Blood Pressure News and Research

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Blood Pressure is the force of circulating blood on the walls of the arteries. Blood pressure is taken using two measurements: systolic (measured when the heart beats, when blood pressure is at its highest) and diastolic (measured between heart beats, when blood pressure is at its lowest). Blood pressure is written with the systolic blood pressure first, followed by the diastolic blood pressure (for example 120/80).

Mandatory obstructive sleep apnea screenings could reduce risk of truck crashes

Truck crashes are a significant public health hazard causing thousands of deaths and injuries each year, with driver fatigue and sleepiness being major causes.

11 Mar 2009

Low levels of vitamin D linked to several risk factors in teenagers

Low levels of vitamin D were associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure, high blood sugar and metabolic syndrome in teenagers, researchers reported at the American Heart Association's 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention.

11 Mar 2009

Consuming a little less salt could mean fewer deaths

For every gram of salt that Americans reduce in their diets daily, a quarter of a million fewer new heart disease cases and over 200,000 fewer deaths would occur over a decade, researchers said at the American Heart Association's 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention.

11 Mar 2009

Salt could be 'nature's antidepressant' according to new research

Most people consume far too much salt, and a University of Iowa researcher has discovered one potential reason we crave it: it might put us in a better mood.

11 Mar 2009

Simple test helps predict heart attack risk

The use of common and readily available screening tests - like the ankle brachial index (ABI) - along with traditional risk scoring systems - such as the Framingham Risk Score - has the potential to prevent devastating heart attacks in thousands of individuals who are not originally thought to be at high risk (according to Framingham alone), say researchers at the Society of Interventional Radiology's 34th Annual Scientific Meeting.

11 Mar 2009

'Seeing' stem cells helps in fight against peripheral arterial disease

Interventional radiologists are fitting together the puzzle pieces of how to use stem cells to create new or more blood vessels to treat peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in those individuals with extensively narrowed or clogged arteries.

11 Mar 2009

Migraines increase stroke risk during pregnancy

Women who suffer migraines are at an increased risk of stroke during pregnancy as well as other vascular conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure and blood clots, concludes a study published on bmj.com.

11 Mar 2009

When a patient wishes to leave against medical advice - ethical dilemma for physicians

When patients choose to leave the hospital before the treating physician recommends discharge, the consequences may involve risk of inadequately treated medical conditions and the need for readmission, according to a review in the March 2009 issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

10 Mar 2009

Metabolic and neurological disorders may share common risk factors

Metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes appear to share risk factors with and may influence the development of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, according to several reports published in the March issue of Archives of Neurology.

10 Mar 2009

Relationship between depressive symptoms and cardiac events

New data published in the March 17, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggest that relatively healthy women with severe depression are at increased risk of cardiac events, including sudden cardiac death (SCD) and fatal coronary heart disease (CHD).

10 Mar 2009

Ranbaxy secures FDA approval for quinapril hydrochloride + hydrochlorothiazide tablets

Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals has announced approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to manufacture and market Quinapril Hydrochloride & Hydrochlorothiazide (Quinapril + HCTZ) Tablets, 10mg/12.5mg, 20mg/12.5mg and 20mg/25mg.

5 Mar 2009

Number of cardiovascular risk factors could determine safety of IVIg treatment

New research out of Wake Forest University School of Medicine identifies the presence of cardiovascular risk factors as an indicator of how likely it is that elderly, hospitalized patients who receive intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) treatment will have a stroke or heart attack.

5 Mar 2009

Dermatologists caution that severe cases of psoriasis can be associated with other serious medical conditions

On the surface, the thick, red, scaly, itchy plaques of psoriasis - which have been shown to have a significant negative impact on a person's overall quality of life - may not appear to pose a serious health risk for patients. However, a growing body of research suggests that psoriasis patients are at an increased risk of developing serious medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes, particularly when their psoriasis is severe.

5 Mar 2009

Number of cardiovascular risk factors could determine safety of intravenous gammaglobulin treatment

5 Mar 2009

Hypertension linked to earlier death among African-American breast cancer patients

A study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco has shown that hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a predictor of mortality among breast cancer patients, especially those who are African-American, and that hypertension accounts for approximately 30 percent of the survival disparity between African-American and white breast cancer patients.

4 Mar 2009

Heart attack outcomes worse for blacks than whites due in part to individual characteristics

Black heart attack patients have worse outcomes than their white counterparts in large part because of preexisting chronic health conditions and socioeconomic factors, according to a study published in the March issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, Reuters Health reports.

4 Mar 2009

Black women in UK have double risk of complications during pregnancy

In the UK, black Caribbean and black African women have twice as much risk of experiencing severe pregnancy complications than white women, according to research published on BMJ.com.

3 Mar 2009

Best course of treatment to reduce risk of secondary stroke

Rush University Medical Center is participating in a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study to determine the best course of treatment to reduce the risk of stroke patients suffering another stroke.

3 Mar 2009

Multiple childhood maltreatments lead to greater adolescent binge drinking

Researchers from Boston University found that multiple types of child maltreatment are robust risk factors for underage binge drinking based on a national multi-year study that explored the influence of social environment on the health of adolescents.

3 Mar 2009

New tissue engineering technique may help stem cells generate solid organs

Stem cells can thrive in segments of well-vascularized tissue temporarily removed from laboratory animals, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

2 Mar 2009