Source: Secondary-Prevention Data Strong for Fish Oil Caps: AHA Advisory
CHD
Contemporary Assessment of Left Ventricular Diastolic Function in Older Adults Clinical Perspective | Circulation
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that left ventricular longitudinal relaxation velocity declines as a part of healthy aging and is largely prognostically benign. The use of age-based normative values when considering an elderly population improves the risk discrimination of diastolic measures for incident HF or death.
Prognostically benign!
Chagas Heart Disease an Emerging Concern in the United States – Circulation
Diagnosing Chagas disease in patients with cardiomyopathy, however, can allow cardiologists to implement the aggressive treatment regimens recommended for this subset of patients, who have 4-fold higher morbidity and mortality than do typical patients with cardiomyopathies, Meymandi noted.
Source: Chagas Heart Disease an Emerging Concern in the United States | Circulation
Prognosis of Patients With Familial Hypercholesterolemia After Acute Coronary Syndromes Clinical Perspective – Circulation
CONCLUSIONS: Patients with FH and ACS have a >2-fold adjusted risk of coronary event recurrence within the first year after discharge than patients without FH despite the widespread use of high-intensity statins. # Clinical Perspective {#article-title-36}
Blood Pressure and Complications in DM2 and no Previous CVD – The BMJ
Conclusions: Lower systolic blood pressure than currently recommended is associated with significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes. The association between low blood pressure and increased mortality could be due to concomitant disease rather than anti-hypertensive treatment.
Cholesterol Lowering in Intermediate-Risk Persons without Cardiovascular Disease — NEJM
Conclusions: Treatment with rosuvastatin at a dose of 10 mg per day resulted in a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events than placebo in an intermediate-risk, ethnically diverse population without cardiovascular disease. (Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and AstraZeneca; HOPE-3 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00468923.)
Source: Cholesterol Lowering in Intermediate-Risk Persons without Cardiovascular Disease — NEJM
Source: Blood-Pressure Lowering in Intermediate-Risk Persons without Cardiovascular Disease — NEJM
Source: Blood-Pressure and Cholesterol Lowering in Persons without Cardiovascular Disease — NEJM
JAMA Cardiology – Effect of the Presence and Type of Angina on Cardiovascular Events in Patients Without Known Coronary Artery Disease Referred for Elective Coronary Angiography
This study describes the characteristics of patients referred for typical, atypical, or no angina and examines the associations between angina type, pre–cardiac catheterization stress test results, and burden of coronary atherosclerosis identified on coronary angiography.
In this short research letter we find further lack of utility for stress tests in the manner for which we are currently using them for risk stratification. The authors categorized patients referred for catheterization without known CAD to groups based on chest pain symptoms of: typical, atypical, or absent. They then looked at their stress test results, categorized as positive or negative, and found that a negative stress test did not help predict those without obstructive CAD on catheterization. Specifically, patients with typical angina symptoms and a negative stress test were the MOST likely to have obstructive CAD (74%). Clearly limited by the nature of the data presented, and the limited information given regarding the methodology in this research letter, it does further raise doubts regarding the utility of stress testing to risk stratify patients for CAD.
HT to Jeremy Fried for the observation quoted above. Source: Research and Reviews R&R in the FastLane | LITFL: Life in the Fast Lane Medical Blog
CardioBrief: Studies Spotlight Triglycerides, Put HDL in the Shade | Medpage Today
Two new studies provide more evidence tilting the balance in favor of triglycerides, rather than HDL, playing a causative role in cardiovascular disease. But it is still too early to know whether the findings of any of the studies will point to useful new methods to prevent and treat disease.
Source: CardioBrief: Studies Spotlight Triglycerides, Put HDL in the Shade | Medpage Today
There are links to other studies at the end of this Medpage article.
Take Home – Do not ignore triglycerides.
Gout Crystals Linked With Cardiac Calcium | Medpage Today
Causal relationship not yet established, but is plausible
Source: Gout Crystals Linked With Cardiac Calcium | Medpage Today
Heart Failure Mortality Taking a Turn for the Worse | Medpage Today
Heart failure death rates rising again after decade of decline
Source: Heart Failure Mortality Taking a Turn for the Worse | Medpage Today
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