CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS IN MIDLIFE MAY BE LINKED TO RISK OF DEATH FROM HEART DISEASE

The Los Angeles Times (1/26, Kaplan) "Booster Shots" blog reports, "They're called 'risk factors' for a reason – people with high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and/or a smoking habit are much more likely to have heart attacks, strokes and other manifestations of cardiovascular disease, including death," according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

WebMD (1/26, Nierenberg) reports that investigators "analyzed data from more than 250,000 adults at ages 45, 55, 65, and 75 over a 50-year period."

HealthDay (1/26, Reinberg) reports, "Using the four cardiovascular risk factors, the researchers estimated the lifetime risks of cardiovascular disease, heart attack and stroke."

MedPage Today (1/26, Phend) reports, "Two or more major risk factors at age 55 predicted a 29.6% chance of death from cardiovascular disease by age 80 for men and 20.5% for women." However, "for 55-year-olds with a clean bill of cardiovascular health, lifetime risk was only 4.7% for men and 6.4% for women."

HeartWire (1/26, Miller) reports that "the trends shown in the study were similar for both white and black people and did not change across the diverse birth-year cohorts."

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

FRUCTOSE CONSUMPTION MAY BE LINKED TO EVIDENCE OF HEART DISEASE IN TEENS

HealthDay (1/28, Preidt) reported, "Teens who consume large amounts of the food and beverage sweetener fructose show evidence of cardiovascular disease and diabetes risk in their blood," according to a study published in the Journal of Nutrition. The "study of 559 teens aged 14 to 18 found that diets high in fructose were associated with higher blood pressure; diabetes-related measures such as higher fasting glucose and insulin resistance; and inflammatory factors that contribute to heart and vascular disease." Researchers found that "teens who consumed large amounts of fructose also tended to have lower levels of cardiovascular protectors such as HDL...cholesterol and the protein adiponectin."

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS MAY BE LINKED TO REDUCED AFIB RISK

Reuters (2/2) reports that, according to a study published in Circulation, older individuals with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids may face a lower risk of developing atrial fibrillation (Afib). The researchers looked at blood samples from approximately 3,300 individuals

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

BLOOD PRESSURE VARIATION BETWEEN ARMS MAY BE LINKED TO CARDIOVASCULAR RISK

MedPage Today (1/30, Phend) reports, "A substantial difference in blood pressure from one arm to the other could be a warning sign for overall cardiovascular and mortality risk," according to a meta-analysis published online in The Lancet. Investigators found that "a systolic pressure difference of 15 mm Hg or more between the right and left arm was linked to a 70% elevated risk of death from cardiovascular causes (P=0.01)." The researchers reported that "that pressure differential also pointed to a 60% higher likelihood of dying from any cause (P=0.02)."

HealthDay (1/30, Reinberg) reports, "It makes no difference which arm has the higher or lower pressure, it's the difference between them that matters, the study authors said." BBC News (1/30) also covers the story

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

STROKES ON THE RISE AMONG YOUNG, MIDDLE-AGED

The AP (1/31) reports that strokes "can happen at any age, even to children - and they're on the rise among the young and middle-aged." Government data indicate that "nationwide, hospitalization rates for ischemic strokes have jumped by about a third among people ages 15 to 44 over the past decade."

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

STATINS MAY BENEFIT WOMEN AS MUCH AS MEN

ABC World News (1/30, story 8, 2:15, Sawyer) reported that "for the first time a study proves statins are as effective in preventing heart attacks in women as well as men."

On its website, ABC News (1/31) reports that investigators "reviewed 18 randomized controlled trials that included more than 140,000 patients."
HeartWire (1/31, O'Riordan) reports, "Ten of the studies were secondary-prevention studies, and eight studies were designed as primary-prevention trials, although five of the primary-prevention studies did include a proportion of patients with cardiovascular disease."

HealthDay (1/31, Reinberg) reports that the research, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, indicated that "for both males and females," statins "lowered the risk of a heart attack by about 20 percent." In the past, some believed "that statins...benefited women less than men."

MedPage Today (1/31, Neale) reports, however, that in an accompanying editorial, "Lori Mosca, MD, PhD, of Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, urged caution, noting that the analysis focused on relative risk reduction, had a limited number of primary prevention trials, and had a limited assessment of the costs and risks of statin therapy."

POSTED BY Steven Almany, MD

DR. STEVEN ALMANY SPEAKS ABOUT STUDENT HEART CHECKS

Jeff Riger from 97.1 The Ticket, interviews Dr. Steven Almany on pioneering the Student Heart Check at Beaumont Hospital.

MICHIGAN HEART GROUP'S PHYSICIAN LIAISON IS HERE TO HELP YOU

Michigan Heart Group has a Physician Liaison on staff to assist with questions, concerns or problems you, your staff or your patients may have with our office.

Stacie Batur is available Monday through Thursday at (248) 267-5050 (x6509). She is often between two buildings or visiting referring physician offices. If you get her voice mail, please leave a message and she will call you back shortly. If you need to speak to her immediately you can reach her on her cell phone at (248) 765-4466.