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.

Cenderitide may preserve cardiac function after heart attack

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded a $2.5 million grant to Mayo Clinic's Cardiorenal Research Laboratory to conduct a highly innovative research project, "Cardiovascular Peptides and Myocardial Infarction."

6 Mar 2012

Epicatechin-enriched cocoa shows promise against heart failure, Type 2 diabetes

A small clinical trial led by researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine and VA San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS) found that patients with advanced heart failure and type 2 diabetes showed improved mitochondrial structure after three months of treatment with epicatechin-enriched cocoa. Epicatechin is a flavonoid found in dark chocolate.

3 Mar 2012

SuperFAK protein decreases damage from heart attack by 50%

Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reduced damage from a heart attack by 50 percent by enhancing a protective protein found in mice and humans.

2 Mar 2012

Four leading organizations release recommendations to ensure optimal care of TAVR patients

Four leading heart organizations representing cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons released initial recommendations today for creating and maintaining transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) programs.

2 Mar 2012

Positive reaction from hospitals, consumer groups on 'stage 2' health IT rules

Both hospital and consumer groups are reacting positively to new federal rules meant to improve the effective use of the technology, and new electronic health records certification rules are released.

29 Feb 2012

Positive results from Critical Diagnostics' biomarker study in ambulatory heart failure patients

Critical Diagnostics, a biomarker company focused on cardiovascular diseases, today announced positive results from a multi-center study in ambulatory heart failure patients, which confirmed that a contemporary panel of biomarkers, including ST2, was strongly predictive of risk and significantly improved the likelihood of identifying patients at risk for adverse events, compared to the most commonly used clinical risk score in heart failure, the Seattle Heart Failure Model.

29 Feb 2012

Journal of Cardiac Failure explains new recommendations for CRT use

Based on a review of the latest evidence, the Guidelines Committee of the Heart Failure Society of America now recommends that the use of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) be expanded to a larger group of patients with mild heart failure symptoms.

28 Feb 2012

Research identifies factors in long-term transplant survival

Heart transplant patients who receive new organs before the age of 55 and get them at hospitals that perform at least nine heart transplants a year are significantly more likely than other people to survive at least 10 years after their operations, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.

28 Feb 2012

Enrollment complete in Ikaria iNO Pivotal Phase III trial for BPD

Ikaria, Inc., a critical care company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies for critically ill patients, today announced that it has enrolled the last patient into its Pivotal Phase III trial investigating the use of inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) in premature infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).

27 Feb 2012

ATI commences European trial of neurostimulation system for migraine

Autonomic Technologies, Inc. (ATI), the developer of a novel miniaturized implantable stimulator for severe headaches, today announced initiation of a study in Europe to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the company's investigational neurostimulation system for the treatment of high frequency, high disability migraine.

27 Feb 2012

Lung function, obstructive airway diseases linked with increased risk of heart failure

A large population-based study has found that lung function and obstructive airway diseases are strongly and independently associated with increased risk of heart failure. Importantly, say the investigators, this association was even evident in never-smokers and was still evident after adjustment for smoking status and number of years smoking. This, they add, indicates "that our results are not primarily confounded by smoking".

26 Feb 2012

Cyberonics third quarter net sales increase 16% to $54.5 million

Cyberonics, Inc. today announced results for the quarter ended January 27, 2012.

24 Feb 2012

Dual regulation by similar proteins may degenerate in heart failure

Sudden cardiac death is a risk for patients with heart failure because the calcium inside their heart cells is not properly controlled and this can lead to an irregular heartbeat. New findings published in PLoS ONE, which reveal mechanisms that underlie this life-threatening risk, provide new possibilities for fighting it.

23 Feb 2012

U-M Cardiovascular Center now offers Edwards aortic valve replacement

As the population ages, more Americans will be susceptible to aortic stenosis, but not all patients can tolerate surgery to treat it. Select U.S. hospitals are now performing minimally invasive procedures called transcatheter aortic valve replacement, or TAVR, to replace a patient's diseased aortic valve without heart bypass or open heart surgery.

From Medtronic 23 Feb 2012

First molecular evidence links body's natural circadian rhythms to SCD

A fundamental discovery reported in the March 1st issue of the journal Nature, uncovers the first molecular evidence linking the body's natural circadian rhythms to sudden cardiac death (SCD). Ventricular arrhythmias, or abnormal heart rhythms, are the most common cause of sudden cardiac death: the primary cause of death from heart disease.

23 Feb 2012

Study aims to achieve early detection of heart disease

With the month of February designated as Heart Health Month, physician-researchers in the Division of Cardiology at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) - Dr. Matthew Budoff and Dr. Ronald Oudiz - continue to pave the way with their efforts to develop treatments and therapies for conditions affecting the heart, and to help improve overall heart health.

22 Feb 2012

Combination of key guideline-recommended heart failure therapies improve survival odds

A UCLA-led study has found that a combination of several key guideline-recommended therapies for heart failure treatment resulted in an improvement of up to 90 percent in the odds of survival over two years.

22 Feb 2012

Apixio introduces Clinical Knowledge Exchange at HIMSS 2012 conference

Apixio, Inc., the leading provider of clinical data integration, search and analytics for healthcare organizations, is introducing this week at the HIMSS 2012 conference, a technology framework called the Clinical Knowledge Exchange.

20 Feb 2012

University of Georgia researcher to develop first Chagas vaccine for pets

Chagas disease is the single most common cause of congestive heart failure and sudden death in the world. The devastating parasitic infection affects millions of people throughout Central and South America. But as global travel increases, it's becoming a greater threat in the United States and Europe as well.

17 Feb 2012

New preclinical data from Regulus' miR-21 study on kidney fibrosis

Regulus Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company leading the discovery and development of innovative medicines targeting microRNAs, today announced that new preclinical data investigating the role of microRNA-21 (miR-21) in the treatment of kidney fibrosis has been published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

17 Feb 2012