Culture | Science Codex

No benefit found from BP drug in treatment of recently hospitalized heart failure patients

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) —Despite high hopes that a blood pressure-lowering medication called aliskiren would help people following hospitalization for heart failure, no beneficial effects were found, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

Heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalization for people over age 65, costing Medicare billions of dollars annually, and researchers are always on the lookout for more effective treatments.

Erectile dysfunction drug fails for diastolic heart failure patients

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) — Despite high expectations for a commonly used erectile dysfunction drug to treat patients with diastolic heart failure, no beneficial effects were found in a study presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

After years of growth, fewer transplants done through 'kidney chains'

An additional 1,000 patients could undergo kidney transplants in the United States annually if hospitals performed more transplants using paired kidney exchanges, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.

Digoxin reduces hospital admissions in older patients with chronic heart failure

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) —Digoxin significantly reduces the likelihood of hospital admission due to all causes among ambulatory older patients with chronic heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

Clot-busting drug benefits intermediate-risk patients with pulmonary embolism

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) — The clot-busting drug tenecteplase prevents death or circulatory collapse in a subgroup of patients with a blood clot in the lungs and appears to be especially useful in patients younger than 75, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

Investigational drug reduces heart damage during angioplasty

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2013) — A single dose of an investigational anti-inflammatory drug, inclacumab, reduced damage to heart tissue during angioplasty in a study presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

More than 1 million coronary angioplasty procedures are performed in the United States each year, at a cost of more than $10 billion. Heart tissue can be damaged during angioplasty, often leading to additional procedures, poor outcomes and higher health care costs.

Clot-busting drug as effective as angioplasty

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2013) — A clot-busting therapy may benefit some heart attack patients who cannot have immediate angioplasty, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

"Drug therapy before transfer is at least as effective as [angioplasty], and an urgent catheterization was avoided in two-thirds of patients," said Frans Van de Werf, MD, PhD, professor of cardiology at University of Leuven, Belgium, and the study's lead investigator.

Drug reduces chest pain in patients with diabetes

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2013) — A commonly used anti-anginal drug reduces chest pain in patients with type 2 diabetes and appears to have a more pronounced effect in those with poorer glucose control, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

High-dose oral vitamins, minerals do not reduce recurrent cardiac events in heart attack patients

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2013) — Heart attack patients given a combination of high-dose oral vitamins and minerals do not exhibit a significant reduction in recurrent cardiac events, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session. However, the results of one component of the NIH-funded Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) study, shows that when combined with active chelation therapy, high-dose vitamins and minerals may provide some additional benefit.

Drug may improve outcomes after heart attack

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2013) — The prescription drug eplerenone appears to reduce the risk of cardiovascular mortality and heart failure after a heart attack by more than one-third, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

Off-pump bypass better for high-risk patients

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) — Bypass surgery done without a heart-lung machine, known as off-pump, may provide better post-operative outcomes than on-pump bypass surgery for high-risk patients, according to research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

New survey reports low rate of patient awareness during anesthesia

The Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) and the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (AAGBI) today publish initial findings from a major study which looked at how many patients experienced accidental awareness during general anaesthesia.

Kids exposed to millions of tobacco images/messages every week on prime time UK TV

UK children are being exposed to millions of tobacco images/messages every week on prime time television, indicates research published online in Tobacco Control.

Smoking and other tobacco content frequently feature in films marketed to kids, which is known to spark their interest in starting to smoke, say the authors.

More stringent curbs on tobacco imagery in the TV programme schedule could help curb uptake among young people, who spend an average of 2.5 hours in front of the box every day, they suggest.

Study shows on-pump bypass comparable to off-pump at year mark

SAN FRANCISCO (March 11, 2013) — Patients who underwent heart bypass surgery without a heart- lung machine did as well one year later as patients whose hearts were connected to a pump during surgery in a study presented today at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session.

CORONARY, an international, multicenter trial of on-pump (with a heart-lung machine) versus off-pump bypass surgery, enrolled 4,752 patients already scheduled to undergo a bypass procedure. The study is the largest to compare the two approaches.

Study: 'Virtual' house calls comparable to in-person care for people with Parkinson's disease

A small study of 20 people with Parkinson's disease suggests that "virtual house calls" using Web-based video conferencing provide clinical benefits comparable to in-person physician office visits, while saving patients and their caregivers time and travel.