Protein reverses damage caused by heart attack

The protein molecule Thymosin beta-4 (TB4) has been found to encourage new growth and repair damaged heart cells in mice, within 24 hours after it is injected. "This molecule has the potential to reprogramme cells in the body to get them to do what you want them to do," said J. Michael DiMaio, associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern (UT-S) and senior author of the study. The study will appear in the Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. - New Kerala

High BP worrisome in expectant moms

"Women who experience increased blood pressure during pregnancy are more vulnerable to developing cardiovascular diseases when young. Gestational hypertension is high blood pressure that develops after the twentieth week of pregnancy, affecting blood flow to organs such as the placenta, kidneys, brain and liver. According to a study published in Hypertension, gestational hypertension is strongly correlated to early cardiac events in pregnant women.
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UTS Health

UTS Health - A free web service that allows you to keep tracks of your blood pressure readings, diabetes stats, and body weight records. Provides you with statistics that will give you a good picture of your health. You can also share you experiences with other fellow users

Study links heart disease deaths with high lead levels in blood

"New research indicates that older women with high levels of lead in their blood are likely to die sooner from heart disease than those with lower lead levels, Reuters reported. The 12-year study followed 533 women aged 65 to 87 years old and showed that those women with lead concentrations above 8 micrograms per deciliter of blood were 59 percent more likely to die of any cause. They were also three times more likely to die of heart disease than women with lower blood lead levels, the study said. Dr. Naila Khalil of University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and colleagues wrote in BioMed Central's online journal Environmental Health that environmental lead exposure continues to be a public health concern, despite declines in blood lead concentrations during the past 30 years." - redOrbit

Genetic Information Service (UK)

"Around 500 young people die suddenly each year with seemingly no explanation or cause of death, leaving families devastated and bewildered. The British Heart Foundation and Department of Health's new Genetic Information Service helps relatives deal with the consequences of losing a loved one to an inherited heart condition. This service supports bereaved families get an assessment by experts in an appropriate clinic. This could potentially save hundreds of lives by detecting and treating an inherited heart condition in other family members. If someone in your family has been diagnosed with or died from an inherited heart condition call GIS on 0300 456 8383. Lines are open from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday (calls are charged at local rate)." - BHF

Can Brown Fat Make You Thin?

"By activating the brown fat in your body, you could lose 9 pounds or more of bad white fat every year - without having to eat less or exercise more. Until recently, scientists thought adults didn't have brown fat. They thought it was there to help babies keep their bodies warm and went away as the body became more muscular. But three new studies in the New England Journal of Medicine now show that more than half of adult men and women have enough brown fat in their bodies to burn off substantial amounts of white fat - if the brown fat somehow is stimulated" - WebMD

WSMV-TV anchor Dan Miller dies

"Dan Miller, one of Nashville's legendary television broadcasters, died of an apparent heart attack Wednesday while visiting family in Augusta, Georgia, according to family. According to WSMV, Miller was in Augusta to watch The Masters golf tournament. The Emmy Award winning journalist had been a fixture at WSMV-TV Channel 4, since 1969. After spending 16 years as primary news anchor and seven years hosting the enormously popular "Miller & Company" talk show, Dan left in 1986 to become principal anchor at KCBS in Los Angeles. After returning to Nashville in 1992, Dan resurrected his talk show "Miller & Company" on The Nashville Network. Prior to Nashville and Los Angeles, Dan worked at stations in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, and in Columbia, SC. Dan is survived by his wife, Karen, and has four children and two grandchildren."

Towards a natural pacemaker

Artificial heart pacemakers have saved and extended the lives of thousands of people, but they have their shortcomings - such as a fixed pulse rate and a limited life. Could a permanent biological solution be possible? Richard Robinson and colleagues at New York's Columbia and Stony Brook Universities certainly think so, and their work published in the latest issue of The Journal of Physiology brings the dream a step closer to reality - Physorg.com

Israel to treat Nigerian children with heart diseases

"The Israeli Embassy in Nigeria has commenced a programme that would ensure that poor Nigerian children with heart diseases are flown to Israel for treatment. Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, the Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Moshe Ram, said the children would be identified and attended to on a case-by-case basis within the limits of the embassy's resources. He said the embassy would be working with an Israeli-based foundation, Save A Child's Heart, which had already helped over 2,000 children with heart diseases from 30 countries."

Distance from grocery store determines weight: Study

"Want to lose weight? Move closer to a grocery store. A new study from the University of British Columbia shows people who live within a kilometre of a grocery store are half as likely to be overweight, compared to those living in neighbourhoods without grocery stores. The study shows that old-style urban planning that mixes retail with residential zones gets people out of their cars, onto the sidewalks, and helps them keep their weight down. And if one grocery store is good, two or more is even better, the report released Monday showed." - Star Phoenix

Heart and Stroke Foundation's Novel and Exploratory Research Fund (Canada)

"Frederick Banting proved that sometimes you just have to follow your instincts. He had an idea about isolating part of the pancreas and, toiling in a Toronto lab in the long hot summer of 1921 with his assistant Charles Best, came up with insulin. Within a year of his discovery, diabetes ceased to be a death sentence for millions of people. The Heart and Stroke Foundation has always supported the kind of imaginative and innovative work that Banting and Best personified. That support has been formalized with the creation of the Foundation's Novel and Exploratory Research Fund (NERF) to help some of our most accomplished medical minds follow well-informed hunches. 'We know these researchers are brilliant because our review committees have rated them as leaders in their fields,' says Linda Piazza, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada director of research. 'The idea is to give them a chance to develop an idea that – if it works – could change the world.' The one-year award will allow innovators to test out bold new ideas. Three awards were granted this year" - HSF

Rally to put single payer healthcare on the table (USA)

CNA/NNOC Co-president, Geri Jenkins and other healthcare leaders addressed hundreds of nurses, physicians, school employees, clergy, seniors, patients at a rally this week outside a Los Angeles White House Forum on Healthcare Reform to strongly urge a real debate over single-payer/universal healthcare:

Wiley-Blackwell and the American Heart Association present new book series

The American Heart Association has partnered with Wiley-Blackwell to publish a new series of medical references, The American Heart Association Clinical Series, designed to help physicians translate scientific and technological advances into better patient care

Heart Failure Congress 2009

"Heart failure is by far the most prevalent chronic cardiac condition. Around 30 million people in Europe have heart failure and its incidence is still increasing: more cases are being identified, more people are living to an old age, and more are surviving a heart attack but with damage to the heart muscle. According to Professor John McMurray, President of the Heart Failure Association of the ESC, it was not long ago that acute heart failure admissions were "overwhelming" hospitals, but the better identification of symptoms as indicative of heart failure - and thus their more appropriate treatment - have brought about dramatic improvements. "We have seen a 40-50 per cent reduction in mortality rates in a short time," he says, "and this is mainly because of better diagnosis and better treatment. The trick is to identify the right patient and deliver the right treatment." However, despite the improvements, there are still huge challenges in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart failure. These will all be addressed at Heart Failure 2009, the annual congress of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology, which takes place in Nice, France, from 30 May to 2 June"

Video seems to show police-shove before death (UK)

An investigation into a man's death during protests against the G-20 meeting of leaders in London will assess video footage that appears to show police shoving him to the ground, Britain's police watchdog said Tuesday. Ian Tomlinson, 47, died after suffering a heart attack, a post-mortem examination showed. He collapsed among the protesters who had thronged London's financial district on April 1.

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