For decades, physiologists have known what cardiologists often forget: heart and brain communicate intensely in a healthy person, and in a wide range of cardiovascular diseases they could damage one another. Multiple actions and immediate reactions in the brain adequately adapt heart function to bodily needs, such as anxiety and frustration, which might impair adequate...
Seeing as hypertension prevalence and incidence increases with age, treating elderly patients of paramount importance. The AHA/ACC guidelines have lowered cohort hypertension thresholds to >130/80 mmHg, whereas the European guidelines have kept the classic >140/90 mmHg, though recommending lower thresholds for most patients at the same time. Lower than 130/80 mmHg is recommended with the...
1- What’s New in the European Guidelines on Peripheral Arterial Disease Since the last version of the European guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of peripheral arterial disease in 2011, there have been many trials and registries that warrant guideline adjustments in many aspects. The first novelty is the teamwork that gave way to these...
The wait is finally over: the high blood pressure guidelines that have been in the works for the past 3 years saw the light of day at the American Heart Association (AHA) 2017 Scientific Sessions. As expected, after the findings of the SPRINT trial and other recently published studies, the treatment goal was lowered and is...
Courtesy of Dr. Guillermo Migliaro. Coronary perforation (CP) is a rare but serious complication of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with an estimated incidence of 0.5%. Arterial blood entering the pericardium may cause a rapid elevation of intrapericardial pressure and collapse the right cavities (tamponade) creating hemodynamic compromise. Historically, surgical drainage has been the...
A recent study has shown that hair analysis allows us to evaluate the level of cortisol and stress hormone over a few months while the results from blood tests indicate the status only at the particular time of the test. A rising level of cortisol, like hypertension and excess abdominal fat, increases the risk of...
Original title: Peripheral arterial disease and critical limb ischaemia: still poor outcomes and lack of guideline adherence. Reference: Reinecke H et al. Eur Heart J. 2015; Epub ahead of print. This work included 41882 patients retrospectively from health insurance in Germany admitted with diagnosis of peripheral vascular disease between 2009 and 2011 and followed until 2013. Patients...
Original title: A clinical rule (sex, contralateral occlusion, age, and restenosis) to select patients for stenting versus carotid endarterectomy: Systematic review of observational studies with validation in randomized trials. Reference: Touzé E et al. Stroke. 2013;Epub ahead of print Compared with carotid endarterectomy, angioplasty with stent is associated with an increased risk of pre- procedural stroke especially for...