Cardiology

A new analysis of several prospective health studies indicates that low testosterone levels at any age are associated with an increased risk ischemic stroke in men.

This 27-year old female medical student with recently diagnosed hypertension is seen following a chest x-ray in work up of a positive PPD. Upon questioning, the patient notes what she described as "gray-out spells" when tired and leg numbness with exercise after periods of sitting.

Just weeks after JAMA published a National Institutes of Health study refuting the idea that there are "good carbs" and "bad carbs' a new study in the journal finds eating whole grains is associated with lower overall mortality and death from heart disease

With a new year comes New Year's resolutions, many of which involve getting healthy in the year ahead. A recent study has shown that by keeping those resolutions people can not only lose the weight they want but also avoid other health issues like diabetes.

A 75 year-old man with a history of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and a single-chamber pacemaker placed for bradycardia 5 years prior presents with dizziness and nausea to clinic. He notes that he has also been feeling short of breath with normal activities of daily living.

Eating a low carbohydrate diet compared to a low fat diet leads to greater loss of weight as well as a significant reduction in Framingham Risk Score.

Researchers from Vanderbilt University have developed a new tool for deciding when hospitals should admit patients with symptomatic atrial fibrillation and when they should send them home.

In the second part of an interview with Kim Van Naarden Braun, PhD, the screening process used in New Jersey is discussed at the national level.

This limited systematic review found some evidence of benefit of e-cigarettes for smoking cessation and little evidence of significant adverse outcomes.

A 35 year-old man with a history of hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea and obesity presents to clinic with complaints of non-cardiac chest discomfort. He is requesting refills of his blood pressure medications. His insurance changed 6 months ago and he has not had them since. The nurse performs the intake vital signs and reports that the patient has a blood pressure of 280/150 mmHg.

Cardiologists have discussed the pros and cons of drug-eluting stents (DES) for several years. Some evidence seems to indicate that DES reduce risk of restenosis or ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization. They may, however, be more prone than bare metal stents to late (beyond 1 year) and sudden coronary artery occlusion.

The ESC Congress 2014 was one of the largest meetings in the history of the society, with more than 30,300 delegates in attendance at 27 clinical Hot Line presentations; 15 clinical trial updates; 19 registry studies; 4 new guidelines; and 4597 abstracts presented. Cardiology Review profiles 7 presentations.

Also known as alternate day fasting, "zigzag" caloric cycling calls for the dieter to eat the number of calories required to maintain weight one day, and then 25% of his or her energy needs on the fast day. Studies have shown that individuals who are compliant with this pattern can lose 4% to 8% of their body weight over 8 to 12 weeks.

Does this study raise more questions than it answers?

When cocaine users seek medical attention at a hospital regularly used scans may miss some hidden damage done to the patient's heart. A new study looked at other areas that could help maintain their longterm health.

Many people could be more active in their daily lives. The question for physicians is: How do you make that happen, especially for children and adolescents? A recent study provides clues about how to help patients maintain a healthy lifestyle.

For patients suffering a first-time cardiac event there could be warning signs in the form of a condition called vital exhaustion. A recent study looked at the causes and signs of vital exhaustion and potential preventive measures and treatments for these patients.

The most common cause of sudden cardiac death in young people is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, an inherited condition that can lead to heart failure, angina, arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death. There is no medical treatment shown to halt or reverse the progression of the disease-just palliative care or surgery.

Undetected neonatal heart defects can cause a variety of serious problems, including an increased risk of death. A recently enacted New Jersey law mandating screening for congenital heart defects has uncovered cases of congenital heart problems and likely saved lives.

Kirk Garratt, MD, presenting at the 2014 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, said "The TAXUS Liberte Post-approval Study (TL-PAS) was designed to provide long-term safety and efficacy information about the clinical outcomes for the TL stent combined with the use of prasugrel and aspirin."

Could hospitals be a bad place to have heart attacks? That's the finding of a North Carolina research team that looked at data from 303 California hospitals. Patients who had heart attacks while hospitalized for a non-cardiac ailment had a more than 3-fold greater in-hospital mortality than patients taken to a hospital.

Affecting just one in every 100,000 people, ANCA-associated vasculitis is not one of the more common conditions nephrologists will encounter. However, without proper treatment it can have serious adverse effects on a patient's life.