Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

The origin of mammalian network of lymphatic vessels

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital settled a century-old debate on the origin of the mammalian lymphatic vasculature - the network of vessels and capillaries critical to various essential housekeeping functions in the body.

4 Oct 2007

Tips to manage stress

When stress never seems to go away, health can suffer. The October issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter offers an overview of stress, the good, the bad and ways to reduce its ill effects.

4 Oct 2007

Heart disease of the left main coronary artery is often an inherited condition that clusters in families

Moreover, they discovered that initially healthy siblings of a person with the condition were 2.5 times more likely to go on to develop some form of heart disease than were siblings of a patient with heart disease that did not relate to the left main coronary artery.

4 Oct 2007

New understanding of how brain controls blood pressure regulation

A discovery made 25 years ago about how the brain controls blood pressure regulation is only now being explored with the help of scientists from the Howard Florey Institute.

4 Oct 2007

Cholesterol levels both high and low linked to premature births

A new study suggests that not only is a very low level of cholesterol a danger to pregnant women, but high cholesterol too increases the risk of premature birth.

3 Oct 2007

Low levels of good cholesterol risk for heart disease

According to the latest research reducing the amount of "bad cholesterol" (LDL - low density lipoprotein cholesterol) in the blood is incidental if the proper amount of "good cholesterol" (HDL - high density lipoprotein cholesterol) is not present.

3 Oct 2007

Ozone impairs the body's immune system

According to a new study not only does air pollution exacerbate heart problems but it also impairs the body's immune system.

3 Oct 2007

Losing a little weight might help avoid drugs to reduce hypertension

Researchers in Italy say losing weight can bring down a person's hypertension; they say even a moderate weight loss can lower high blood pressure to within the normal range.

3 Oct 2007

Over 60's do well after liver transplantation

Patients who undergo liver transplantation at age 60 or above have 1-year and 5-year survival rates similar to those of younger patients and they experience fewer episodes of rejection.

3 Oct 2007

Plant colors shed light on antioxidants

Scientists have made an important advance in understanding the genetic processes that give flowers, leaves and plants their bright colours. The knowledge could lead to a range of benefits, including better understanding of the cancer-fighting properties of plant pigments and new, natural food colourings.

3 Oct 2007

Major gender gap in use of life-saving heart device

Women who might have benefited from the use of an implantable heart monitor following a cardiac arrest were far less likely than men to have one prescribed, according to experts at the Duke University Medical Center.

3 Oct 2007

Implantable cardioverter defibrillators underused in women, minorities with heart failure

Many Americans hospitalized for heart failure are coming up short when it comes to getting the therapy they need - especially women and minorities, say researchers at Duke University Medical Center.

3 Oct 2007

Discovery of genetic roadblock could lead to novel treatments for type 2 diabetes

A team of Mount Sinai Hospital researchers has found that a “genetic roadblock” identified in a recent study could pave the way toward novel treatments for type 2 diabetes.

3 Oct 2007

Common chronic diseases cost U.S. economy $1 trillion

In a groundbreaking study released y by the Milken Institute, the annual economic impact on the U.S. economy of the most common chronic diseases is calculated to be more than $1 trillion, which could balloon to nearly $6 trillion by the middle of the century.

3 Oct 2007

Algorithms for defibrillators

When an adult suffers a cardiorespiratory arrest the rapid application of an electrical discharge with a defibrillator can avoid sudden death in many cases. Nevertheless, defibrillation also has its impediment or enemy: time.

3 Oct 2007

ACE inhibitor perindopril may help improve cardiac complications from Marfan syndrome

Preliminary research suggests that use of the ACE inhibitor perindopril, along with a beta-blocker, may help reduce cardiac measures such as aortic stiffness and dilation that are associated with the cardiac complications of Marfan syndrome, according to an article in the October 3 issue of JAMA.

3 Oct 2007

FDA warns against cold and cough remedies made for children

Safety experts in the United States are warning parents about buying over-the-counter cold and cough remedies, specifically marketed for children.

2 Oct 2007

Study looks at effects of sleep deprivation on metabolic and cardiovascular function

Researchers at the University of Surrey are investigating the effects of sleep deprivation on metabolic and cardiovascular function and are looking for volunteers to take part in a study.

2 Oct 2007

Panic attacks may increase risk of heart attack or stroke in older women

Older women who experience at least one full-blown panic attack may have an increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke and an increased risk of death in the next five years, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

2 Oct 2007

Omega-3 madness: fish oil or snake oil?

Omega-3 claims are popping up in everything from cereal to mayonnaise, but are those foods the panacea that marketers would have you believe According to the cover story in the October issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter , certain omega-3s may reduce the risk of heart disease and might even help protect against cancer, Alzheimer's, and vision problems.

2 Oct 2007