Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

'Complicated Grief' far worse than depression and doctors want it recognised

Doctors in the U.S. are hoping that a condition they refer to as 'Complicated Grief' which goes far beyond depression, will soon be recognized by the American Psychiatric Association.

1 Jun 2005

Heart doctors say off-pump or on-pump, no difference in bypass surgery

As far as the American Heart Association (AHA) is concerned, the long running debate over whether patients undergoing coronary bypass surgery do better if their hearts keep beating or if a heart-lung machine takes over should end.

1 Jun 2005

Diabetics more sensitive to cardiovascular effects from air pollution

People with diabetes may be at higher risk for cardiovascular problems when air pollution levels are higher, according to a new study of Boston-area residents. The ability of the blood vessels to control blood flow was impaired in adults with diabetes on days with elevated levels of particles from traffic and coal-burning power plants.

31 May 2005

We have been ingrained to think that seriously large people can only make improvements in their health if they diet and slim down

Behavior change and self-acceptance trump dieting hands-down when it comes to achieving long-term health improvements in obese women, according to a two-year study by nutrition researchers at the University of California, Davis.

31 May 2005

Long-haul flights, length of time under anesthesia increase risk of developing blood clots

The prolonged immobility of flight passengers during long-haul air travel increases the risk of developing blood clots, which could prove fatal especially to people whose travel occurs just prior to major surgery, medical researchers report in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

31 May 2005

Shock wave therapy shows remarkable results in wound healing and curing myocardial diseases

Effective, non-invasive and practically without side effects - extracorporeal shock wave therapy has demonstrated impressive results not only in orthopedics and traumatology, but also in treating fresh and chronic wounds as well as circulatory disorders of the myocardial muscle.

31 May 2005

Little mermaid Milagros to have major surgery

Little Peruvian baby girl Milagros who celebrated her first birthday a month ago has been nicknamed the "little mermaid" because her legs resemble the tail of a fish.

31 May 2005

Under prescribing of statins puts more people at risk of premature death

A new study out of Stanford School of Medicine says that cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins that can help prevent heart disease are still underprescribed for many at-risk patients.

31 May 2005

Tobacco companies used psychological means to deliberately target women

Health researchers have revealed this week that tobacco companies specifically designed cigarettes to appeal to women's desires to be thin and healthy in ways that went "far beyond marketing and advertising".

31 May 2005

Ibuprofen use is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer

Ibuprofen use is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, and long-term daily use of aspirin is associated with an increased risk of estrogen receptor/progesterone receptor (ER/PR)-negative breast cancer, according to a new study in the June 1 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

30 May 2005

Steroid treatment for prematurity put to the test

Babies whose mothers received steroid injections before giving birth have no higher risk of heart disease at age 30 than those whose mothers received a placebo treatment.

30 May 2005

Survey shows sexual health important component of overall well being for midlife and beyond

Sexual health is an essential element of the quality of life of adults 45+. AARP's recent study, Sexuality at Midlife and Beyond, updates an AARP survey from 1999, and confirms that relationships and sexuality remain at least as important, if not more so, than almost six years ago.

30 May 2005

Breastfeeding is as good for children's blood pressure as exercise and dietary salt restriction

Breastfeeding is as good for children's blood pressure as exercise and dietary salt restriction, according to research from Bristol University published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood. The longer the period of breastfeeding, the lower the blood pressure reading, the research found.

30 May 2005

Flavonols in food, key to healthy eating?

University of Melbourne scientists may have found the secret of the fresh fruit and vegetables centred ‘Mediterranean diet’.

29 May 2005

A sudden increase in the number of British cases of Lyme disease

Lyme disease, an infection carried by ticks causes a rash and stiffness in the joints and, if left unchecked, it can affect the central nervous system, causing tingling in hands and feet, or facial palsy. In the worst cases the disease can also affect the heart, liver and spleen and even lead to encephalitis, which can kill.

29 May 2005

Technology for analyzing gene expression must be standardized

Technology for analyzing gene expression must be standardized among laboratories and across platforms around the world to support this age of human genome exploration, an Oregon Health & Science University researcher says.

29 May 2005

Fluorescence device to diagnose atherosclerosis and tumors

In a presentation at the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO), researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Biophotonics Research and Technology Development Laboratory described recent progress on a device that stimulates, collects and measures light emissions from body tissues to diagnose critical atherosclerotic plaques (vulnerable plaques) and aggressive brain tumors.

29 May 2005

Call for better monitoring of new devices after sudden death of college student

Thousands of people with diseased hearts who have undergone surgical implantation of a cardiac defibrillator, a mechanical device inserted under the skin that shocks a heart when it beats improperly, will be concerned after the death recently of a 21-year-old college student with a genetic heart abnormality who died of cardiac arrest while on a bicycle trip.

29 May 2005

One in five patients hospitalized for heart attack experiences a major depression

According to the Hopkins cardiologists who conducted the study, these depressed patients are 50 percent more likely than other heart attack patients to need hospital care for a heart problem again within a year and three times as likely to die from a future attack or other heart-related conditions.

26 May 2005

Disturbingly high rate of home care patients are being admitted to hospital suffering from pneumonia

A two-year study showed home-care patients suffering from Community-Acquired Pneumonia (CAP is acquired outside of hospitals) account for 25 of every 1,000 people who visited emergency rooms suffering pneumonia.

26 May 2005