Editor's Note Data published February 21 in The BMJ points to air pollution as a factor in increased hospital admissions for major heart diseases.  According to the Global Burden of Disease study, exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) accounts for 7.6% of total mortality and 4.2% of disability-adjusted life years…

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Editor's Note Patients with severe cases of tricuspid regurgitation (in which a critical heart valve fails to close properly) now have a new treatment option thanks to the recent US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the ENVOQUE tricuspid valve replacement system, according to a February 2 press release…

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Editor's Note Eight chronic conditions—arthritis, depression, diabetes, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and chronic kidney disease (CKD)—continue to expand nationwide along with premature deaths from drugs, firearms, and more, according America’s Health Rankings 2023 Annual Report. Presented by the United Health Foundation in partnership with…

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Editor's Note For the first time, researchers have designed a calculator that estimates a person’s risk for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) over the next 30 years. The news was announced in a statement from the American Heart Association in the journal Circulation on November 10. 1 in 3 U.S. adults…

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Editor's Note The Million Hearts Model program—an initiative to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes within 5 years—reduced the probability of a first-time myocardial infarction or stroke without significant changes in Medicare spending. The findings were published by JAMA Network on October 12. The Million Hearts Model paid healthcare…

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Editor's Note A new study from researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that adults with moderate to severe depressive symptoms have a higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease and ischemic heart disease compared to those without depressive symptoms. The investigative study, titled "Depressive Symptoms…

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Editor's Note This study by researches at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts, examines whether moderate to vigorous physical activity concentrated in 1 to 2 days of the week (ie, a “weekend warrior” pattern) confers similar cardiovascular benefits as more evenly…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on July 17, identified the recall by Quidel Cardiovascular Inc of its Quidel Triage Cardiac Panels as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated because of reports of inaccurate tests showing lower than expected troponin levels in samples. A falsely…

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Editor's Note The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) announced on June 29 that patients taking any of the currently popular medications for weight loss or for the treatment of type 2 diabetes should withhold the medication prior to elective surgery to "reduce the risk of complications associated with anesthesia in…

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Editor's Note At ACC.23 (the American College of Cardiology 2023 conference), Sunil Rao, MD, director of interventional cardiology at NYU Langone and president of the Society of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI), spoke about the shift in interventional procedures from hospitals to ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), Cardiovascular Business April 10…

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