October 20th, 2011
CDC and AHA Tussle Over Just How Bad the Salt Problem Really Is
Larry Husten, PHD
No matter how you slice it, a lot of people in the U.S. consume too much sodium. But the CDC and the American Heart Association (AHA) disagree about just how bad the salt problem really is. U.S. guidelines currently recommend that everyone keep their daily sodium intake below 2300 mg, but a large subpopulation, including people […]
October 20th, 2011
EMA’s CHMP Finds No Cancer Link for ARBs
Larry Husten, PHD
Following the lead of the FDA earlier this year, the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has completed a safety review of angiotensin II receptor antagonists (ARBs) and found no evidence of any increased risk of cancer associated with the drugs. The FDA and EMA safety reviews were initially prompted by a meta-analysis […]
October 19th, 2011
U.K. Registry Tracks Long-Term TAVI Outcomes
Larry Husten, PHD
The excitement over transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has been tempered by the absence of long-term outcomes data and concerns that the procedure may not live up to its initial promise in real-world settings. Now a report from the U.K. TAVI Registry, which keeps track of every TAVI procedure performed in the U.K., sheds new […]
October 19th, 2011
First-Trimester Hypertension, Not ACE Inhibitors, Linked to Birth Defects
Larry Husten, PHD
Although the teratogenic properties of ACE inhibitors in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy are well-documented, the effects of their use in the first trimester have been unclear. Now a study suggests that hypertension itself, rather than ACE inhibitors or other antihypertensive drugs, is the likely cause of an increased risk for birth defects […]
October 18th, 2011
Heart Failure Hospitalization Rate Drops 30% in 10 Years
Larry Husten, PHD
From 1998 through 2008, the rate of heart failure hospitalization in an elderly Medicare population declined by nearly 30%, according to a new study published in JAMA. Jersey Chen and colleagues (including senior author Harlan Krumholz, editor-in-chief of CardioExchange) analyzed CMS data from 55 million fee-for-service Medicare patients hospitalized for heart failure between 1998 and 2008. After adjusting […]
October 17th, 2011
National Lipid Association Responds to Coverage of Its Statement on Biomarkers
Christopher Seymour, MBA
Editor’s Note: This contribution from Christopher R. Seymour, Executive Director of the National Lipid Association, is a response to Larry Husten’s October 13 blog post titled “National Lipid Association Expert Panel Has Many Deep Ties to Industry.” On behalf of the National Lipid Association (NLA), I want to address your inquiry regarding the paper titled […]
October 17th, 2011
Sapien Transcatheter Heart Valve Might Be Delayed
Larry Husten, PHD
Approval for the highly anticipated Sapien transcatheter aortic heart valve might be delayed for 6 months, until April 2012. The FDA had been expected to reach a decision this month. But now a member of the FDA advisory panel that recommended approval for Sapien, Jeffrey Borer, in a public statement made at the ACC/AATS Heart […]
October 17th, 2011
My Doctor Is a Technophobe
William Kent Cornwell, MD
What one patient witnessed when he observed his physicians trying to interact with their electronic medical records systems
October 14th, 2011
FDA Advisory Panel Recommends First DES For PAD
Larry Husten, PHD
The FDA Circulatory System Devices Panel voted 11-0 on Thursday to support the premarket approval application for the Zilver PTX drug-eluting stent, manufactured by Cook Medical. The self-expanding, paclitaxel-coated stent would be the first DES approved for use in peripheral arterial disease of the above-the-knee femoropopliteal arteries. Cook Medical press release
October 13th, 2011
Coronary Heart Disease Prevalence in U.S. Continues to Decline
Larry Husten, PHD
The prevalence of coronary heart disease in the U.S. continues to drop, according to the CDC. Data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) surveys, published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, show a significant decrease in overall CHD prevalence from 6.7% to 6% from 2006 to 2010. In an apparent paradox, the authors note that the […]