Arrhythmia News and Research

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An arrhythmia is a problem with the speed or rhythm of the heartbeat. During an arrhythmia, the heart can beat too fast, too slow, or with an irregular rhythm. A heartbeat that is too fast is called tachycardia. A heartbeat that is too slow is called bradycardia. Most arrhythmias are harmless, but some can be serious or even life threatening. When the heart rate is too slow, too fast, or irregular, the heart may not be able to pump enough blood to the body. Lack of blood flow can damage the brain, heart, and other organs.

Study aims to improve early detection of atrial fibrillation

A new clinical study on the early detection of atrial fibrillation at home is starting at the German Centre for Cardiovascular Research. This cardiac arrhythmia is responsible for a quarter of all strokes and yet the risk of patients with atrial fibrillation having a stroke can be reduced by 70 percent if they take anticoagulants early enough.

6 Oct 2017

A computational approach to map arrhythmia-related excitations

Atrial fibrillation is the most prevalent form of cardiac arrhythmia, affecting up to 6 million people in the U.S. alone. Common treatments for severe forms of the erratic beating phenomenon are controversial, and guided by detection methods that are not yet standardized or fully refined.

30 Sep 2017

Penn researchers develop predictive model to help lung cancer patients avoid ED visits

A pilot program that uses big data to predict which lung cancer patients will require a trip to an emergency department successfully anticipated a third of all ED visits over a two-week trial period, and was further able to identify which patients were at high risk and low risk of requiring such care.

27 Sep 2017

Compact mobile device for detecting arrhythmia to be retailed soon for consumer use

The VTT spin-off, VitalSignum, is making a small mobile device - which detects arrhythmia by measuring the patient's ECG - available to consumers. The first production batch is being completed and will be retailed to consumers in early October.

18 Sep 2017

Most patients treated for atrial fibrillation have sleep apnea, study shows

A study involving cardiac patients at the University Hospital of Umeå shows that over 80 percent of patients treated for atrial fibrillation also have sleep apnea - a condition with pauses in breathing during sleep.

11 Sep 2017

Researchers create first realistic model of the heart to simulate arrhythmia

A group of researchers from MIPT and Ghent University(Belgium) has developed the first realistic model able to reproduce the complexity of the cardiac microstructure.

11 Sep 2017

First realistic heart model may help better understand onset of cardiac arrhythmias

A group of researchers from MIPT and Ghent University (Belgium) has developed the first realistic model able to reproduce the complexity of the cardiac microstructure.

6 Sep 2017

Beta blockers capable of reducing stress signaling may enhance effectiveness of immunotherapy

While the development of therapies designed to block "checkpoints" within the immune system has been one of the most exciting and noteworthy advances in cancer research in recent years, it's also been one of the most puzzling, leaving researchers to ask: Why don't these new therapies work for more patients, and why is their efficacy in controlling cancerous tumors often short-lived? A research team from Roswell Park Cancer Institute has shown that at least one answer - and an excellent opportunity for unleashing the full potential of these promising immunotherapies - may lie in the body's "fight or flight" reaction to stressors and in drugs already widely used to control and temporarily disable this stress response.

31 Aug 2017

Catheter ablation provides better outcomes for AF patients than conventional drug therapies

Every year millions of people around the world are diagnosed with heart failure, a chronic, progressive condition where the heart is unable to pump enough oxygenated blood throughout the body.

28 Aug 2017

Symposium explores interaction between age-related cardiovascular dysfunction and diseases

During the "Novel Implications for Blood Flow and Vascular Dysfunction in Non-cardiovascular Related Disease" symposium at the APS Cardiovascular Aging: New Frontiers and Old Friends conference, researchers will present findings that emphasize the interaction between age-related cardiovascular dysfunction and disease whose risk increases with age.

14 Aug 2017

Abnormalities in kidney function linked to higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation

A new study indicates that individuals with kidney disease have a higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation, or an irregular heartbeat.

10 Aug 2017

Wireless remote monitoring: the future for patients with atrial fibrillation?

Peerbridge Health has the vision to remove all wires associated with monitoring patients. For example, typically, electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring systems have a multitude of wires. They started building a wireless ECG monitoring system called the Peerbridge Cor™ to improve ECG monitoring from the ground up.

9 Aug 2017

Indefinite NHS England 'evaluation process' denies access to life-saving treatment for high risk patients

Arrhythmia Alliance is calling on NHS England to reconsider its ‘Commissioning through Evaluation’ (CtE) process, which has left hundreds of patients with AF (Atrial Fibrillation) at serious risk of suffering a debilitating or life-threatening AF-related stroke.

28 Jul 2017

Scientists show that human heart's sinoatrial node is hardwired with backup system

There's good news when it comes to our heart's sinoatrial node (SAN), the body's natural pacemaker. Scientists at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center have shown the human SAN is hardwired with a backup system -- three diverse regions of pacemakers acting as batteries and up to five conduction pathways that act as wires to connect the signal to the atria.

27 Jul 2017

Study finds no significant benefits of cooling down cardiac arrest patients for 48 hours

A five per cent difference in favor of the 48 hours. This is the result of a study from Aarhus University that has spent several years examining the possible benefits of cooling down patients suffering cardiac arrest to 33°C for 48 hours, instead of the 24-hours that is standard practice in most places.

26 Jul 2017

Advanced lung cancer patients get survival benefit with use of concurrent chemotherapy, proton therapy

For patients with advanced, inoperable stage 3 lung cancer, concurrent chemotherapy and the specialized radiation treatment, proton therapy, offers improved survival compared to historical data for standard of care, according to a new study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

20 Jul 2017

Working for many hours each day can increase risk of heart problems

Research published yesterday shows that the risk of developing an irregular heartbeat—atrial fibrillation— is considerably higher among people working more than 55 hours a week.

14 Jul 2017

Adolescents with BMI at high-normal range have greater risk of death from cardiovascular diseases

While there is solid evidence that adolescent overweight and obesity are associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, less is known about the association between body mass index (BMI) and rarer cardiovascular diseases.

28 Jun 2017

Philips launches IntelliVue X3 in Europe for portable, uninterrupted patient monitoring during transport

Royal Philips, a global health technology company, today announced the release of the IntelliVue X3 in Europe. Designed for portable, uninterrupted monitoring during in-hospital transport and at the bedside, IntelliVue X3 provides an intuitive smart-phone-style operation that quickly and easily enables continuous monitoring during transport for the most critical patients.

From Philips Healthcare 28 Jun 2017

Pacemakers and other cardiac devices reveal time, cause of death in some forensic cases

Pacemakers and other cardiac devices can help solve forensic cases, according to a study presented today at EHRA EUROPACE - CARDIOSTIM 2017. Devices revealed the time and cause of death in some cases where autopsy failed to do so.

20 Jun 2017