Cardiovascular System

Mindful Meditation Shows Promise for BP Lowering in CKD

IMNG Medical Media, 2013 Nov 12, S Worcester Full Story:  http://www.practiceupdate.com/news/3696 ATLANTA (IMNG) – Mindfulness meditation may improve blood pressure in hypertensive patients with chronic kidney disease, according to findings from a small randomized study. This study involved 15 patients who had stage 3 chronic kidney disease and hypertension. Compared with a control condition involving […]

Does physical activity influence the relationship between low back pain and obesity?

Increased BMI is a risk factor for back pain in Americans.

Chocolate and the brain

Neurobiological impact of cocoa flavanols on cognition and behavior Sokolov AN Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2013 Jun 26. pii: S0149-7634(13)00168-1 Abstract Cocoa products and chocolate have recently been recognized as a rich source of flavonoids, mainly flavanols, potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents with established benefits for cardiovascular health but largely unproven effects on neurocognition and behavior. […]

New Guidelines Urge Docs to Focus on Obesity

Published: Nov 15, 2013 | Updated: Nov 15, 2013 Download Complimentary Source PDF By Kristina Fiore, Staff Writer, MedPage Today Full Story:  http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/ObesityWeek/42929 Action Points A guideline for the management of overweight and obesity in adults by the AHA, ACC, and the Obesity Society has been developed aimed at primary care physicians. An algorithm is […]

Don’t Give More Patients Statins

By JOHN D. ABRAMSON and RITA F. REDBERG Published: November 13, 2013 Full Story:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/14/opinion/dont-give-more-patients-statins.html On Tuesday, the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology issued new cholesterol guidelines that essentially declared, in one fell swoop, that millions of healthy Americans should immediately start taking pills — namely statins — for undefined health […]

To Reduce Stroke Risk, Take a Hike

Published: Nov 14, 2013 | Updated: Nov 15, 2013 Download Complimentary Source PDF By Salynn Boyles, Contributing Writer, MedPage Today Action Points Time spent walking by older men was associated with reduced risk of onset of stroke in dose-response fashion. There was little evidence for a dose-response relationship between walking pace and stroke. Older men […]

Cholesterol levels: Are they really that important?

MICHAEL R EADES, MD. Is cholesterol the villain it is made out to be by the medical authorities? Does too much cholesterol cause heart disease? Will it shorten your life? Should you avoid saturated fats to stay free from heart disease? The answers to these questions are not the ones most people would anticipate. The […]

Vitamin/Mineral Supplements in Prevention of CV Disease and Cancer

SP Fortmann, BU Burda, CA Senger, JS Lin, EP Whitlock Ann. Intern. Med 2013 Nov 12;[EPub Ahead of Print] Consensus and Guidelines · December 05, 2013 TAKE-HOME MESSAGE This meta-analysis of primary prevention trials in individuals without known nutrition deficiencies did not find evidence of a significant effect of any vitamin/mineral supplements on cancer or cardiovascular […]

Treadmill Walking Speed and Survival Prediction in Men With Cardiovascular Disease

BMJ Open 2013 Oct 25;[EPub Ahead of Print], G Chiaranda, E Bernardi, L Codecà, F Conconi, J Myers, F Terranova, S Volpato, G Mazzoni, G Grazzi TAKE-HOME MESSAGE Can the walking speed maintained during a 1-km treadmill test predict survival in patients with cardiovascular disease? A group of 1255 stable cardiac patients, men aged 25 […]

Adding Pounds, Then New Knees

By LAURIE TARKAN November 11, 2013 Full Story:  http://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/well/2013/11/11/adding-pounds-then-new-knees/ In his mid-forties, Charles Carroll, a letter carrier in Shrewsbury, Mass., started taking anti-inflammatory medicine for his achy knees. Despite his young age, osteoarthritis had begun to settle in. Over the next decade, the pain became so bad that at times he had difficulty walking. Eventually […]

Associations among low back pain, income, and body mass index in Taiwan

Hsiao-Yun Hu, PhD The Spine Journal Volume 13, Issue 11, November 2013, Pages 1521–1526 Abstract Background context There is a lack of literature on the association of obesity with low back pain (LBP) in oriental countries. Furthermore, no research has explored whether higher socioeconomic status cushions obesity-related risk of LBP. Purpose This study aims to […]

Diagnostic indicators of non-cardiovascular chest pain

A systematic review and meta-analysis Maria M Wertli BMC Medicine 2013, 11:239 Published: 8 November 2013 Journal Abstract:  http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/11/239/abstract Abstract Background Non-cardiovascular chest pain (NCCP) has a high healthcare cost, but insufficient guidelines exist for its diagnostic investigation. The objective of the present work was to identify important diagnostic indicators and their accuracy for specific […]

Testosterone for ‘Low T’ Raises Death, MI, and Stroke Risk

IMNG Medical Media, 2013 Nov 05, MA Moon Full Story:  http://www.practiceupdate.com/news/3617 Testosterone therapy taken for “low T” raises the risk of mortality, myocardial infarction, and ischemic stroke, according to a report published online Nov. 5 in JAMA. The risk elevation is consistent in both men who have existing coronary artery disease and men who do […]

Coronary artery calcium (CAC) scores and dyslipidemia in relation to outcomes of cardiovascular disease

The CAC score was better correlated with cardiac events than cholesterol levels.

Gum Health Associated With Carotids?

Published: Nov 5, 2013 | Updated: Nov 6, 2013 By Todd Neale, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today Full Story:  http://www.medpagetoday.com/Cardiology/Atherosclerosis/42727 Action Points Previous studies have indicated that the burden of periodontal disease-causing bacteria was cross-sectionally related to increased carotid intima-media thickness. In this study, longitudinal improvement in clinical and microbial periodontal status was related to […]

Nighttime Apnea Therapy Eases Daytime HTN

Published: Nov 5, 2013 | Updated: Nov 6, 2013 By Crystal Phend, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today Full Story:  http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pulmonology/SleepDisorders/42734 Action Points Treating OSA modestly brought down some measures of resistant hypertension beyond what blood pressure medications could achieve alone. Note that the impact of CPAP on blood pressures in these patients with confirmed resistant […]

Treatment of Low Testosterone Tied to Higher Stroke Risk in Veterans

Published: Nov 5, 2013 | Updated: Nov 6, 2013 By Elizabeth DeVita Raeburn, Contributing Writer, MedPage Today Full Story:  http://www.medpagetoday.com/Endocrinology/GeneralEndocrinology/42735 Action Points In a retrospective study of a cohort of men in the Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare system who underwent coronary angiography and had a low serum testosterone level, the use of testosterone therapy […]

Coenzyme Q10 Supplementation Enhances Antioxidant Activity and Lowers Inflammation in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease on Statin Drug Therapy

Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation (300 mg/day) on antioxidation and anti-inflammation in coronary artery disease patients during statins therapy A randomized, placebo-controlled trial Lee BJ, Tseng YF, Yen CH, Lin PT. Abstract BACKGROUND: High oxidative stress and chronic inflammation can contribute to the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease (CAD). Coenzyme Q10 is an endogenous lipid-soluble […]

Afib May Spark MI

Afib is independently associated with an increased risk of incident myocardial infarction.

Healthy Diet, Healthy Aging

Pauline Anderson November 05, 2013 Full Story:  http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/813821 Middle-aged women following a healthy Mediterranean-type diet — with an emphasis on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fish, moderate amounts of alcohol, and little red meat — have much greater odds of healthy aging later on, a new study reports. “In this study, women with healthier dietary […]