Coronary Artery Disease and Cardiovascular General Information

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HEART ATTACK Warning Signs

STROKE Warning Signs

Coronary Artery Disease and Cardiovascular General Information

Risk Factors

NEWS:

Big bellies tied to greater heart disease risk "The more your belly sticks out, the greater your risk of developing heart disease, a new study shows. … In the current study, Iribarren and his team tested whether sagittal abdominal diameter, or SAD, which is the distance from the back to the upper abdomen midway between the top of the pelvis and the bottom of the ribs, would improve the accuracy of BMI in predicting heart disease risk. … The relationship between SAD and heart disease risk was strongest among the youngest men and women, which is not surprising, Iribarren said, given that people who develop central obesity younger in life would likely have more serious problems."

Cocaine use linked to serious heart condition

Diabetes, Smoking Are Risk Factors for Leg Artery Problems

Having a Sibling with Heart Disease Significantly Raises Personal Heart Disease Risk

Higher Resting Heart Rate May Boost Death Risk "Resting heart rate is an indicator of how hard the heart is working to maintain adequate blood flow. A resting heart rate of 60 to 80 beats per minute (bpm) is normal. People in excellent physical condition have a resting heart rate of about 40 to 50 bpm. The researchers concluded that resting heart rate and its changes may be an independent risk factor for death."

Infections May Trigger Dangerous Blood Clots

Look to your family for signs of heart trouble

New study reignites theory that CRP causes heart disease "A new study has shown associations among C-reactive protein (CRP) gene variants, plasma CRP levels, and cardiovascular risk in older adults, reigniting suggestions that CRP could play a causative role in heart disease [1]."

Trans Fats Up Heart Disease Risk: Study Shows Tripled Risk for Heavy Users; Doctors Call for Ban "Trans fats have jumped out of the deep fryer into a public grilling once again, with new research suggesting even small amounts can harm the heart. An analysis of data from the large Nurses' Health Study shows that women who ate the most trans fats were more than three times as likely to develop heart diseaseheart disease as those who consumed the least."

Why work can raise your odds of heart disease

ARTICLES:

ADHD Drugs and Cardiovascular Risk "On February 9, 2006, the Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted by a narrow margin — eight to seven — to recommend a "black-box" warning describing the cardiovascular risks of stimulant drugs used to treat attention deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This action was unexpected, largely because the FDA had not requested a review of current labeling for this class of drugs; it had merely asked for recommendations of approaches to studying the cardiovascular risks associated with these drugs. The committee, however, decided to take an independent course. … "

Definition of Trans fat "Trans fat: An unhealthy substance, also known as trans fatty acid, made through the chemical process of hydrogenation of oils. Hydrogenation solidifies liquid oils and increases the shelf life and the flavor stability of oils and foods that contain them.… In the realm of dietary dangers, trans fats rank very high. It has been estimated that trans fats are responsible for some 30,000 early deaths a year in the United States. Worldwide the toll of premature deaths is in the millions."

NIH - Rofecoxib

JOURNAL ARTICLES:

10-Year Follow-up of Subclinical Cardiovascular Disease and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in the Cardiovascular Health Study (Arch Intern Med. 2006)

Adult Obesity and Number of Years Lived with and without Cardiovascular Disease. (Obesity (Silver Spring). 2006) "DISCUSSION: In addition to reducing life expectancy, obesity before middle age is associated with a reduction in the number of years lived free of CVD and an increase in the number of years lived with CVD. Such information is paramount for preventive and therapeutic decision-making by individuals and practitioners alike."

[Air pollution and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease.] (Presse Med. 2006) " … clear existence of a relation between air pollution and cardio- and cerebrovascular mortality. They also observed an increase in hospital admissions for myocardial infarctions and cerebrovascular accidents on days with high air pollution levels. The pollutants involved have not yet been clearly designated, but it appears that fine suspended particulate matter (PM2.5) and gaseous pollutants such as ozone appear to contribute strongly to these harmful effects."

Arterial stiffness and risk of coronary heart disease and stroke: the Rotterdam Study. (Circulation. 2006) "BACKGROUND: Arterial stiffness has been associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease in selected groups of patients. We evaluated whether arterial stiffness is a predictor of coronary heart disease and stroke in a population-based study among apparently healthy subjects. … CONCLUSIONS: Aortic pulse wave velocity is an independent predictor of coronary heart disease and stroke in apparently healthy subjects."

Association of Physical Activity and Body Mass Index With Novel and Traditional Cardiovascular Biomarkers in Women (JAMA 2006) "Conclusions High BMI was more strongly related to adverse cardiovascular biomarker levels than physical inactivity. However, within BMI categories, physical activity was generally associated with more favorable cardiovascular biomarker levels than inactivity."

Blood pressure as a predictor of cardiovascular events in the elderly: the William Hale Research Program. (J Hum Hypertens. 2006)

Cardiovascular outcomes in new users of coxibs and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs: High-risk subgroups and time course of risk. (Arthritis Rheum. 2006) "CONCLUSION: We found an increased cardiovascular event rate among users of rofecoxib, and a decreased rate with naproxen use. Other coxibs and NSAIDs did not appear to be associated with a difference in event rate compared with users of other drugs. The increase in rate associated with rofecoxib was seen within the first 60 days and persisted. There was no important modification of the event rate based on the patient's baseline cardiovascular risk."

Chlamydia pneumoniae and vascular disease: An update. (J Vasc Surg. 2006) "Exposure to Chlamydia pneumoniae is extremely common, and its incidence increases with age. C pneumoniae infection is strongly associated with coronary artery disease, as well as with atherosclerosis of the carotid artery, aorta, and peripheral arteries. This association has been shown in seroepidemiologic studies and by direct detection of the organism in atherosclerotic lesions by immunohistochemistry, polymerase chain reaction, electron microscopy, and tissue culture. … "

Coronary artery calcium score, risk factors, and incident coronary heart disease events. (Atherosclerosis. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: Coronary artery calcium score can identify individuals at increased risk for coronary heart disease events who otherwise would be considered low-risk based on clinical assessment. A coronary artery calcium score of zero is associated with very low risk for coronary heart disease in the short to intermediate term ( approximately 3.5 years) regardless of the number of risk factors present."

Depressive symptoms as risk factor of cardiovascular mortality in older European men: the Finland, Italy and Netherlands Elderly (FINE) study. (Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: This study provides further and more convincing prospective evidence for depressive symptoms as a risk factor for cardiovascular mortality in elderly men."

Diuretic use, progressive heart failure, and death in patients in the DIG study. (J Card Fail. 2006) "BACKGROUND: Nonpotassium-sparing diuretics (NPSDs), have been associated with increased sudden cardiac death (SCD) and progressive heart failure (HF) death in HF patients. … CONCLUSION: NPSDs are associated with increased risk of death, CVD, progressive HF death, SCD, and HF hospitalization. A randomized trial is needed to assess the role of NPSDs versus PSDs in HF patients."

Dual role of infections as risk factors for coronary heart disease. (Atherosclerosis. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: Infections have a dual role in the genesis of CHD. EV, HSV and C. pneumoniae heat shock protein 60 IgG antibodies are associated with increased risk for CHD. Protection from infections usually suffered during the childhood before the era of MMR vaccination may predispose the individual to CHD."

Early onset of coronary artery disease after prenatal exposure to the Dutch famine. (Am J Clin Nutr. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: We found an earlier onset of CAD among persons conceived during the famine, which suggests that maternal nutrition in early gestation may play a role in the onset of CAD. This finding agrees with evidence from animal experiments that identify periconceptional maternal diet as important in the offspring's adult health."

Family History and the Risk of Sudden Cardiac Death as a Manifestation of an Acute Coronary Event (Circulation. 2006) "Conclusions— Subjects with a family history of SCD have an increased risk of dying suddenly during an acute coronary event."

Familial risk assessment for early-onset coronary heart disease. (Genet Med. 2006)

Fine Particulate Air Pollution and Hospital Admission for Cardiovascular and Respiratory Diseases (JAMA 2006) "Conclusion Short-term exposure to PM2.5 increases the risk for hospital admission for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases."

Free fatty acids are independently associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in subjects with coronary artery disease. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2006) "Conclusions: Free fatty acid levels independently predict all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in subjects with angiographic CAD. A possible diagnostic use of FFA warrants further studies, but our results may underline the importance of therapeutic approaches to influence FFA metabolism."

Inflammation and Chlamydia pneumoniae Infection Correlate with the Severity of Peripheral Arterial Disease (European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery 2006) "This study supports the hypothesis that inflammation (CRP) and chronic C. pneumoniae infection (IgA seropositivity), have an important role in lower limb atherosclerosis and correlate with the severity of the disease."

[It is time to stop ignoring heart rate as a cardiovascular risk factor] (G Ital Cardiol (Rome). 2006) "Thirty-eight articles have been published on the association between elevated heart rate and mortality. After adjustment for other risk factors, most studies found an independent association between heart rate and all-cause and/or cardiovascular mortality. This relationship has been found to be generally weaker among females. The four studies performed in hypertensive patients found a positive association between heart rate and all-cause mortality or cardiovascular mortality. … Although it has not been proven in existing trials, it would seem reasonable to recommend in hypertensive subjects with heart rate > 80-85 b/min, antihypertensive agents that decrease the heart rate."

Metabolic syndrome. (Indian J Med Sci. 2006) "The Metabolic syndrome is a widely prevalent and multi-factorial disorder. The syndrome has been given several names, including- the metabolic syndrome, the insulin resistance syndrome, the plurimetabolic syndrome, and the deadly quartet. … Management of the metabolic syndrome involves patient-education and intervention at various levels. Weight reduction is one of the main stays of treatment. In this article we comprehensively discuss this syndrome- the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical relevance and management. The need to do a comprehensive review of this particular syndrome has arisen in view of the ever increasing incidence of this entitiy. Soon, metabolic syndrome will overtake cigarette smoking as the number one risk factor for heart disease among the US population."

Metabolic Syndrome and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: A Meta-Analysis (The American Journal of Medicine 2006) "This analysis strongly suggests that the metabolic syndrome is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality, as well as all-cause mortality. The detection, prevention, and treatment of the underlying risk factors of the metabolic syndrome should become an important approach for the reduction of the cardiovascular disease burden in the general population."

Nonsteroidal Antiinflammatory Drugs, Acetaminophen, and the Risk of Cardiovascular Events. (Circulation. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: Use of NSAIDs or acetaminophen at high frequency or dose is associated with a significantly increased risk for major cardiovascular events, although more moderate use did not confer substantial risk."

Obesity and Thrombosis. (Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2006) "CONCLUSIONS: Obesity appears to be associated with thrombosis via several mechanisms. These pro-thrombotic factors are all improved by weight loss."

Obesity as Compared With Physical Activity in Predicting Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Women (Circulation. 2006)

Population-attributable risk of coronary heart disease risk factors during long-term follow-up: the Malmo Preventive Project. (J Intern Med. 2006) "CONCLUSION: Smoking is the most important long-term risk factor for CE in both genders, based on data from a population with a high proportion of smokers. Ten measured variables explained almost all variation in risk and could be used as a basis for intervention programmes."

Skinfold thickness, body mass index, and fatal coronary heart disease: 30 year follow up of the Northwick Park heart study. (J Epidemiol Community Health. 2006)

Smoking and obesity make a bad problem worse: genetics and lifestyle affect high density lipoprotein levels in Turks. (Anadolu Kardiyol Derg. 2006) "In conclusion, low HDL-C levels in Turks were modulated by genetic factors and their interaction with modifiable environmental factors, such as smoking and obesity."

Suppressed Anger Is Associated With Increased Carotid Arterial Stiffness in Older Adults (American Journal of Hypertension 2006)

Uric Acid Is a Risk Factor for Myocardial Infarction and Stroke (Stroke. 2006) "Conclusions— Uric acid is a strong risk factor for myocardial infarction and stroke."

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