January 12th, 2011
Clyde Yancy Succeeds Robert Bonow as Chief of Cardiology at Northwestern
Larry Husten, PHD
Clyde Yancy, a former president of the AHA, is leaving Baylor University to succeed Robert Bonow as the chief of the division of cardiology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Yancy will also serve as the associate director of the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, according to a heartwire report.
January 12th, 2011
Large Meta-Analysis Explores Cardiovascular Safety of NSAIDs
Larry Husten, PHD
A large network meta-analysis has found “little evidence” to suggest that any of the commonly used NSAIDs or COX 2 inhibitors are safe in terms of cardiovascular risk. In a paper published in BMJ, Sven Trelle and colleagues analyzed data from 31 trials in which patients receiving an NSAID were compared to another NSAID or placebo. Rofecoxib […]
January 11th, 2011
Candesartan Beats Losartan in Swedish HF Registry
Larry Husten, PHD
The Swedish Heart Failure Registry followed more than 5,000 patients treated with the angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) candesartan or losartan between 2000 and 2009. According to a paper published in JAMA, survival at one year was 90% in the candesartan group compared to 83% in the losartan group. Five-year survival was 61% and 44%. […]
January 11th, 2011
Absorbable Stent Approved: Now You See It, Now You Don’t
Richard A. Lange, MD, MBA
Have questions about the new stent that just received CE Mark approval in Europe? Here’s a reality checklist. 1. What’s it called? The bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) from Abbott Laboratories is named ABSORB (clever, huh?). 2. What are its advantages over a drug-eluting stent (DES)? Don’t know yet. It may eliminate the need for long-term […]
January 11th, 2011
How Are We Doing?
Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM
Dear Colleagues, We launched CardioExchange in an effort to build a non-partisan venue for the exchange of information and views about the world of cardiology. Our presumption is that there is wisdom in our community and that we can learn from each other. It was a bit of an experiment and we had no idea […]
January 10th, 2011
Have the COURAGE to Critique a Substudy
Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM
In this journal club, I compare the published data from an original trial with the authors’ conclusions in a substudy from that trial. Often, a substudy provides valuable insights that complement the initial trial findings. Sometimes, however, you need to look closely to identify the additional insight. Case in point: COURAGE. The Original COURAGE Trial […]
January 10th, 2011
World’s First Drug Eluting Bioresorbable Stent Gains CE Mark Approval
Larry Husten, PHD
Abbott announced today that it had received CE Mark approval for Absorb, its bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) device. The device props a narrowed coronary artery open but then dissolves within 2 years, leaving the patient without a permanent implant. One hope for the device is that it will allow stent patients to safely discontinue dual […]
January 6th, 2011
The Shame of Removing Reimbursement for End-of-Life Discussions from Health Care Reform
Barry M. Massie, BA (Harvard), MD (Columbia P&S)
My recent postings have been about heart failure mortality statistics. Dry stuff! It’s not that I am fixated on death, but yesterday, I learned that CMS (Medicare) has decided not to pay for discussions with patients about prognosis and planning end of life care. Reimbursement for such discussions was a key aspect of the health […]
January 6th, 2011
Bevacizumab in Breast Cancer Linked to Increase in Heart Failure Risk
Larry Husten, PHD
A meta-analysis in the Journal of Clinical Oncology suggests that bevacizumab (Avastin) significantly raises the risk for heart failure when given to patients with breast cancer. Toni Choueiri and colleagues analyzed data from 3,784 patients and found a significant increase in the incidence of heart failure among those taking bevacizumab compared with those taking placebo […]
January 5th, 2011
Study Finds Mixed Long-Term Results for AF Catheter Ablation
Larry Husten, PHD
Long-term results after catheter ablation for AF are decidedly mixed, according to the longest study yet to follow patients after the procedure. In a report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Rukshen Weerasooriya and colleagues followed 100 patients treated at a French hospital for 5 years. After a single procedure, the rates of arrhythmia-free survival […]