Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

FDA approves Abbott's RX Herculink Elite Renal Stent System for renal artery stenosis

Abbott today announced it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the RX Herculink Elite® Renal Stent System for the treatment of renal artery stenosis (narrowing of the main arteries supplying blood to the kidneys) in patients with uncontrolled hypertension (high blood pressure).

10 Aug 2011

PCOS Challenge television series win national award for 'Best Informational Feature'

PCOS Challenge television series addressing Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome win national award for "Best Informational Feature." PCOS Challenge was named the professional category winner for programming from over 3,000 education, government and public stations across the country by the Alliance for Community Media.

10 Aug 2011

Study examines role of weight lifting in smoking cessation

Resistance training, or weight lifting, can do more than just build muscle: it may also help smokers kick the habit, say researchers from The Miriam Hospital's Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine.

10 Aug 2011

Elderly women with sleep apnea more likely to develop dementia

Elderly women who suffer from sleep apnea -- characterized by disrupted breathing and sleep and a reduction in the intake of oxygen -- are about twice as likely to develop dementia in the next five years as those without the condition, according to a multi-center study led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco.

10 Aug 2011

House Dem supports lawsuit against Medicare regarding physician pay

The action, which is being brought by the Center for Primary Care in Georgia, takes issue with the way Medicare sets its reimbursement rates for specialists and primary care physicians.

10 Aug 2011

Transaxillary thyroid robotic surgery removes nodules with no visible scar

As the rate of thyroid cancer continues to climb, doctors are urging patients to be more cautious about thyroid nodules, a common disorder that is responsible for a small but growing number of thyroid cancer cases.

10 Aug 2011

Trastuzumab drug increases risk of heart problems in elderly breast cancer patients

The first study to investigate the effect of the breast cancer drug trastuzumab (Herceptin) on heart and vascular function in elderly patients has found that it increases the risk of heart problems, particularly in women with a history of heart disease, diabetes or both.

10 Aug 2011

A diet of flaxseed shows protective effects against radiation in mice

Flax has been part of human history for well over 30,000 years, used for weaving cloth, feeding people and animals, and even making paint. Now, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have discovered that it might have a new use for the 21st century: protecting healthy tissues and organs from the harmful effects of radiation.

10 Aug 2011

Scientists reveal why human heart has little regenerative capacity

Stem cell researchers at UCLA have uncovered for the first time why adult human cardiac myocytes have lost their ability to proliferate, perhaps explaining why the human heart has little regenerative capacity.

10 Aug 2011

Researchers demonstrate contribution of Immunoglobulin E to atherogenesis

There is an observed correlation between Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels atherosclerosis, with twice amount of IgE present in patients with acute myocardial infarction as in patients with stable angina or without coronary heart disease (CHD). Guo-Ping Shi, DSc, Jing Wang, MD, PhD, and colleagues in the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), have demonstrated the direct participation of IgE in atherogenesis in a mouse model.

10 Aug 2011

First renal denervation with Medtronic Symplicity Catheter System performed in Latin America

Medtronic today announced the first use in Latin America of renal denervation with the Medtronic Symplicity Catheter System™ to treat a patient with resistant hypertension, which is defined as high blood pressure despite treatment with three or more anti-hypertensive medications. Hypertension is an especially dangerous disease affecting hundreds of millions of people worldwide.

From Medtronic 10 Aug 2011

Hydros-TA therapy provides next generation of osteoarthritis relief

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis, affecting roughly 10% of Canadians. This degradation of the joints is painful and crippling, especially when it affects the knee. Although there are viable OA treatment options, they are short-lived and can have serious side-effects.

10 Aug 2011

Music and music therapy may benefit cancer patients

Cancer patients may benefit from sessions with trained music therapists or from listening to music. Using music can reduce anxiety in cancer patients, and may also have positive effects on mood, pain and quality of life, according to a new Cochrane systematic review led by Dr. Joke Bradt, an associate professor in Drexel University's College of Nursing and Health Professions.

10 Aug 2011

Improved patient selection and practice patterns may lower number of negative tests for CAD

Hospitals vary markedly when it comes to the rate at which diagnostic coronary angiography or catheterization - an invasive procedure that allows doctors to see the vessels and arteries leading to the heart - actually finds obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) in people without known heart disease.

10 Aug 2011

Marshfield Clinic improves quality of health care and decreases Medicare costs

When the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) initiated its Physician Group Practice (PGP) Demonstration, it challenged the 10 participating large physician group practices to prove that providing high quality coordinated health care could also save money.

9 Aug 2011

Common culinary spice derivative could treat tendinitis

A derivative of a common culinary spice found in Indian curries could offer a new treatment hope for sufferers of the painful condition tendinitis, an international team of researchers has shown.

9 Aug 2011

Simcere second quarter total revenue increases 0.3% to US$84.4 million

Simcere Pharmaceutical Group, a leading pharmaceutical company specializing in the development, manufacturing, and marketing of branded generic and proprietary pharmaceuticals in China, today reported preliminary unaudited financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2011.

9 Aug 2011

Positive data from Lexicon LX1032 Phase 2 study on carcinoid syndrome

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering breakthrough treatments for human disease, announced positive, top-line proof-of-concept data from its recently completed Phase 2 study in carcinoid syndrome with LX1032, telotristat etiprate. Carcinoid syndrome is a chronic condition caused by neuroendocrine tumors that usually originate from the gastrointestinal tract.

9 Aug 2011

Psychologists reveal how people really feel about video games

TWO lecturers at the University of Huddersfield have uncovered new research that contradicts a wide stream of consciousness in the media.

9 Aug 2011

Researchers clarify role of two proteins key to T-cell development

In the latest issue of Nature, researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania clarify the role of two proteins key to T-cell development.

9 Aug 2011