theHeart.org - Hypertension

Not all metabolic syndrome is created equal: Framingham Offspring analysis

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:45:03 EST

The syndrome (defined by ATP III criteria) can predict increased cardiovascular and mortality risk or not, depending on which three of five risk factors contributed to the diagnosis, a cohort study suggests; its investigators caution that their observations are only preliminary.

Adding fuel to the J-curve fire; debate is reignited

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:30:56 EST

More discussion about the J-curve in hypertension is published this week; one expert believes the undue attention being paid to this subject might discourage doctors from treating high blood pressure aggressively.

Another in-hospital CV risk marker: 24-hour shifts with overnight on-call duty

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:45:43 EST

Long work shifts with nighttime on-call duty, with the inevitable interruptions of sleep, are associated with ECG, blood-pressure, and biochemical changes associated with increased cardiovascular risk, suggests a randomized crossover study that hints at a sustained effect on the risk markers if the 24-hour shifts happen too frequently.

US updates advice on perioperative beta-blocker use in noncardiac surgery

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:30:32 EST

A US update on the perioperative use of beta blockers for noncardiac surgery is, says the lead author, "similar" to recent European guidance on this issue.

Combined home/GP hypertension control program successful in Pakistan

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST

A synergistic approach of educating general practitioners about hypertension control together with a program to send lay workers into people's homes to educate them about the management of high blood pressure has proven successful in low- to middle-income households in Pakistan.

ACE inhibitors of benefit in ischemic heart disease patients with preserved LV function

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:00:00 EDT

Patients with ischemic heart disease and preserved LV function on standard therapy will gain additional benefit from taking ACE inhibitors, a new review concludes. The same cannot be said for ARBs, a drug class for which the evidence is much weaker, but these are a good substitute in those who cannot tolerate ACE inhibitors, the authors say.

Expanded indication for telmisartan

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:30:16 EDT

The drug can now be used to reduce the risk of MI, stroke, or death from cardiovascular causes in patients 55 years of age or older who are intolerant to ACE inhibitors but at high risk for cardiovascular events.

Racial background woefully underreported in CV trials

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:15:10 EDT

Two-thirds of the 156 trials considered by the AHA in preparing a recent guideline failed to even record the ethnic backgrounds of participants, a new study has found. The researchers call for the reporting of race/ethnicity to be mandatory in all clinical trials, and they suggest medical journals should enforce this policy.

Diuretics effective as second-line therapy for hypertension

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:48 EDT

Diuretics, especially hydrochlorothiazide, are as effective when given as second-line therapy for high blood pressure as they are when used as initial treatment, according to the first review to look at this issue.

High adherence to antihypertensive therapy lowers cardiovascular risk

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:30:36 EDT

Newly diagnosed hypertensive individuals who stuck to their antihypertensive therapy had a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events than low adherers.

Mercury/blood-pressure link should guide fish choices

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:45:03 EDT

An association seen between mercury levels and blood pressure, even after considering omega-3s and selenium, has researchers warning about the need to weigh the risks and benefits of fish consumption and to steer clear of bigger predators.

China death toll due to hypertension worse than predicted

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:15:24 EDT

The first prospective study using real data to inform the number of people suffering from and dying due to high blood pressure in China finds the problem is much worse than previously thought. A number of initiatives are planned to try to tackle this crisis.

Simple, fixed-dose drug bundle may lower MI and stroke risk

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:15:41 EDT

A bundle of medium doses of a statin and an ACE inhibitor appears to lower CV risk in high-risk individuals, an observational study suggests, but critics caution that these are early days.

New "principles" on authorship and COI from PhRMA get mixed response

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:00:10 EDT

The "Principles on Conduct of Clinical Trials and Communication of Clinical Trial Results" echo recent standards set by medical journal editors, but some observers say the document, which has no penalty component, lacks real teeth.

Time to act: Cardiologists, diabetes docs, and psychiatrists urged to work together to tackle CVD in the mentally ill

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:00:04 EDT

Doctors from across the specialties of cardiology, diabetes, and psychiatry are being urged to collaborate to improve care for the mentally ill, who are more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than any other cause.

BCIS-1 trial: "Bailout" intra-aortic balloon pump beats elective use in low EF/high-risk patients

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 10:45:47 EDT

The study provides an important answer to a question that has divided some interventionalists. Those who "swear" by IABP use for all high-risk, low-EF patients should rethink their practice. In hypotensive patients and those with cardiogenic shock, IABPs play a key role.

BNP-boosting gene variant hints at possible screening, cardioprotective roles

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:45:02 EDT

A single-nucleotide polymorphism associated with chronically raised natriuretic-peptide levels is common enough to potentially influence interpretation of BNP and NT-proBNP assays under some circumstances, researchers say; there is increasing evidence that the gene variant may enhance survival in some patient groups.

FDA approves aliskiren/valsartan combo for HTN

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:15:54 EDT

Added to diuretics, low-dose dopamine renoprotective in small acute-HF trial

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:30:00 EDT

Better late than never in the age of evidence-based medicine, a randomized test of an established strategy might have confirmed the value of adding dopamine to loop diuretics to allow the latter at reduced, less kidney-damaging dosages.

How to shave 10 years off your life: Have high cholesterol, be hypertensive, and smoke

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:30:13 EDT

Smoking, together with high cholesterol and blood pressure, can knock 10 years off life expectancy in middle-aged men, new UK research shows. If excessive weight and glucose intolerance are added in, the difference can be as much as 15 years, they add.

Cutting salt intake in US could save $50 billion a year

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:00:49 EDT

A new economic analysis concludes that regulations to reduce sodium content in processed foods and/or voluntary reductions in salt by companies could save up to $50 billion a year in healthcare costs in the US.

FAST enough? Intrathoracic monitor bests weight gain in predicting worsening heart failure

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:30:51 EDT

Can an intrathoracic fluid-status monitor, added to an already-indicated ICD or CRT-D device in patients with heart failure, serve as the decompensation early-warning system now provided—unreliably but as recommended in the guidelines—by the bathroom scale?

New ASCOT analysis: Beta blockers not beneficial in hypertensives with tachycardia

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:15:57 EDT

Pulse rate should not be the determinant of which drugs are used in hypertension, conclude the authors of a new subgroup analysis of the ASCOT trial.

Conflicts of interest affect best practices in both industry-funded and non-industry-funded trials

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:00:19 EDT

Clinicians and researchers need to be more aware before signing on to studies about what potential conflicts might arise with the sponsor and set the ground rules for such areas as access to data, manuscript preparation, and right to publish.

Cardiovascular health of Americans is "at a crossroad"

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:00:00 EDT

The number of Americans who have a low cardiovascular risk-factor profile is decreasing, indicating that after two decades of improvement, progress appears to be reversing. The overriding driver of this phenomenon is excessive weight, say the researchers, which in turn contributes to hypertension and diabetes, itself a major contributor to heart disease.

Sponsorship of med-school textbooks in Denmark exposes vulnerable minds to commercial bias

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:45:00 EDT

Results of a new survey showed that a surprising 15% of textbooks had one or more drug or device sponsors and, in two cases, those sponsors had tried to influence the content of the textbooks.

Spin not uncommon in negative RCTs, study shows

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:30:00 EDT

French researchers who systematically quantified the prevalence of spin across 72 negative randomized controlled trials say half of the studies put a positive spin on the negative findings in the conclusion sections of the papers.

B-CONVINCED: Maintain beta blockers during acute heart-failure management

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 10:30:00 EDT

Short-term outcomes are the same whether beta blockers are continued or withheld at hospitalization for acute decompensated heart failure, and there are good reasons to continue them, according to researchers.

Darusentan in resistant hypertension: Data published

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 18:30:00 EDT

Further studies will be required to fully determine the role of the investigational agent darusentan in resistant hypertension, say the authors of a phase 3 study with the drug.

Ghost authorship on the wane, but guest authorship still common

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:00:38 EDT

UPDATED // Compared with a 1996 survey by JAMA editors, a 2008 survey indicates that the practice of having ghost writers pen papers, then not appear as authors, is down to 8%, from 12% in 1996. The practice of inviting a prominent name to appear in the list of authors, without requiring that person to contribute to the research, has held steady at roughly 20%.

ARB/ACE-inhibitor combo not recommended in CHF

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:45:55 EDT

An individual patient-data meta-analysis of the studies to date of angiotensin-receptor blockers and ACE inhibitors in heart failure might help identify those candidates who could benefit from this drug combo, say Swiss researchers. But in the meantime, it should be avoided.