High Blood Pressure News and Research

Latest High Blood Pressure News and Research

Researchers discover link between obesity and hypertension

The link between obesity and cardiovascular diseases is well acknowledged. Being obese or overweight is a major risk factor for the development of elevated blood pressure, and cardiovascular diseases. But it has net been known how obesity increases the risk of high blood pressure, making it difficult to develop evidence based therapies for obesity, hypertension and heart disease.

5 Dec 2014

Researchers publish first comprehensive characterization of genetic diversity in Sub-Saharan Africa

Researchers from the African Genome Variation Project have published the first attempt to comprehensively characterise genetic diversity across Sub-Saharan Africa. The study of the world's most genetically diverse region will provide an invaluable resource for medical researchers and provides insights into population movements over thousands of years of African history.

4 Dec 2014

Sanford-Burnham, Mayo Clinic scientists to jointly find new treatment for resistant hypertension

Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute at Lake Nona and Mayo Clinic today announced that a joint team of scientists has been selected as a winner of GlaxoSmithKline's 2014 Discovery Fast Track Challenge.

2 Dec 2014

Promising new therapeutic strategy for chronic kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects at least one in four Americans who are older than 60 and can significantly shorten lifespan. Yet the few available drugs for CKD can only modestly delay the disease's progress towards kidney failure. Now, however, a team led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has found an aspect of CKD's development that points to a promising new therapeutic strategy.

1 Dec 2014

Obstructive sleep apnea associated with impaired exercise capacity

A new study shows that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with impaired exercise capacity, which is an indicator of increased cardiovascular risk.

1 Dec 2014

Eylea receives Health Canada approval for treatment of CRVO and DME

Bayer Inc. announced today that it has received approval from Health Canada for Eylea (aflibercept, solution for intravitreal injection) for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME). This new indication comes just six weeks following the October 16th approval of Eylea for the treatment of visual impairment due to macular edema secondary to central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO).

1 Dec 2014

Australian Prescriber publishes top 10 subsidised drugs in Australia

The annual publication of the top 10 subsidised drugs appears in the December edition of Australian Prescriber. Statins (cholesterol-lowering medicines) top the lists again.

1 Dec 2014

Researchers discover molecular switch that triggers stress processes in the brain

At the Center for Brain Research at the MedUni Vienna an important factor for stress has been identified in collaboration with the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm (Sweden). This is the protein secretagogin that plays an important role in the release of the stress hormone CRH and which only then enables stress processes in the brain to be transmitted to the pituitary gland and then onwards to the organs.

28 Nov 2014

Peek's smartphone eye examination tool could help tackle blindness

The team behind Peek, the Portable Eye Examination Kit, are calling on the public to help provide a solution to avoidable blindness by increasing access to potentially life-changing new eye health testing equipment.

27 Nov 2014

Children with NAFLD at substantial risk for high blood pressure

High blood pressure and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are two emerging health problems related to the epidemic of childhood obesity. In a recent study, researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine sought to determine the prevalence of high blood pressure in children with NAFLD, which places them at risk for premature cardiovascular disease.

24 Nov 2014

Researchers say that promoting healthy gut microbiota can help treat metabolic syndrome

Promoting healthy gut microbiota, the bacteria that live in the intestine, can help treat or prevent metabolic syndrome, a combination of risk factors that increases a person's risk for heart disease, diabetes and stroke, according to researchers at Georgia State University and Cornell University.

24 Nov 2014

Obese people experience silent cardiac damage that fuels risk for heart failure

Using an ultrasensitive blood test to detect the presence of a protein that heralds heart muscle injury, researchers from Johns Hopkins and elsewhere have found that obese people without overt heart disease experience silent cardiac damage that fuels their risk for heart failure down the road.

21 Nov 2014

Personalized dietary advice based on person's genetic makeup improves eating habits

Personalized dietary advice based on a person's genetic makeup improves eating habits compared to current "one-size-fits-all" dietary recommendations, says a University of Toronto researcher.

21 Nov 2014

Investigational treatment shows promise against Marfan syndrome

An investigational treatment for Marfan syndrome is as effective as the standard therapy at slowing enlargement of the aorta, the large artery of the heart that delivers blood to the body, new research shows. The findings indicate a second treatment option for Marfan patients, who are at high risk of sudden death from tears in the aorta.

18 Nov 2014

Findings illustrate need to monitor all races of heart failure patients for atrial fibrillation

Black patients who have been diagnosed with heart failure are no less likely than white patients to get atrial fibrillation (an irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia), according to a new study led by researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, which was presented today at the 2014 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association.

18 Nov 2014

People who frequently cook meals at home eat healthier than those who cook less

People who frequently cook meals at home eat healthier and consume fewer calories than those who cook less, according to new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research.

18 Nov 2014

Study suggests that beta blockers may benefit patients suffering from HFPEF

A novel registry study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden suggests that beta blockers may benefit also patients suffering from a relatively unknown form of heart failure called HFPEF, which today lacks well-established treatment.

17 Nov 2014

NIH study finds limited kidney benefit from more rigorous blood pressure treatment

Using two drugs was no more effective than a single drug in slowing disease progression in people with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), according to two studies funded by the National Institutes of Health. One of the studies also showed that rigorous blood pressure treatment slowed growth of kidney cysts, a marker of ADPKD, but had little effect on kidney function compared to standard blood pressure treatment.

17 Nov 2014

Preterm birth becomes world's number one killer of young children

For the first time in history, the complications of preterm birth outrank all other causes as the world's number one killer of young children.

17 Nov 2014

Exposure to tobacco smoke, roadway air pollution can contribute to obesity

New research from Keck Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) bolsters evidence that exposure to tobacco smoke and near-roadway air pollution contributes to the development of obesity.

14 Nov 2014