Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Vaccine provides new hope to the millions of people who suffer from food allergies

A team led by a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine has developed vaccines that vastly reduce or eliminate dogs' allergic reactions to three major food allergens: peanuts, milk and wheat. The vaccines' benefits lasted at least three months.

14 Nov 2004

Use of the drug etodolac instead of drugs like Celebrex or Bextra could save $40 million annually

People in search of pain relief who take the generic anti-inflammatory etodolac suffer 60 percent fewer gastrointestinal complications than those who take similar drugs, according to researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas and the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

14 Nov 2004

Mast cells can provide protection from a potentially deadly condition known as sepsis

Mast cells are immune cells known mostly for their unwanted effects: they cause the wheezing of asthma, the itching of eczema, the sneezing and runny nose of hay fever and, in extreme cases, the life-threatening shock of anaphylaxis.

14 Nov 2004

BMA Cymru Wales to petition parliament to ban smoking in public places unless Wales goes smoke free within 10 months

BMA Cymru Wales is seriously considering the possibility of petitioning Parliament for a ban in public places in Wales using the rarely used private bills procedure.

14 Nov 2004

Uncoupling proteins in the human heart

Results of a study in this week’s issue of THE LANCET suggest that respiratory uncoupling and reduced substrate availability might lead to energy deficiency in heart failure.

14 Nov 2004

Heart bypass gets new source for replacement blood vessels

The search for a stable, renewable source of blood vessels, especially for potential use in heart bypass surgery, has reached a milestone at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

11 Nov 2004

Hospital admissions for diabetes on the rise

The number of hospital admissions for diabetes increased by almost 12 percent between 1999 and 2003, according to a new report released by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4) in conjunction with American Diabetes Month.

11 Nov 2004

Effective research could prevent half of the world's deaths

Health systems research has the potential to produce dramatic improvements in health worldwide and to meet some of the major development challenges in the new millennium.

11 Nov 2004

Sirolimus drug-coated stent causes less inflammation than bare metal stents

In the treatment of coronary artery disease, a sirolimus drug-coated stent causes less inflammation than bare metal stents, according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association annual meeting by Loyola University Health System, Maywood, Ill.

11 Nov 2004

Millions of people threatened by the diabetes time bomb

Millions of lives are threatened by the dual epidemics of diabetes and obesity that are bound to explode in this century, international diabetes and obesity organizations said today in the run up to World Diabetes Day.

11 Nov 2004

Shp2 protein plays a critical role in obesity

A team of researchers led by The Burnham Institute's Gen-Sheng Feng, Ph.D. has discovered that a protein called Shp2 plays a critical role in obesity.

11 Nov 2004

The risk of developing metabolic syndrome increases the more a person drinks

The risk of developing metabolic syndrome increases the more a person drinks – and beginning a heavy drinking pattern early in life seems to add extra risk, according to a first-of-its-kind study presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Heavy drinking after suffering a heart attack doubles risk of dying

Heavily drinking – or binging – even intermittently, almost doubles a person’s risk of dying after a heart attack, compared to that of a moderate drinker, according, to a first-of-its-kind study, reported at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Four major U.S. ethnic groups less likely to have cholesterol controlled

Compared with non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics who qualify for cholesterol-lowering drug treatment are less likely to have their “bad” LDL cholesterol controlled to recommended levels, researchers reported at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Atorvastatin slows down mental decline and improves depressive symptoms in people with Alzheimer’s disease

The cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin slowed down mental decline and improved depressive symptoms in people with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a small pilot study reported at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Most food stamp beneficiaries can’t afford heart-healthy food

Most food stamp beneficiaries can’t afford heart-healthy food options, according to a study of low-income, African-American-residents in a Boston neighborhood that was presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Women with arrhythmias may also benefit from implantable cardioverter-defibrillators

A small study of patients with heart failure not caused by blocked arteries indicates that women, as well as men, may benefit from implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICD), reported researchers at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

Too much vitamin supplementation could be harmful

Daily vitamin E doses of 400 international units (IU) or more can increase the risk of death and should be avoided, researchers reported at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

11 Nov 2004

New test for heart surgery patients

Researchers in Aberdeen have launched a study to see whether a new blood test can better predict the outcome for patients facing heart surgery.

11 Nov 2004

Bretylium tosylate has unique benefits for patients with acute myocardial infarction

An "old" drug has unique benefits for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI; commonly known as heart attack), a finding that may contribute to a new understanding of how heart attacks develop, according to an article in the September/October American Journal of Therapeutics.

10 Nov 2004