A pricey high-tech pump that maintains blood flow during heart procedures could be more dangerous to patients than its low-tech predecessor, a pair of new studies finds. The Impella device is associated with an increased risk of death, bleeding and stroke among patients undergoing angioplasty to re-open clogged arteries, two separate research teams concluded in… read on >
A cheap drug that’s been around for centuries as a gout treatment might also shield heart attack survivors from future heart crises, new trial results show. The drug, colchicine, is derived from a plant called the autumn crocus, researchers explained Saturday at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association, in Philadelphia. In the new… read on >
Sustainable eating practices — knowing where food comes from and how to sustain the sources — helps us plan for now and the future, says the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Looking past the supermarket shelf and learning how your food is produced is a first step. The school suggests: Plan your meals… read on >
Bypass operations, angioplasty and the placement of artery-opening stents: For decades, millions of Americans have undergone these expensive, invasive procedures to help treat clogged vessels. However, the results of a large and long-awaited clinical trial suggests that, in most cases, these procedures may not have provided any benefit over medications and lifestyle changes. In fact,… read on >
Label warns higher mortality found in critically ill patients with multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections read on >
Pregnancy-related high blood pressure puts women at higher risk of heart disease later on, new research suggests. In the study, researchers analyzed an average of seven years of follow-up data on more than 220,000 women in the United Kingdom. Those who had gestational high blood pressure or preeclampsia in at least one pregnancy had stiffer… read on >
Whether you have caught the flu yet this season might depend on where you live. Flu levels are already climbing throughout the South, particularly in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina, and Puerto Rico, according to the latest statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As for the rest of… read on >
Of all sports, football sends the most U.S. males to the emergency room, while cheerleading and gymnastics most often do the same for women and girls, a new report finds. And, overall, U.S. emergency departments see about 2.7 million patients between the ages of 5 and 24 for sports-related injuries each year, according to a… read on >
FRIDAY, Nov. 15, 2019 (American Heart Association News) — It was a race with life-or-death implications: Unmanned drones were pitted against traditional emergency responders to see which could get an automated external defibrillator to the rural site of a simulated cardiac arrest first. The drones won handily. And the Canadian researcher behind the test said… read on >
FRIDAY, Nov. 15, 2019 (American Heart Association News) — Quitting smoking leads to major changes in intestinal bacteria, according to new research. But just what the changes mean will need further investigation. The small pilot study, to be presented Monday during the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in Philadelphia, comes in the wake of past… read on >
