Long-term survivors of childhood cancer at higher risk of death following heart issues; threshold for treating risk factors should be lower

New research out of VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center and VCU Health Pauley Heart Center indicates that survivors of childhood cancer are at a significantly higher risk of death following a major cardiovascular event — including heart failure, heart attack or stroke — than the general public.

Research Study on Novel Rehab Program for Heart Failure Patients, Led by Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Expands to Advocate Health Site in Chicago

Wake Forest University School of Medicine, the academic core of Advocate Health, is expanding another research study to Advocate Christ Medical Center, in Oak Lawn, Illinois, just outside Chicago.

The study, which is testing a novel rehabilitation program designed for older patients hospitalized with acute heart failure, is funded by a five-year, $30 million grant, awarded to Wake Forest University School of Medicine in 2022 by the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health.

Patients Diagnosed With New-Onset, Persistent AFib Are More Likely to Have These Risk Factors

Patients who present with persistent atrial fibrillation at diagnosis are more likely to have certain risk factors as compared with patients with occasional atrial fibrillation (AFib). The findings, led by investigators in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai, published in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology.

Inaccurate pulse oximeter readings could limit transplants, heart pumps for Black patients with heart failure

University of Michigan researchers find that racially biased pulse oximeter readings may further limit opportunities for Black patients with heart failure — who are already less likely to get treatment — to receive potentially lifesaving therapies, such as heart pumps and transplants.

Cardiac Arrest: Hispanics, Latinos With Kidney Disease at High Risk

Hispanics and Latinos with chronic kidney disease are at significant risk for suffering from sudden cardiac arrest, according to a new study from the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai.

Baylor Scott & White Presents Research At The Heart Failure Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting 2023

The Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) is a multidisciplinary organization working to improve and expand heart failure care through collaboration, education, research, innovation and advocacy. Its annual scientific meeting held Oct. 6-9, in Cleveland offers the best heart failure…

UAH Nursing researcher to study cardiometabolic disease among Black women in the Deep South

A researcher at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has been awarded a $179,000 subcontract to explore community-based strategies for reducing high-burden chronic disease like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and cancer as part of an overall award totaling $4.2 million.

Mount Sinai Announces Partnership With the Brazilian Clinical Research Institute to Advance Cardiovascular Disease Research and Medical Education

Agreement aims to improve patient care and outcomes on a global scale

Multicenter Trial Finds Using Circulatory Death Donors is Safe and Effective for Heart Transplantation

A study published in New England Journal of Medicine confirms that circulatory death donor hearts that are reanimated and perfused with blood outside of the body are as safe and effective to transplant as brain death donor hearts preserved using traditional cold storage. These findings suggest that using hearts donated after circulatory death (DCD) may have the potential to widen the donor pool helping more patients in need of life-saving heart transplants.

Heart failure deadly and under-treated in most countries, says a study in 40 countries

Global Variations in Heart Failure Etiology, Management, and OutcomesPublished in JAMA May 16, 2023https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2804824?resultClick=1doi:10.1001/jama.2023.5942 Key Points Question  How do heart failure etiology, treatment, and outcomes differ between groups of countries at different levels of economic development? Findings  Ischemic heart disease and hypertension…

TVT 2023 Late-Breaking Science Announced

The Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) announced that TVT: The Structural Heart Summit will feature 15 Late-Breaking Clinical Science studies. An annual meeting featuring cutting-edge research and techniques for structural heart interventions, TVT will take place June 7-10, 2023, at the Phoenix Convention Center – West in Phoenix, Arizona.

Aggressive Blood Pressure Control May Prevent Common Heart Condition

Left ventricular conduction disease occurs when there is an electrical blockage of the heart’s normal electrical conduction system. Treatment to lessen its effects involves implanting a permanent pacemaker, but there have been no proven preventive strategies for this condition. In a study publishing May 3, 2023 in JAMA Cardiology, first author Emilie Frimodt-Møller, MD, and senior author Gregory Marcus, MD, MAS, found that intensive BP control is associated with lower risk of left ventricular conduction disease, indicating left ventricular conduction disease may be preventable.

TVT 2023 Program Guide Available

The program guide for TVT 2023: The Structural Heart Summit is available online. An annual meeting from the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF), TVT features cutting-edge research and techniques for structural heart interventions and will take place June 7-10, 2023, at the Phoenix Convention Center – West in Phoenix, Arizona.

Seven Hackensack Meridian Medical Centers Recognized for Excellence with ACC Heart Failure Accreditation

Facilities that achieve accreditation meet or exceed an array of stringent criteria and have organized a team of doctors, nurses, clinicians and other administrative staff that earnestly support the efforts leading to better patient education, improved patient outcomes, and more effective and efficient disease control.

Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair in Heart Failure Patients Significantly Reduces Hospitalizations and Improves Survival

Breakthrough findings from study led by Mount Sinai researcher could improve outcomes for high-risk patients

THT 2023 Late-Breaking Clinical Science Announced

The full list of late-breaking clinical science to be presented at THT 2023: Technology and Heart Failure Therapeutics is now available online. An international heart failure conference organized by the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF), THT will take place March 20-22, 2023, at the Westin Boston Seaport in Boston, MA.

Anti-ageing gene shown to rewind heart age by 10 years

An anti-ageing gene discovered in a population of centenarians has been shown to rewind the heart’s biological age by 10 years. The breakthrough, published in Cardiovascular Research and led by scientists at the University of Bristol and the MultiMedica Group in Italy, offers a potential target for patients with heart failure.

Smidt Heart Institute Experts to Lead Training Sessions at Society of Thoracic Surgeons Conference

Cardiothoracic surgeons and investigators from the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai bring their leading-edge expertise in heart and lung surgery to the 59th Annual Meeting of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), Jan. 21-23, 2023, in San Diego.

Mouse study suggests new therapeutic strategy to reduce cardiovascular disease in cancer survivors

Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York have discovered that common cancer treatments, such as radiotherapy or anthracycline drugs, cause long-term damage to heart tissue by activating a key inflammatory signaling pathway. The study, published December 19 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM), suggests that inhibiting this pathway could reduce the chances of cancer survivors suffering heart disease later in life.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System Receive $5.2 Million NIH Grant to Study Heart Failure in Hispanic Populations

Cardiology researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have received a five-year, $5.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to explore the underlying causes of heart failure among Hispanics/Latinos, who are at heightened risk for heart disease. Investigators will take a novel approach to assess risk: by simultaneously evaluating heart function and the relationship between the heart and the aorta, the large artery that conveys oxygen-rich blood from the heart’s left ventricle to the rest of the body.

Novel Wearable Belt with Sensors Accurately Monitors Heart Failure 24/7

There is a critical need for non-invasive solutions to monitor heart failure progression around the clock. This novel wearable device is based on sensors embedded in a lightweight belt that monitors thoracic impedance, electrocardiogram (ECG), heart rate and motion activity detection. The device was tested in different conditions including sitting, standing, lying down and walking. Findings showed that all of sensors kept track of the changes for all of the different conditions.

UChicago Medicine’s heart transplant program makes history again, with best survival rates and wait times ever recorded

The University of Chicago Medicine’s heart transplant program is making history once again. The program’s transplant survival rates and transplant wait times are not only the best in the country, but they’re the best in the history of heart transplantation, according to an analysis of Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) data.

Cleveland Clinic-Led Trial Finds That Increasing Salt Intake Does Not Affect Patients Hospitalized with Congestive Heart Failure During Treatment

Cleveland: Findings from a Cleveland Clinic-led trial show that increasing the salt intake by mouth for patients who are hospitalized with heart failure undergoing aggressive diuretic therapy did not affect how much fluid they retain or their kidney function, indicating that salt intake for heart failure patients may not be as harmful as previously thought. Conversely, these new findings may challenge the common practice of salt restriction during hospital admission since that might not be as helpful.

New Data Shows 85% Reduction in One-Year Mortality for Medicare Heart Failure Patients With BVA-Guided Care

New data validate the benefits of the BVA-100 blood volume measurement test for Medicare heart failure patients. Data were presented at the Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) 2022 – which brought together the world’s leading experts in heart failure.