Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Management of hypertension immediately after stroke

A research project at the University of Leicester in conjunction with the University of East Anglia, indicates that early reduction of high blood pressure following stroke is feasible and safe, and both Labetalol & Lisinopril were found to be suitable a medications for this purpose.

23 Jun 2008

Could Gleevec help stroke victims?

For over a decade, the drug called tPA has proven its worth as the most effective emergency treatment for the most common kind of stroke. But its promise is blemished by two facts: tPA can cause dangerous bleeding in the brain, and its brain-saving power fades fast after the third hour of a stroke.

23 Jun 2008

Study provides direct proof on how key protein promotes vascular disease

Researchers have found the first direct proof that a key protein drives the clogging of arteries in two ways, and that lowering levels of it opens them up, according to study results published in the June edition of the journal Circulation.

23 Jun 2008

Australia sitting on a "fat bomb"

The revelation that Australia is apparently now the fattest nation in the world, has been a cause for alarm.

23 Jun 2008

Hormone could hold the key to staying slim

Researchers in the United states are suggesting that the key to maintaining a healthy weight may be related to a hormone produced by the body.

23 Jun 2008

New method for bone tissue engineering wins award

A new and better method for accelerating bone formation in cases of orthopedic injuries and conditions, such as osteoporosis, fractures and disc disorders, has been developed by Nadav Kimelman at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's Faculty of Dental Medicine.

23 Jun 2008

Risk factors for sudden death for adult muscular dystrophy identified

The largest assessment of people with adult muscular dystrophy has identified risk factors that can lead to sudden death for individuals with the most common form of this disease.

19 Jun 2008

Discovery of potential key to better drugs to fight Toxoplasmosis parasite

Discoveries by IU School of Medicine scientists have opened a promising door to new drugs for toxoplasmosis and other parasites that now can evade treatments by turning dormant in the body.

19 Jun 2008

New findings show obesity-related complications improve six months following gastric banding procedure

Teenagers' obesity-related medical complications improve just six months after laparoscopic gastric banding surgery, according to outcomes data presented this week.

19 Jun 2008

Why depression and diabetes often go together ...but which comes first?

While researchers have long been aware that type-2 diabetes and depression often go together, which develops first has always been unclear.

19 Jun 2008

Experts paint a depressing future for Australian diabetics

New research presented at an international conference has predicted that almost a third of Australians with diabetes will die from the disease in the next decade.

18 Jun 2008

Gastroenteritis outbreak in South Australia claims another life

An outbreak of gastroenteritis at an aged care facility in Adelaide is of concern as it has claimed the life of a third victim.

17 Jun 2008

New AMA public health policies on vitamin D, processed foods, flavored cigarettes, tobacco sales, disaster medicine and seniors

The American Medical Association (AMA), the nation's largest physician organization, voted today at its Annual Meeting to adopt the following new public health policies.

17 Jun 2008

High fructose syrup unlikely to be more harmful than other sweeteners, says AMA

After studying current research, the American Medical Association (AMA) today concluded that high fructose syrup does not appear to contribute more to obesity than other caloric sweeteners, but called for further independent research to be done on the health effects of high fructose syrup and other sweeteners.

17 Jun 2008

Five common genetic variations linked to metabolic syndrome and HDL cholesterol levels

Nutrition researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified five common genetic variations that increase the risk of metabolic syndrome, a group of factors linked to heart disease and diabetes. Another variant they found appeared to protect against the condition.

17 Jun 2008

High blood pressure: only systolic blood pressure matters for patients over fifty

Measuring and diagnosis of high blood pressure (hypertension) should be done using systolic blood pressure only in patients aged over 50 years, rather than using both systolic and diastolic as is current practice. The proposal is put forward by three hypertension experts in a Viewpoint published early Online and in an upcoming edition of The Lancet. All three experts are attending this week's International Society of Hypertension meeting in Berlin.

17 Jun 2008

Like father like son - history of heart attacks in the family

Scientists know that heredity plays an important role in causing heart attacks. However the exact genetic mechanisms that transmit the risk of heart attacks from generation to generation still elude them.

17 Jun 2008

New approach for assessing and managing patients with sepsis

Each year over a million people suffer from sepsis, a condition caused by an infection spreading through the body. If sepsis develops into severe sepsis then the death rate can rise to nearly 30 - 50%, equalling the number of deaths caused by a heart attack.

17 Jun 2008

Lower incomes and lower education levels tied to higher death rates after heart attack

Researchers have long suspected that socioeconomic factors like education level and income also might affect survival rates following heart attack.

17 Jun 2008

The 'chicken-and-egg' problem with diabetes and depression

Researchers have long known that type-2 diabetes and depression often go hand in hand. However, it's been unclear which condition develops first in patients who end up with both. Now, a new study led by Johns Hopkins doctors suggests that this chicken-and-egg problem has a dual answer: Patients with depression have an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes, and patients with type-2 diabetes have an increased risk of developing depression.

17 Jun 2008