Cardiology

People with type 2 diabetes had significantly fewer heart attacks, strokes, heart failures, and deaths from cardiovascular disease when their blood pressure was lower than the current standard goal, a UT Southwestern Medical Center researcher and his colleagues found. The research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, offers evidence for developing new clinical guidelines for improving cardiovascular health in this growing population.

Patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE), an autoimmune disease that causes skin inflammation, have a higher risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), or hardening of the arteries, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers found. Their study, published in JAMA Dermatology, suggests CLE patients should be screened early for heart disease.

In a recently published article in the journal Stroke, corresponding author, Bernadette Boden-Albala, MPH, DrPH, founding dean and professor of health, society, and behavior at the UC Irvine Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health, shares important tools to achieve health equity, including the power and effectiveness of community-engaged research.

Researchers have developed a new software tool that provides unprecedented capabilities to see inside 3D images. Its interactive, dynamic cutaway views allowed them to analyze never-before-seen dynamics of embryonic mouse heart development using optical coherence tomography (OCT) images.

A research team in the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, LKS Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), found that hip fractures not only result in both physical and psychological injuries, but may also induce adverse cardiovascular events. In particular, hip fracture patients with pre-existing cardiac conditions are associated with a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular events (CVEs) and mortality, poorer prognosis, and greater health service utilization.

A study has revealed a significant link between a common pregnancy complication and early heart disease in women. The study is published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

For patients referred for peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs), the risk for device failure is not lower with hydrophobic or chlorhexidine PICCs versus standard polyurethane ones, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

For overweight or obese individuals without diabetes, but with pre-existing cardiovascular disease, semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) is not cost-effective at current pricing, new research shows. However, with price reductions or rebates up to 50%, it could meet the benchmark for value in health care.

Gender-based racism through microaggressions may be linked to higher blood pressure postpartum and beyond, according to research published in Hypertension.