WEIGHT LIFTING MAY REDUCE TYPE 2 DIABETES RISK IN MEN

ABC World News (8/6, story 8, 0:20, Stephanopoulos) reported, "And in healthy living, a new way to reduce the risk of diabetes: A study by Harvard School of Public Health" published online August 6 in the Archives of Internal Medicine "found that men who lift weights at least two and a half hours per week decrease their risk of getting type 2 diabetes by a third."

 

CardioSource (8/7) reports that "the risk of T2DM [type 2 diabetes mellitus] was lowered by 13 percent for every 60 minutes of weight training per week. There was a stronger association of weight training and T2DM risk in men under the age of 65 as well as in men with no family history of T2DM." 

 

POSTED BY:  Steven Almany M.D.

RED MEAT CONSUMPTION MAY BE LINKED TO INCREASED RISK OF STROKE

MedPage Today (8/7, Neale) reports, "Eating red meat -- including beef, pork, lamb, ham, hot dogs, sausage, and bacon -- may increase the risk of stroke," according to a meta-analysis published online in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. Investigators found that "each one-serving-per-day increase in fresh, processed, and total red meat intake was associated with an 11% to 13% relative increase in the risk of all strokes, driven by an increase in the risk of ischemic stroke." But, the investigators reported, "there was...no relationship between red meat consumption and hemorrhagic stroke risk."

 

POSTED BY:Steven Almany M.D.

SHAPE OF LEFT ATRIAL APPENDAGE MAY BE LINKED TO STROKE RISK IN AFIB PATIENTS

 "The shape of the left atrial appendage may have something to do with the risk of ischemic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation," according to a study that was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Researchers found that "of the four shapes characterized by researchers, the one called Chicken Wing carried a 79% decreased risk of stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA)." The investigators reported that, "compared with Chicken Wing, the other three shapes were four to eight times more likely to be associated with stroke or TIA." 

POSTED BY:  Steven Almany M.D.

MICHIGAN HEART GROUP INTERGRATES WITH WILLIAM BEAUMONT HOSPITAL

On June 1, 2012 a change occurred at Michigan Heart Group we became integrated with William Beaumont Hospital in the form of a Professional Services Agreement. Our signage will soon read Beaumont Michigan Heart Group, Beaumont Michigan Heart Rhythm Group and Beaumont Western Wayne Heart Group.

This professional agreement will integrate some of the services that we provide with the hospital as well as some of our operations including our outpatient testing and billing, but will allow Michigan Heart Group to maintain operational control of the practice. Management of these operations still occurs locally within Michigan Heart Group. We have not experienced that these changes with Beaumont have disrupted any of the services that you currently receive from your physician.

We believe that with this integration model, we will be best able to provide you with the high quality of care that you have come to expect and deserve from our practice. All of our physicians will continue practicing from their current locations and your records will remain available to your physician without any further actions taken on your part. This is intended to be essentially a transparent change to you, the patient, in terms of how your care is delivered. Such a change has been made necessary after we have experienced years of progressive cuts in insurance reimbursement while our fixed costs have steadily increased. The status quo was no longer a viable option for the future.

You will notice changes specific to billing. Beaumont will bill applicable charges to your insurance. You will receive a billing statement from Beaumont rather than from Michigan Heart Group. You may still call Michigan Heart Group for billing inquiries however questions/determinations will be advised and directed by Beaumont.

We value your loyalty and trust that you have placed in our physicians and staff over the past several years and we continue to look forward to serving you in the future. As we indicated above, we believe that most of these changes will be transparent to your healthcare needs. If you have any questions, please contact our administrator, Darlene Nichols at 248-267-5050, select option 2.

Thank you for choosing Michigan Heart Group, in affiliation with William Beaumont Hospital for your healthcare services. We look forward to serving you now and in the future.

Very truly yours,

Beaumont Michigan Heart Group

The cardiovascular benefits of taking statins outweigh the risk of diabetes, even in high risk individuals, according to a study published on Aug. 9 in The Lancet.

The study, the first placebo-controlled statin trial to formally report an increased risk of developing diabetes, found "in individuals with one or more risk factors, statin allocation was associated with a 39 percent reduction in the primary endpoint, a 36 percent reduction in venous thromboembolism, a 17 percent reduction in total mortality, and a 28 percent increase in diabetes." Whereas in individuals with "no major diabetes risk factors, statin allocation was associated with a 52 percent reduction in the primary endpoint, a 53 percent reduction in venous thromboembolism, a 22 percent reduction in total mortality, and no increase in diabetes."

By comparison with placebo, statins accelerated the average time to diagnosis of diabetes by 5•4 weeks (84•3 [SC 47•8] weeks on rosuvastatin vs. 89•7 [50•4] weeks on placebo, the authors add. 

 

The trial, called JUPITER, was a randomized, double-blind trial that looked at 17,603 men and women without previous cardiovascular disease or diabetes over five years. As previous studies have suggested that statins increase risk of development of diabetes, which have led to recent regulatory changes, the authors aimed to "address the balance of vascular benefits and diabetes hazard of statin use."

 

In an editorial comment, Gerald F. Watts and Esther M. Ooi from the Cardiometabolic Research Centre and Clinical Services at the Royal Perth Hospital in Perth, Australia, note, "these findings reaffirm the net value of statins in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease, but intuitively caution that the diabetogenic effect of these drugs is highest in individuals with risk factors for diabetes, including raised C-reactive protein."

POSTED BY:  Steven Almany M.D.

ADDING CLOPIDOGREL TO DAILY ASPIRIN MAY NOT REDUCE RISK OF SECOND STROKE

HealthDay (8/30, Reinberg) reports, "Adding the clot-busting drug Plavix [clopidogrel] to a daily dose of aspirin is no better than taking aspirin alone to prevent a second stroke in people who have had a type of stroke that is typically caused by chronic high blood pressure," according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

MedPage Today (8/30, Petrochko) reports, "In the halted SPS3 trial, dual antiplatelet therapy with clopidogrel and aspirin did not significantly reduce recurrent stroke risk at follow-up compared with aspirin alone (2.5% versus 2.7%) at a hazard ratio of 0.92 (95% CI 0.72 to 1.16)." But, "compared with aspirin alone, dual therapy almost doubled the risk of major bleeding (HR 1.97 95% CI 1.41 to 2.71, P<0 .001=".001" 1.14="1.14" 1.52="1.52" 2.04="2.04" 95="95" all-cause="all-cause" and="and" ci="ci" div="div" mortality="mortality" p="0.004)." to="to">

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

GREAT CHARITY STARTED BY DR. STEVEN ALMANY- STUDENT HEART CHECK

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=7608635

CARDIAC ARREST MAY BE MORE COMMON IN YOUNG PEOPLE THAN PREVIOUSLY BELIEVED

According to a study published online in Circulation, while cardiac arrest is fairly uncommon in young people, it may be more common than previously believed. Investigators looked at data from a 30-year period in Washington's King County. The investigators reported that the cardiac arrest rate among kids and young adults was approximately 2.3 per 100,000 annually.

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.

TWO JAMA STUDIES LOOK AT EFFECTIVE WEIGHT LOSS APPROACHES

ABC World News (6/26, story 7, 1:45, Stephanopoulos) reported, "A surprising study" published in the Journal of the American Medical Association "that could change the way we think about dieting. When it comes to counting calories, what kind we take in may matter as how many we take in." Reuters (6/27, Pittman) reports that, according to another study, also published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a stepped-care program may be nearly as effective as a standard weight-loss intervention for helping people lose weight, and is cheaper as well.

        

CardioSource (6/27) reports that one "study, 'Effects of Dietary Composition on Energy Expenditure During Weight-Loss Maintenance,' looked at the effect on energy expenditure and components of the metabolic syndrome of three types of commonly consumed diets following weight loss and found that decreases in resting energy expenditure and total energy expenditure were greatest with a low-fat diet, intermediate with a low-glycemic index diet and least with a very low-carbohydrate diet." The other "study, 'Effect of a Stepped-Care Intervention Approach on Weight Loss in Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial,' showed that although a standard behavioral weight loss intervention among overweight and obese adults resulted in greater average weight loss over 18 months, a stepped care intervention resulted in clinically meaningful weight loss that cost less to implement."

       
Also covering the first study were the Wall Street Journal (6/27, A3, Dooren, Subscription Publication), USA Today (6/27, Hellmich), the Los Angeles Times (6/27, Brown), Bloomberg News (6/27, Ostrow), and the New York Times (6/27, Bittman) "Opin

Posted by:  Steven Almany MD

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.