Culture | Page 2190 | Science Codex

Registry questions superiority of bivalirudin over heparin

21 May 2013, Paris, France: Results from a large observational study reported at EuroPCR 2013 today question whether bivalirudin is superior to heparin in the absence of GPIIb/IIIa blockade, showing similar 30-day mortality in patients with non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE-ACS) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

European and US NSTE-ACS guidelines currently recommend bivalirudin alone as an alternative to unfractionated heparin plus GP IIb/IIIa receptor inhibitors in patients undergoing an intended urgent or early invasive strategy.

New blood-thinner measures may cut medication errors

Blood thinners are the preferred treatment option to prevent heart attacks, blood clots and stroke, but they are not without risk, and not just because of their side effects. These high-risk drugs, known as anticoagulants, account for nearly 7 percent of medication errors in hospitalized patients.

Study shows low rate of late lumen loss with bioresorbable DESolve device

21 May 2013, Paris, France: The DESolve bioresorbable coronary scaffold system achieves good efficacy and safety with low rates of late lumen loss and major coronary adverse events at six months, show first results from the pivotal DESolve Nx trial reported at EuroPCR 2013 today.

Study finds COPD is over-diagnosed among uninsured patients

ATS 2013, PHILADELPHIA ─More than 40 percent of patients being treated for COPD at a federally funded clinic did not have the disease, researchers found after evaluating the patients with spirometry, the diagnostic "gold standard" for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Failure to use linked health records may lead to biased disease estimates

They show that up to 50% of all heart attack cases are missed using just one data source.

These findings may be relevant to other common conditions, such as stroke, and support the wider use of linked multiple record sources by clinicians, policy makers and researchers, say the authors.

Electronic health records are increasingly used to measure health outcomes, and for research, but records from one part of the health service (e.g. primary care) may not capture health events occurring in other parts of the health system (e.g. hospital care).

Biodegradable stent proves non-inferior to drug-eluting stent

21 May 2013, Paris, France: The Orsiro stent, which is a novel stent platform eluting sirolimus from a biodegradable polymer, demonstrated non-inferiority to the Xience Prime everolimus-eluting stent for the primary angiographic endpoint of in-stent late lumen loss at nine months in the results of an imaging substudy reported at EuroPCR 2013 today.

Study reveals how fishing gear can cause slow death of whales

Using a "patient monitoring" device attached to a whale entangled in fishing gear, scientists showed for the first time how fishing lines changed a whale's diving and swimming behavior. The monitoring revealed how fishing gear hinders whales' ability to eat and migrate, depletes their energy as they drag gear for months or years, and can result in a slow death.

Post-approval TAVI registry shows high rates of device success at 1 year

21 May 2013, Paris, France: One-year results from SOURCE XT – one of the largest, post-approval transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) registries to-date – reported today at EuroPCR 2013 show good clinical outcomes in routine clinical practice, with high rates of device success for all access approaches, valve sizes and delivery systems.

Antidepressant reduces stress-induced heart condition

DURHAM, N.C. – A drug commonly used to treat depression and anxiety may improve a stress-related heart condition in people with stable coronary heart disease, according to researchers at Duke Medicine.

Treatment with antidepressant results in lower rate of mental stress-induced cardiac ischemia

Among patients with stable coronary heart disease and mental stress-induced myocardial ischemia (MSIMI), 6 weeks of treatment with the antidepressant escitalopram, compared with placebo, resulted in a lower rate of MSIMI, according to a study in the May 22/29 issue of JAMA.

Early use of tracheostomy for mechanically ventilated patients not associated with improved survival

For critically ill patients receiving mechanical ventilation, early tracheostomy (within the first 4 days after admission) was not associated with an improvement in the risk of death within 30 days compared to patients who received tracheostomy placement after 10 days, according to a study in the May 22/29 issue of JAMA.

How to protect great apes in forest concessions

A new report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) highlights the plight of great apes in the forest concessions of Central Africa and recommends actions to improve protection for gorillas and chimpanzees in these mixed-used landscapes, according to authors from the Wildlife Conservation Society, WWF, IUCN, Lincoln Park Zoo and Washington University.

Shorter duration steroid therapy may offer similar effectiveness in reducing COPD exacerbations

Among patients with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) requiring hospital admission, a 5-day glucocorticoid treatment course was non-inferior (not worse than) to a 14-day course with regard to re-exacerbation during 6 months of follow-up, according to a study published online by JAMA. The study is being released early online to coincide with its presentation at the American Thoracic Society international conference.

Decisions to forgo life support may depend heavily on the ICU where patients are treated

PHILADELPHIA—The decision to limit life support in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) appears to be significantly influenced by physician practices and/or the culture of the hospital, suggests new findings from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference on May 21.

Are you too aggressive? Blame secondhand smoke exposure in childhood

Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke in early childhood are more likely to grow up to physically aggressive and antisocial, regardless of whether they were exposed during pregnancy or their parents have a history of being antisocial, according to Linda Pagani and Caroline Fitzpatrick of the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU Sainte-Justine hospital. No study to date has controlled for these factors. "Secondhand smoke is in fact more dangerous that inhaled smoke, and 40% of children worldwide are exposed to it.