Blood Pressure
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Prehypertension in young adulthood linked to coronary artery disease marker later in life
Ann Intern Med 2008; 149: 91-99 |
| People who develop prehypertension during young adulthood have an increased likelihood of coronary atherosclerosis later in life. |
Shift work could raise BP
Hypertension 2008; 52: 581-586 |
| Shift work may increase both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, a study of Japanese men suggests. |
Hypertensive US doctors benefit from moderate alcohol consumption
Am J Cardiol 2008; 102: 593-597 |
| A lower risk for heart failure has been documented in hypertensive doctors who consume no more than two alcoholic drinks a day relative to their peers who consume less than one drink per week. |
Adherence to antihypertensive medication investigated
Br Med J 2008; 336: 1114-1117 |
| About half of patients given antihypertensive medication stop their treatment within the first year, researchers highlight. |
Experts advocate focus on systolic BP in over 50s
The Lancet 2008; Advance online publication |
| Diagnosis and management of hypertension in people over the age of 50 years should be based on systolic blood pressure. |
Cardiac Rehabilitation
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Long term coronary disease management feasible, effective
J Cardiopulm Rehabil Prev 2008; 28: 180-186 |
| Long-term cardiac disease management programs are feasible and effective in an outpatient setting. |
Preventive care for high-risk CHD patients can be improved
Lancet 2008; 371: 1999-2012 |
| The implementation of the EUROACTION preventive cardiology intervention has shown that standards of preventive care in general hospitals and general practices across Europe can be improved. |
Children, Adolescents
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Diet impacts on cardiovascular risk factors in children
Prev Cardiol 2008; 11: 11-20 |
| The dietary intake of preschool children influences presence and severity of cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as serum lipids and body weight, over time. |
CVD Risk
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Depression and anxiety should be considered in determining patients' CHD risk
J Affect Disord 2008; 109: 177-181 |
| Depression and anxiety should be considered risk factors for coronary artery disease, say scientists after finding both conditions are associated with the incidence of acute myocardial infarction. |
Negative affect linked to CHD risk
BMJ 2008; Advance online publication |
| People with persistent negative mood may have an increased risk for coronary heart disease, research suggests |
Flu vaccination 'improves clinical course of CAD'
Eur Heart J 2008; 29: 1350-1358 |
| Vaccination against influenza does not prevent cardiovascular death but could reduce the risk for coronary ischemic events in patients with coronary artery disease. |
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Gout independently linked to CVD mortality
Arch Intern Med 2008; 168: 1104-1110
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| Gouty arthritis (gout) is associated with increased cardiovascular disease mortality in middle-aged men, especially those with hyperuricemia. |
Low vitamin D linked to cardiovascular, all-cause death
Arch Intern Med 2008; Advance online publication |
| People with low blood levels of vitamin D are at increased risk for death from cardiovascular causes and from any cause. |
QRISK2 outperforms modified Framingham risk score in UK population
Br Med J 2008; Advance online publication |
| A second version of the QRISK cardiovascular disease risk algorithm (QRISK2) is better able to identify high-risk patients than a modified version of the Framingham score |
Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome
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Low CRF linked to adverse inflammatory and lipid profile in Type 2 diabetes
Am J Cardiol 2008; Advance online publication |
| Men with Type 2 diabetes and low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) have high levels of inflammatory markers, fibrinolytic factors, and lipoprotein (Lp)(a). |
Diet, Nutrition
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Healthy diet reduces CVD and all-cause death in women
Circulation 2008; Advance online publication |
| Women who adhere to a healthy, "prudent" diet decrease their risk for cardiovascular disease and all-cause death, whereas women following a traditional "Western" diet increase their risk for these outcomes. |
Flavanol containing cocoa improves vascular function in diabetes
J Am Coll Cardiol 2008; 51: 2141-2149 |
| A diet rich in flavanol-containing cocoa can reverse vascular dysfunction in diabetic patients. |
Green tea improves blood vessel health
Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil 2008; 15: 300-305 |
| Drinking green tea has an immediate beneficial effect on blood vessel health. |
Red yeast rice extract reduces CV events and deaths
Am J Cardiol 2008; 101: 1689-1693 |
| Long-term treatment with a red yeast rice extract significantly reduces coronary events and deaths in patients with a previous myocardial infarction, a study of Chinese patients reveals. |
Inclusion of fish in weight-loss diet improves lipid profile
Int J Obes 2008; 32: 1105-1112 |
| Adherence to weight-loss diets including fish or fish oil supplementation improves lipid profiles and overall weight reduction in participants. |
Metabolically normal obesity more common than previously thought
Arch Intern Med 2008; 168: 1607-1608, 1609-1616, 1617-1624 |
| Metabolically normal obesity is more common than previously thought and may be partly due to low ectopic fat in the liver. |
Physical Activity
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Light to moderate leisure activity wards off AF
Circulation 2008; Advance online publication |
| Older adults can reduce their risk for developing atrial fibrillation by engaging in regular light or moderate leisure time physical activity. |
Self reported leisure time physical activity predicts CHD patients' survival
Am J Cardiol 2008; 102: 375-379 |
| Individuals with chronic stable coronary heart disease survive longer if they undertake strenuous physical exercise in their leisure time. |
More exercise than predicted needed for sustained weight loss
Arch Intern Med 2008; 168: 1550-1559 |
| Twice the currently recommended amount of physical activity - around 4.6 hours a week - accompanied by reduced energy intake, enable previously overweight or obese women to maintain a weight loss of 10% of their initial body weight. |
Physical exertion intensity modulates impact on AMI risk
Eur Heart J 2008; 29: 1881-1888 |
| Physical exertion is significantly associated with the triggering of acute myocardial infarction in a graded exposure-response manner, findings that have implications for the guidance of at-risk individuals. |
Endurance training improves cardiac glucose metabolism in elderly
Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 2008; Advance online publication |
| Endurance exercise training increases myocardial glucose uptake during cardiac stress in elderly men and women. |
Smoking
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Smoke free law reduces national ACS admissions
N Engl J Med 2008; 359: 482-491 |
| Smoke-free legislation in Scotland led to a 17% fall in the number of hospital admissions for acute coronary syndrome, say researchers who found that both smokers and nonsmokers benefited from the ban on smoking in public places. |
Smoking cessation may add 3 years to post-CABG survival
Am Heart J 2008; 156: 473-746 |
| Coronary patients who smoke can potentially add 3 years to their life expectancy after coronary artery bypass grafting by quitting the habit. |
Smoking cessation rapidly reduces vascular mortality risk in women
JAMA 2008; 299: 2037-2047 |
| Women who smoke have an increased risk for vascular mortality, but this is eliminated once they give up. |
Toenail nicotine levels predict CHD in women
Am J Epidemiol 2008; 167: 1342-1348 |
| Levels of nicotine in toenails can help predict risk for coronary heart disease, a large case-control study in women shows. |
Varia
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Poor sleep predicts prehypertension in healthy adolescents
Circulation 2008; Advance online publication |
| Study findings suggest that inadequate sleep quality is associated with prehypertension in healthy adolescents. |
Sleep disordered breathing linked to LV hypertrophy, dysfunction
Circulation 2008; 117: 2599-2607 |
| Patients with sleep-disordered breathing are more likely to have left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy and dysfunction than individuals without this sleep disorder. |
Coronary heart disease linked to poor cognitive function in late middle age
Eur Heart J 2008; Advance online publication |
| People with a history of coronary heart disease have reduced cognitive function in late middle age compared with those without any history of the condition. |