Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Loyola announces 2012 Junior and Senior Scientist of the Year during St. Albert's Day

Katherine L. Knight, PhD, one of the nation's leading immune system researchers, has been named 2012 Senior Scientist of the Year at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. Sakthivel Sadayappan, PhD, FAHA, who is doing groundbreaking research on a protein that is critical for the normal functioning of the heart, has been named 2012 Junior Scientist of the Year.

7 Nov 2012

Cause of heart attacks or strokes may be different in some patients treated with anti-platelet drugs

The cause of heart attacks or strokes among some patients treated with anti-platelet drugs may be different than for patients who have undergone surgical procedures to restore blood flow, according to researchers at Duke Medicine.

7 Nov 2012

LipoScience presents key findings related to LDL-P and CVD at AHA annual meeting

LipoScience, Inc., an in vitro diagnostic company committed to advancing patient care in cardiovascular, metabolic and other diseases, today presented key findings related to lipoprotein particles (LDL-P) and cardiovascular disease at the Annual Meeting of the American Heart Association (AHA) in Los Angeles.

7 Nov 2012

University of Virginia student creates Musical Heart system

A University of Virginia graduate student has developed a biofeedback-based system that helps smartphones select music that will help get their owners' heart pumping during exercise, or slow it down when they want to cool down or relax.

7 Nov 2012

Positive results from BioCardia's Helical Infusion System Phase 1/2 trial on ischemic cardiomyopathy

BioCardia, Inc., focused on regenerative biologic therapies for cardiovascular disease, today announced positive results from a Phase 1/2 heart failure trial using the Company's Helical Infusion System, comprising the Helical Infusion System Catheter and Morph Vascular Access Catheter, to deliver allogeneic, or "off-the-shelf," and autologous, or from the treated patient, mesenchymal (adult) stem cells (MSCs) via transendocardial injection.

7 Nov 2012

AMG 145 can reduce LDL cholesterol levels by up to 66% after 12 weeks

For many people with high cholesterol, statins serve as the first line of treatment. However, some patients are unable to effectively reduce their low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL cholesterol) or "bad cholesterol" levels with statins, the most commonly used medication to treat high cholesterol, due to their bodies' inability to tolerate or sufficiently respond to the medicine.

7 Nov 2012

Turning off GSK-3α protein activity can prevent heart remodeling

When a person has a heart attack, portions of the heart muscle die in the next several days or even weeks if deprived of oxygen for long enough. The recovering heart slowly remodels itself, even fostering the growth of new blood vessels, in an attempt to regain some of its former function. But all too often, the remodeling is actually harmful, and the damaged heart is on an inevitable downward slide to heart failure.

6 Nov 2012

Positive results from POZEN's PA32540 Phase 3 trials presented at AHA Scientific Sessions 2012

POZEN Inc., a pharmaceutical company committed to transforming medicine that transforms lives, presented positive results from two pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials of the investigational product, PA32540, at The American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2012, as Poster #12057: Treatment Continuation and Cardiovascular Safety of Antiplatelet Therapy with PA32540, A Tablet with Enteric-Coated Aspirin and Immediate-Release Omeprazole: Results of Two 6-Month, Phase 3 Studies.

6 Nov 2012

Pfizer receives FDA approval for Xeljanz to treat rheumatoid arthritis

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Xeljanz (tofacitinib) to treat adults with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response to, or who are intolerant of, methotrexate.

6 Nov 2012

Low molecular weight agents heighten inhalation challenge risk

Asthmatic reactions needing drug treatment are more likely to result from specific inhalation challenges for occupational asthma with low molecular weight agents than high molecular weight agents, show the results of a Belgian study.

6 Nov 2012

Lupus may carry pregnancy complication risk

US researchers report that women with systemic lupus erythematosus have a twofold higher risk for developing preeclampsia than women without an autoimmune disease.

6 Nov 2012

Stressful life events linked to bipolar depression

Stressful life events, particularly independent severe, loss, and danger events, are significantly associated with depressive symptoms in patients with bipolar disorder, study results show.

6 Nov 2012

Traditional CV risk factors linked to peripheral artery disease

Smoking, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia are significantly associated with the risk for clinically significant peripheral artery disease in men, with each additional factor doubling the risk, conclude US and Dutch researchers.

6 Nov 2012

Receptor expression sheds light on nasal polyposis

The increased expression of a leukotriene receptor and a glucocorticoid receptor may contribute to the development of nasal polyposis, report researchers.

6 Nov 2012

Workout in the catheter lab gives clues to ‘warm-up angina’

Improved coupling of vascular and ventricular circulation during exercise appears to underlie the phenomenon known as warm-up angina, a UK study shows.

6 Nov 2012

Comprehensive overview of vascular risk factors to Alzheimer's disease

Over the last 15 years, researchers have found a significant association between vascular diseases such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, diabetes type 2, hyperlipidemia, and heart disease and an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.

6 Nov 2012

Paragonix files PMNA with FDA for Sherpa Pak Cardiac Transport System

Paragonix Technologies, Inc. today announced that it has successfully completed filing of a Pre-Marketing Notification Application (510(k)) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Paragonix Sherpa Pak Cardiac Transport System (CTS).

6 Nov 2012

Chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome anxiety linked to poorer adaptive behaviors

UC Davis researchers have found that for children with the genetic disorder known as chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome anxiety -- but not intelligence -- is linked to poorer adaptive behaviors, such as self-care and communication skills, that affect daily life. The developmental syndrome, which is associated with a constellation of physical, cognitive and psychiatric problems, usually is apparent at birth or early childhood, and leads to lifelong challenges.

6 Nov 2012

Racial differences in fatal coronary heart disease associated with risk factor burden

Despite treatment advances for coronary heart disease over the past 20 years, black men and women still have twice the risk of fatal coronary heart disease compared with white men and women, according to a study from the University of Alabama at Birmingham appearing in the Nov. 7, 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

6 Nov 2012

State roundup: Examining health issues on state ballots

Sprinkled throughout ballots across the country are state initiatives that run the gamut from education to animal rights to marriage. And health care is well-represented, too. The National Conference of State Legislatures labels health a "key issue" in this cycle's roundup of state ballot questions.

6 Nov 2012