April 28th, 2011
U.S. Cardiologists Report $325,000 Median Compensation in Survey
Larry Husten, PHD
Cardiologists were the third-highest-paid physician specialists in 2010, according to a survey of more than 15,000 physicians conducted by Medscape, including a detailed report on the approximately 475 cardiologists in the survey. The cardiologists reported a median compensation of $325,000. Only orthopedic surgeons and radiologists, at a median of $350,000, topped the cardiologists. One-fifth of […]
April 27th, 2011
Large Meta-Analysis Finds No Link Between ARBs and MI Risk
Larry Husten, PHD
Angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) don’t increase the risk for MI, according to a large new meta-analysis published in BMJ. Concerns about ARBs and MI have lingered since the VALUE trial in 2004 found a 19% increase in the risk for MI, though subsequent trials have not reinforced the finding. Sripal Bangalore and colleagues combined data from […]
April 27th, 2011
Scrubs and Sandwiches- A Deadly Combination?
David Martin, M.D.
I was enjoying lunch at a popular midtown Sacramento restaurant recently, when two patrons walked in wearing green scrubs. Both were wearing official badges from a large, local hospital, revealing one to be a physician, the other a registered nurse. Concerned that these scrubs may have been exposed to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, I politely asked that […]
April 26th, 2011
Drug-Eluting Stents Add Nearly $1.6 Billion per Year to Medicare Costs
Larry Husten, PHD
Drug-eluting stents (DESs) cost Medicare an additional $1.57 billion per year, according to a study published online in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Using a random sample of Medicare beneficiaries, Peter Groeneveld and colleagues compared annual costs for patients with coronary artery disease in 2002 (the year before DESs were introduced) with costs from 2002 […]
April 26th, 2011
FDA Briefs: New Stent Approved, Advisory Committee Meeting on ACCORD Lipid
Larry Husten, PHD
Boston Scientific said on Monday that it had received FDA approval for a third-generation drug-eluting stent, the ION Paclitaxel-Eluting Platinum Chromium Coronary Stent System. The “unique platinum chromium (PtCr) alloy” is specifically designed for use in the coronary arteries. The FDA announced that the Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee would meet on May 19 […]
April 25th, 2011
ACC and AHA Publish Expert Consensus Document on Hypertension in the Elderly
Larry Husten, PHD
Although 64% of elderly men and 78% of elderly women have hypertension, this was not considered a significant clinical problem until 2008, when the Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial (HYVET) trial demonstrated the substantial benefits of reducing blood pressure in these patients. Largely in response to HYVET, the ACC and the AHA have published […]
April 22nd, 2011
Diet and Cardiovascular Health: What’s the Bottom Line?
Eric Rimm, ScD
CardioExchange welcomes Dr. Eric Rimm, Sc.D., the director of the Program in Cardiovascular Epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health and a member of the USDA’s 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. Dr. Rimm answers Associate Editor Susan Cheng’s questions about the DGAC’s 2010 report. We welcome you to offer your own questions and opinions. Background: The 2010 […]
April 21st, 2011
CDC: Half the U.S. Now Protected by Comprehensive Smoke-Free Laws
Larry Husten, PHD
According to a CDC analysis in MMWR, nearly half the U.S. population is now protected from second-hand smoke by comprehensive laws that restrict smoking in three venues (private sector worksites, restaurants, and bars). If the current trend continues, all 50 states and the District of Columbia will be smoke-free by 2020. The first [statewide] law […]
April 21st, 2011
Will a STICH in Time Save Nine?
Anju Nohria, MD and James Fang, MD
A 57-year-old man with a history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and smoking presented with increasing dyspnea on exertion, mild chest discomfort, and lower-extremity edema. Physical exam results were consistent with decompensated heart failure. Echocardiographic findings: left-ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), 20% LV end-diastolic dimension, 6.3 cm global hypokinesis (with regional variation affecting the septum, inferior wall, and […]
April 20th, 2011
New WHI Analysis Links Calcium Supplements to CV Risk
Larry Husten, PHD
A new analysis may renew concerns that the combination of calcium supplements and vitamin D might increase cardiovascular risk. The link has been proposed before, but the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) found no additional risk. Now, however, in an article appearing in BMJ, Mark Bolland and colleagues point out that more than half the 36,000 […]