Blood Clot News and Research

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A Blood Clot is a mass of blood that forms when blood platelets, proteins, and cells stick together. When a blood clot is attached to the wall of a blood vessel, it is called a thrombus. When it moves through the bloodstream and blocks the flow of blood in another part of the body, it is called an embolus.

GSK receives FDA approval for combination of Mekinist with Tafinlar for treatment of melanoma

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Mekinist® (trametinib) for use in combination with Tafinlar® (dabrafenib) for the treatment of patients with unresectable melanoma (melanoma that cannot be removed by surgery) or metastatic melanoma (melanoma which has spread to other parts of the body) with BRAF V600E or V600K mutations.

9 Jan 2014

Researchers hope to improve treatment, survival rates of ischemic heart disease

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Case Medical Center hope to improve treatment and survival rates of ischemic heart disease patients by providing doctors an unprecedented look at the stents they place in coronary arteries.

6 Jan 2014

Report: Examine high-billing docs' Medicare billing to root out fraud

A report from the Department of Health and Human Services' inspector general to be released Friday will call for closer scrutiny of doctors' total billing. Elsewhere, ProPublica looks at how ineffective federal oversight is in looking for fraud in Medicare prescribing.

23 Dec 2013

Cells grown in ISS could help patients recover from stroke, says Mayo Clinic researcher

Abba Zubair, M.D., Ph.D, believes that cells grown in the International Space Station could help patients recover from a stroke, and that it may even be possible to generate human tissues and organs in space. He just needs a chance to demonstrate the possibility.

19 Dec 2013

Taking simple steps to stay healthy while traveling can make holidays more enjoyable, says expert

Traveling long distances during the holidays -- whether by car, plane or train -- is a common custom for many Americans, but taking health precautions for the journey isn't often at the top of to-do lists. Taking some simple steps to stay healthy while traveling can make the holidays more enjoyable and safe, according to a Mayo Clinic expert.

17 Dec 2013

Researchers gather first direct evidence of how microbubbles cause blood clot's demise

Ultrasound-stimulated microbubbles have been showing promise in recent years as a non-invasive way to break up dangerous blood clots. But though many researchers have studied the effectiveness of this technique, not much was understood about why it works. Now a team of researchers in Toronto has collected the first direct evidence showing how these wiggling microbubbles cause a blood clot's demise. The team's findings are featured in the AIP Publishing journal Applied Physics Letters.

16 Dec 2013

Late-breaking abstracts on treatment of blood cancers and bleeding disorders presented at ASH meeting

A range of studies highlighting late-breaking research advances in the understanding and treatment of blood cancers and bleeding disorders are being presented today during the 55th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition in New Orleans.

12 Dec 2013

Findings may help clinicians determine which hospitalized children at greatest risk of VTE

Life-threatening blood clots occur so rarely in children that the condition, known as venous thromboembolism (VTE), is often not on pediatricians' mental radar screens - an absence that can lead to woefully delayed recognition and treatment.

12 Dec 2013

FDA advisory committee votes in favor of WATCHMAN Left Atrial Appendage Closure device

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Circulatory System Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee voted favorably by a majority, Yes: 13, No: 1, that the benefits of the WATCHMAN Left Atrial Appendage Closure device outweigh the risks.

11 Dec 2013

Daiichi Sankyo presents subgroup analysis of Hokusai-VTE study at ASH annual meeting

Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) today announced results of a prespecified subgroup analysis of 771 cancer patients enrolled in the phase 3 Hokusai-VTE study.

11 Dec 2013

Equations help explain key parameters of stents that combat artherosclerosis

Coronary heart disease accounts for 18% of deaths in the United States every year. The disease results from a blockage of one or more arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle.

9 Dec 2013

NIBIB-funded researchers explore better treatment for brain aneurysms

Thirty thousand Americans suffer severe neurological damage or death from brain aneurysms each year and the existing treatments eventually fail in nearly half of patients. Currently, these "bubbles" in the blood vessel are either clamped off, which requires invasive brain surgery, or filled with platinum coils to induce clotting in the aneurysm. Both treatments, although somewhat effective, can have subsequent problems, including inflammation, incomplete healing, and the development of secondary aneurysms adjacent to the initial site. These complications result in approximately 40 percent of patients needing additional treatment to attempt to re-repair the aneurysm.

28 Nov 2013

Once-daily edoxaban prevents stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation

According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 800,000 Americans die each year from heart disease and stroke. Stroke is the leading cause of serious long-term disability and death in the US. In addition to lifestyle changes, medications such as anti-blood clotting drugs are helpful in the prevention of stroke.

20 Nov 2013

$Faster surgery after hip fracture may be better for older patients, say researchers$

Faster surgery after hip fracture may be better for older patients, say researchers

The speed of surgery after a hip fracture may have a significant impact on outcomes for older patients, and faster may be better, say researchers at McMaster University.

19 Nov 2013

Treating traumatic brain-injured patients with anticoagulant decreases risk of dangerous clots

Researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine have found that a new protocol that uses preventive blood-thinning medication in the treatment of patients with traumatic brain injuries reduces the risk of patients developing life-threatening blood clots without increasing the risk of bleeding inside the brain.

19 Nov 2013

Cardiologists question FDA recommendations on genetic testing before taking Plavix

Which antiplatelet medication is best after a coronary stent? The costly and potential life-or-death question lingers after most of the 600,000 angioplasties performed every year in the United States. The answer may lie in your genes, but professional cardiovascular societies and many working cardiologists question the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent recommendation that patients undergo genetic testing before taking Plavix (clopidogrel bisulfate).

14 Nov 2013

Internal body clock may contribute to morning peak in heart attacks and ischemic strokes

Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in both men and women, and most adverse cardiovascular events tend to happen in the morning. In new findings published in the November issue of Blood, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Oregon Health & Science University have discovered that the internal body clock may contribute to the morning peak in heart attacks and ischemic strokes.

13 Nov 2013

Researchers identify link between narrowed heart valves and special lipoprotein in blood

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen, Herlev Hospital and Rigshospitalet have identified a clear link between narrowed heart valves and a special lipoprotein in the blood. In the long term, the research may well help to prevent valvular heart disease.

13 Nov 2013

Research provides new understanding of the effects of race on heart disease

Thomas Jefferson University researchers have discovered that the formation of blood clots follows a different molecular route in African Americans versus European Americans, providing a new understanding of the effects of race on heart disease. The finding could one day help doctors provide more individualized treatment of heart disease and other blood-clot-related illnesses, according to research publishing online November 10th in Nature Medicine.

11 Nov 2013

The Joint Commission names HNMC as ‘Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for 2012’

Holy Name Medical Center (HNMC) was named one of the nation's Top Performers on Key Quality Measures for 2012 by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of healthcare organizations in America.

30 Oct 2013