Cardiovascular Diseases


High-Density Calcified Plaque Linked to Lower ACS Risk

An international multicenter case-control cohort study suggested that high density 1K plaque (the volume of plaque with more than 1000 Hounsfield unit) detected by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) is associated with lower risk of future occurrence of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The study included 189 patients who experienced vs […]


Sex Differences in BP

Sex-specific analyses of longitudinal BP measures in US cohort studies indicate that blood pressure (BP) measures progress more rapidly in women than in men, beginning early in life. The analyses included 32 833 participants (54% female) spanning ages 5 to 98 years from 1971 to 2014 in 4 community-based US cohort […]


Long Naps and Sleep Linked to Higher Stroke Risk

A Chinese prospective cohort study concluded that long sleep duration, long midday napping, and poor sleep quality were independently and jointly associated with higher risks of incident stroke. Persistently long sleep duration or switch from average to long sleep duration increased the risk of stroke. The study included 31,750 retirees […]


Common Drugs Linked to Reduced Cardiotoxicity

A meta-analysis suggested that use of beta-blockers, angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) in patients receiving cancer treatment linked to less heart damage. For every ten patients treated with the drugs, one case of cardiotoxicity could be avoided. The meta-analysis included 9 randomized controlled trials […]


Potential Benefit of Early Lipid-Lowering

A multinational risk-evaluation and risk-modelling study suggests that non-HDL cholesterol concentrations in blood are strongly associated with long-term risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD), and highlights the potential benefit of early lipid-lowering strategies. The study identified 398 846 individuals in 38 cohorts (48·7% women; median age 51·0 years, without prevalent CVD […]


Medication on Par with Early Invasive Treatment for Stable IHD

An international randomized trial revealed that an initial invasive approach compared to optimal medical therapy (OMT) in stable ischemic heart disease (SIHD) patients with moderate-severe ischemia did not reduce risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) end points at a median of 3.3 years. The trial enrolled 5179 SIHD patients with moderate-severe ischemia […]


Low-Dose Colchicine Effective in CVD

A randomized, double-blind trial in Canada concluded that among patients with a recent myocardial infarction (MI), colchicine at a dose of 0.5 mg daily led to a significantly lower risk of ischemic cardiovascular events than placebo.A total of 4745 patients within 30 days after a MI were randomly assigned to […]


Lower Blood Pressure Might Reduce Dementia Risk

A meta-analysis of individual participant data from eligible observational studies suggested that use of any antihypertensive medications (AHM) with efficacy to lower blood pressure (BP) might reduce the risk for dementia among people with high BP. However, no evidence was found that a specific AHM drug class was more effective […]


Early Life Vascular Risk Linked to Brain Pathology Later

A prospective longitudinal cohort study in Britain revealed that early adulthood vascular risk is strongly associated with smaller whole-brain volume (WBV) and greater white matter–hyperintensity volume (WMHV) at age 69 to 71 years. The study assessed 502 participants in a birth cohort in 1946. Framingham Heart study–cardiovascular risk scores (FHS-CVS) […]


Bedtime BP-lowering Medications Work Better

A Spanish multicenter, controlled, prospective endpoint trial suggested that routinely taking blood pressure (BP)-lowering medications at bedtime, as opposed to upon waking, results in improved ambulatory BP (ABP) control and decreased occurrence of major cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. A total of 19 084 hypertensive patients (60.5 ± 13.7 years of age,  8470 women) […]