Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Toronto Rehab, Calgary Stroke Program receive Distinction status from Accreditation Canada

The Calgary Stroke Program continues to be one of the top stroke programs in Canada and today received a second "Stroke Services Distinction" award from Accreditation Canada. It remains the only comprehensive stroke program in the country with this status.

2 Oct 2012

Anemia now confirmed as risk factor for illness and even death following cardiac surgery

Anemia is now confirmed as a risk factor for illness and even death following cardiac surgery, according to a study published in the October 2012 issue of The Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

2 Oct 2012

Incidence of esophageal, stomach cancers increased in AIDS

The risk for esophageal and stomach carcinomas, as well as non-Hodgkin lymphomas, is significantly increased in people with AIDS, although the incidence of lymphomas has decreased, the results of a US and UK study reveal.

1 Oct 2012

Coding the way to better occupational allergy care

The 11th draft of the International Classification of Diseases, due to be released in 2015, will allow a much more detailed specification of occupational allergy and contact dermatitis than the current draft, say dermatologists involved in the revision.

1 Oct 2012

New treatment target brings hope for scleroderma patients

Research presented at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology in Prague, Czech Republic, suggests that inhibition of the SMAD protein may be a viable therapeutic target in scleroderma patients.

1 Oct 2012

Oil blend plus antihypertensive lowers blood pressure, cholesterol level

A blend of sesame and rice bran oil could reduce blood pressure by almost as much as an antihypertensive medication, say researchers.

1 Oct 2012

CBT ‘has no impact’ on juvenile fibromyalgia physical activity

Cognitive behavior therapy is not associated with increased physical activity levels in adolescents with juvenile fibromyalgia, research shows.

1 Oct 2012

PLATO: Causes of lower mortality with ticagrelor identified

The mortality reduction with ticagrelor versus clopidogrel is due to fewer deaths from cardiovascular, bleeding, and infection complications, say researchers.

1 Oct 2012

WBC counts in diabetes risk prediction

An elevated white blood cell count in young men is an independent predictor for the development of diabetes in later life, suggest study findings.

1 Oct 2012

Artificially sweet success at curbing childhood weight gain

Substituting sugar-sweetened drinks with artificially sweetened alternatives could help reduce weight gain in schoolchildren, research suggests.

1 Oct 2012

Participatory pay-for-performance improves primary care

Both quality of care measures and patient experience may be achieved through the introduction of a participatory pay-for-performance program, study findings indicate.

1 Oct 2012

BD family history risk factor for recurrent episodes in MDD

A family history of bipolar disorder increases the likelihood of recurrent episodes of hypomania or mania in individuals with prior major depressive disorder, suggest findings published in Bipolar Disorders.

1 Oct 2012

Nova Scotia's stroke strategy improves care for three rural health districts

Stroke patients in rural Nova Scotia receive better treatment and are less likely to end up in long-term care facilities than they were before the province's stroke strategy was rolled out in 2008, according to a study presented today at the Canadian Stroke Congress.

1 Oct 2012

Emergency medicine residency programs need more formal stroke training

Medical residents training to work in the emergency department need more formal stroke training, says a study presented today at the Canadian Stroke Congress, noting that, as the first point of contact in stroke care, they see nearly 100 per cent of stroke patients taken to hospital.

1 Oct 2012

Most people completely unaware of aphasia

Most people are completely unaware of one of stroke's most common, debilitating but invisible impairments, according to the first awareness survey of its kind in Canada released today at the Canadian Stroke Congress.

1 Oct 2012

Inhibiting DUSP6 protein can restore immune cells’ responsiveness to a more youthful state

The older we get, the weaker our immune systems tend to become, leaving us vulnerable to infectious diseases and cancer and eroding our ability to benefit from vaccination. Now Stanford University School of Medicine scientists have found that blocking the action of a single protein whose levels in our immune cells creep steadily upward with age can restore those cells' response to a vaccine.

1 Oct 2012

Home delivery of stroke rehabilitation improves care, eliminates waiting lists and saves costs

Home delivery of stroke rehabilitation improves care, eliminates waiting lists for treatment and saves hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in hospital costs, according to a quality improvement project presented today at the Canadian Stroke Congress.

1 Oct 2012