Clinical Research Imaging Centre opens in Edinburgh, Scotland

"A cutting-edge medical scanning centre has opened at University of Edinburgh. Opened by the Duke of Edinburgh, the British Heart Foundation invested GBP3 million in the centre to give researchers a vital window on heart disease. Scientists at the Clinical Research Imaging Centre - which cost GBP20 million in total - will use the technology to uncover the secrets of the heart. The BHF-funded magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner uses magnets and sophisticated computer technology to provide highly detailed, instant, real-time moving images of the inside of the body, without using radiation"

Obese teenagers 'show signs of heart disease' (Canada)

"The blood vessels of obese teenagers look more like those found in middle-aged people, say Canadian researchers. A study of 63 children, whose average age was 13, found signs of "stiffening" in the aorta - the largest artery in the body. The British Columbia Children's Hospital team said it was an early indicator of heart disease. The British Heart Foundation described child obesity as a "ticking public health time bomb". One of the key changes in heart disease is the hardening of arteries supplying blood to the heart. The rate of childhood obesity has rocketed in the last two decades and continues to increase, leading to fears that younger and younger people will fall prey to heart attacks and strokes, as well as other diseases such as Type 2 diabetes."

New heart valve procedure promising for high-risk patient (Canada)

"Cardiologists have unveiled a new heart valve procedure for patients considered too sick, old or frail to survive a tough operation that splits their chests open. The procedure was revealed Monday at Canadian Cardiovascular Congress taking place in Montreal. Normally, half such high-risk patients - age 80 and over - would die within a year because their diseased aortic valves have worn out and they cannot have open-heart surgery. But placing a new valve through an artery in the leg has yielded dramatic results, opening doors to what experts suggest will become a new gold standard of care for aging boomer hearts in the next decade. Not only are these patients walking about the very same day of their transcatheter valve-replacement procedure, but most go home within three to four days, Australian interventional cardiologist Ronen Gurvitch said Monday after his presentation" - Montreal Gazette

CARG Newsletter - November 2010

The CARG Newsletter - November 2010 is now available online

Heart and Stroke Foundation stresses one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to resuscitation (Canada)

"New emergency care guidelines simplify performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and highlight the need for high-quality CPR by addressing some of the barriers to performing CPR. The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, co-author of the 2010 Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC), released the guidelines October 18, 2010. The updated resuscitation guidelines have effectively mapped out a process of care based on the skill set of the rescuer, the situation and the resources available to respond. 'In the past we limited ourselves by making the approach to resuscitation the same across all types of patients, all types of settings, and all types of rescuers,' says Dr. Andrew Travers, chair of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada's policy advisory committee on resuscitation and one of the expert co-authors of the 2010 guidelines. 'We recognize that one size no longer fits all when it comes to CPR.' The new guidelines stress early recognition, urging people to call 9-1-1 or their local emergency number if they ever find someone collapsed and unresponsive, and not to delay by 'looking, listening and feeling' for breathing or pulse. They also recommend that instead of trying to remember how many compressions and how many breaths, bystanders doing CPR are urged simply to “push fast and push hard.'

Hold the salt, WHO tells Canada

"They fought the H1N1 flu pandemic to a draw. Now the World Health Organization is taking on a project every bit as challenging - convincing Canadians to hold the salt. This week, Calgary hosted the second of three WHO conferences on Population Sodium Reduction Strategies, bringing global policy-makers, experts and food industry representatives as well as Canadian government officials together for the two-day event. The conference ended Wednesday and looked at ways to assess salt consumption and evaluate programs aimed at reducing sodium intake. 'Countries need to know how much salt is consumed, where in the diet the salt comes from and how to determine the effectiveness of national programs to reduce salt,' said Dr. Norm Campbell, co-chairman of the conference and University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine professor. Canadians eat a lot of sodium, noted Campbell, and it doesn't just come from the salt shaker in the middle of the table. Processed food is a major culprit and is found in everything from pizza to cereal to condiments. 'When we start to look at high blood pressure, salt is one of the main causes,' said Campbell. 'It's been estimated by the World Health Organization that high blood pressure is the leading risk for death around the world'

Low cholesterol, depression linked (Netherlands)

"Low cholesterol levels may have a big downside: severe depression, scientists say. A study of 260 men from the Netherlands shows those with chronically low cholesterol readings are more likely to suffer symptoms of severe depression. The study appears in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine. Researchers divided the 40- to 70-year-old men into those who had low cholesterol and those who maintained a slightly more moderate level. The study shows the relative risk of having severe depressive symptoms was four to seven times higher in the men with chronically low cholesterol levels. Researchers found no difference, however, in the levels of hostility or impulsiveness in either group. Recent weight loss and lower calorie intake also are associated with a higher risk of depressive symptoms, the researchers say. Dr. Diederick Grobbee, chairman of the Julius Center for Patient Oriented Research, University Medical Center, Utrecht, The Netherlands, says there are few studies in this area. He adds because there is so little research, the reasons low cholesterol influences the depressive symptoms remain unknown"

Early anti-smoking advocate: King James I of England?

"According to an article in the British Medical Journal, King James I of England was an early anti-smoking advocate. Published anonymously in 1604, but then credited to the king, his Counterblaste to Tobacco stated that smoking was a:

...custome lothsome to the eye, hatefull to the Nose, harmefull to the braine, daungerous to the Lungs, and in the blacke stinking fume thereof, neerest resembling the horrible Stigian smoke of the pit that is bottomlesse.

Comparing smoking to the smoky fires of hell is pretty strong stuff, but, as the BMJ's Wendy Moore points out, his advice would go unheeded for centuries"

Double Down packs a punch as it heads north (Canada)

It's a meaty monster that can make even the bravest fast-food fanatic turn chicken - and health and nutrition experts have their doubts whether Canada really is down with the Double Down. As what is arguably the world's most infamous sandwich makes its debut north of the border, dieticians and academics hope Canadians give KFC's bunless concoction - two slabs of seasoned fried chicken sandwiching bacon, cheese and secret sauce - a wide berth, lest they get wider themselves. The Double Down's 540 calories, 30 grams of fat and (ulp) 1,740 milligrams of sodium is likely to leave Canuck consumers doubled over in discomfort more than anything else, said Susan Barr, a professor of food nutrition at the University of British Columbia. "The sodium is extraordinarily high," said Barr, who's also a fellow with the Dieticians of Canada. The average adult's daily salt intake should be closer to 1,500 mg, she added - a threshold the Double Down exceeds in one single salty supper" - The Canadian Press

NSU researcher makes breakthrough discovery to curb heart failure (USA)

"A Nova Southeastern University researcher has announced a breakthrough discovery to block a protein that can contribute to heart failure. His discovery will appear in an upcoming issue of the prestigious medical journal, the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Anastasios Lymperopoulos, Ph.D., an NSU College of Pharmacy assistant professor of pharmacology, has discovered a novel method, using gene therapy, to block the actions of a gene-encoded protein. That protein, known as beta-arrestin 1, causes an increase of aldosterone production from the body’s adrenal glands into the blood. Aldosterone is a hormone. It increases the reabsorption of sodium and water into the kidneys, causing high blood volume and blood pressure. It also has several direct damaging effects on the heart, such as fibrosis, hypertrophy, and inflammation. An increase in blood volume causes high blood pressure. This in turn decreases the pumping action of the heart, and is one of the causes of heart failure"

Walking may keep brain from shrinking in old age

"Walking at least six miles (10 km) a week may be one thing people can do to keep their brains from shrinking and fight off dementia, U.S. researchers said. A study of nearly 300 people in Pittsburgh who kept track of how much they walked each week showed that those who walked at least six miles (10 km) had less age-related brain shrinkage than people who walked less. "Brain size shrinks in late adulthood, which can cause memory problems. Our results should encourage well-designed trials of physical exercise in older adults as a promising approach for preventing dementia and Alzheimer's disease," said Kirk Erickson of the University of Pittsburgh, whose study appears in the journal Neurology. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, slowly kills off brain cells, and activities like walking have been shown to build brain volume. Erickson and colleagues tested to see if people who walk a lot might be better positioned to fight off the disease. They studied 299 volunteers who were free of dementia and who kept track of how much they walked"

Florida State study finds watermelon lowers blood pressure (USA)

"No matter how you slice it, watermelon has a lot going for it - sweet, low calorie, high fibre, nutrient rich - and now, there's more. Evidence from a pilot study led by food scientists at The Florida State University suggests that watermelon can be an effective natural weapon against prehypertension, a precursor to cardiovascular disease. It is the first investigation of its kind in humans. FSU Assistant Professor Arturo Figueroa and Professor Bahram H. Arjmandi found that when six grams of the amino acid L-citrulline/L-arginine from watermelon extract was administered daily for six weeks, there was improved arterial function and consequently lowered aortic blood pressure in all nine of their prehypertensive subjects (four men and five postmenopausal women, ages 51-57). 'We are the first to document improved aortic hemodynamics in prehypertensive but otherwise healthy middle-aged men and women receiving therapeutic doses of watermelon,' Figueroa said. 'These findings suggest that this 'functional food' has a vasodilatory effect, and one that may prevent prehypertension from progressing to full-blown hypertension, a major risk factor for heart attacks and strokes" - Science Centric

Low beta blocker dose can put patients at risk for subsequent heart attacks (USA)

"For nearly 40 years a class of drugs known as beta blockers have been proven to increase patients' survival prospects following a heart attack by decreasing the cardiac workload and oxygen demand on the heart. In a breakthrough study released in the American Heart Journal, Northwestern Medicine cardiologist Jeffrey J. Goldberger found the majority of patients are frequently not receiving a large enough dose of these drugs, which can put their recovery from heart attacks and overall health into peril. "Only 46% of patients studied were taking 50% or more of the target dose of beta blockers shown to be beneficial in clinical trials," said Goldberger, director of cardiac electrophysiology research for the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute of Northwestern Memorial Hospital and a professor of medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. "Furthermore, 76% of patients were still being treated with the same amount of medication given at discharge. This means that for the vast majority of patients, there wasn't even an attempt to increase their dose." Goldberger added that patients not getting the right amount of beta blockers is a problem nationwide. "Beta blockers work to keep patients alive after a heart attack, so proper dosing of beta blockers can save many lives," said Goldberger. Northwestern Memorial was one of 19 sites that participated in the PACEmaker and Beta-blocker Therapy Post-Myocardial Infarction (PACEMI) Trial Registry. Nearly 2,000 patients, who had been treated for a heart attack, were enrolled across the sites" - EurekAlert

Hospitalization costs explode with terminal heart patients: Alberta study

"A new study examining the high cost of dying in Alberta - the first of its kind in Canada - suggests the final weeks of the lives of terminal cardiac patients cost the health system more than five times the per-capita cost of health care in the province, most of it due to hospitalization. The numbers, according to contributing author and University of Alberta cardiologist Justin Ezekowitz, point to the need for a broader dialogue about how victims of terminal heart conditions wish to spend their remaining days. "Rather than dying in ICU setting or in hospital, where would you prefer to die? Planning ahead is key," Ezekowitz said. The article, in the current edition of Archives of Internal Medicine, examined the end-of-life costs among heart failure patients 65 years and older in Alberta

Heart problems are a silent killer of children (USA)

"Nearly 300 Michiganders younger than 40 die each year of sudden cardiac death, with African-American males dying at 2 1/2 times the rate of others. The Michigan Department of Community Health, which completed a study last year looking into the deaths, is now turning to parents and schools to help prevent others. Although sudden cardiac death is not limited to athletes, one of the department's efforts is aimed at high school athletes. Officials say some risks for cardiac arrest can be detected with more thorough screenings of athletes or a deeper examination of genetic history, said Debra Duquette, who directed the review for the health department"