 Mar 2013

Computerized discharge tool with decision support features facilitates improved heart care

The use of electronic discharge orders aimed at providing evidence-based decision support and clear instructions to heart failure patients helped increase compliance with quality care measures and lowered hospital readmission rates, according to research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

8 Mar 2013

Cardiac rehab program may reduce death rate in women with coronary artery disease

Women with coronary artery disease who completed a 12-week cardiac rehabilitation program were two-thirds less likely to die compared to those who were not referred to the program.

8 Mar 2013

Telemedicine use appears to help urban communities achieve blood pressure goals

Using a telemedicine system to engage people in underserved, urban communities to measure and report their blood pressure remotely-outside of the doctor's office-appears to help them achieve blood pressure goals and improve adherence to lifestyle changes and medication recommendations, according to research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

8 Mar 2013

African-American women with breast cancer more likely to develop heart failure

African-American women who survive breast cancer are more likely to develop heart failure than other women who have beaten the disease, according to research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

8 Mar 2013

Minor weight loss may increase risk of cardiac events among patients implanted with CRT-D

Even minor weight loss is associated with worse health outcomes among patients implanted with a certain type of defibrillator known as cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillator (CRT-D), according to research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

8 Mar 2013

Acceleron commences ACE-536 phase 2 study in beta-thalassemia

Acceleron Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing protein therapeutics for cancer and orphan diseases, today announced the initiation of a phase 2 study of its novel, investigational protein therapeutic, ACE-536, to treat patients with beta-thalassemia, a genetic hematologic disorder causing chronic and life-threatening anemia and serious complications affecting the spleen, liver and heart.

7 Mar 2013

Midwall fibrosis may increase likelihood of death in patients with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy

Detection of midwall fibrosis (the presence of scar tissue in the middle of the heart muscle wall) via magnetic resonance imaging among patients with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy (a condition affecting the heart muscle) was associated with an increased likelihood of death.

7 Mar 2013

Carbamylation contributes to heart disease risk among patients with CKD undergoing dialysis

Kidney failure affects 25 million individuals in the U.S. and many more throughout the world. Loss of kidney function means the majority of these patients must undergo dialysis treatments to remove excess fluids and waste products. Although dialysis therapy coupled with medication has improved the life expectancy for people with kidney failure, for unknown reasons, patients' risk of sudden heart failure and death remains 10 to 20 times greater than average.

7 Mar 2013

Heart Failure News and Research

Further Reading

Research: Digoxin reduces hospital admission of older, acute heart failure patients

Aliskiren and standard therapy not associated with reduced CV death or HF rehospitalization

Sildenafil does not improve exercise capacity in HF patients with preserved ejection fraction

ECMO and mechanical CPR use can lead to unexpected survival in severe heart attack patients

Sildenafil does not help heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction

New Sapien XT aortic valve reduces rate of death and strokes

New tool uses evidence-based care to improve quality of care for heart failure patients

Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy can also be deadly when compounded by other co-morbidities

GLP1 medications appear to protect diabetic patients from heart failure

Aarbepoetin alfa does not improve anemic heart failure patients' health

Abbott announces data from MitraClip system study on mitral regurgitation

Heart failure risk identified in people with insomnia

Computerized discharge tool with decision support features facilitates improved heart care

Cardiac rehab program may reduce death rate in women with coronary artery disease

Telemedicine use appears to help urban communities achieve blood pressure goals

African-American women with breast cancer more likely to develop heart failure

Minor weight loss may increase risk of cardiac events among patients implanted with CRT-D

Acceleron commences ACE-536 phase 2 study in beta-thalassemia

Midwall fibrosis may increase likelihood of death in patients with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy

Carbamylation contributes to heart disease risk among patients with CKD undergoing dialysis

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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