Yearly Archives: 2021


How to Stop Antidepressants in A Tolerable Way

Guidance on how to stop antidepressants in a tolerable way has been produced by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Prescriptions of antidepressants, primarily selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, has steadily increased over recent years. There is ongoing debate about their benefits and increasing recognition of […]


Resting Heart Rate Linked to Dementia

A Swedish population-based cohort study suggested that higher resting heart rate (RHR) was associated with increased risk for dementia and faster cognitive decline independent of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a general population of elderly people. The study included 2147 participants (age≥60) who were free of dementia and regularly followed from […]


Immune-Mediated Diseases Linked to Cancer Risks

The post hoc analysis of a UK prospective cohort study suggested that immune-mediated diseases were associated with risk of cancer at the local and systemic levels. The analysis included 478 753 participants (mean age, 56.4 years; 54% female) between 2006 and 2010, with follow-up through 2019. During 4 600 460 person-years of follow-up, […]


Exercise-Induced Premature Ventricular Contractions Prognostic

A retrospective cohort study concluded that high-grade exercise-induced premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) occurring during recovery were associated with long-term risk of cardiovascular mortality in asymptomatic individuals, but not PVCs occurring only during exercise. The study included a total of 5,486 asymptomatic individuals with a mean age of 45.4 years and […]


Sodium and Potassium Intakes Linked to Cardiovascular Risk

Higher sodium and lower potassium intakes, as measured in multiple 24-hour urine samples, were associated in a dose–response manner with a higher cardiovascular risk in a pooled random-effects meta-analysis of individual-participant data from six prospective cohorts of generally healthy adults in the US. The analysis included 10,709 participants, mean age […]


Mental Stress–Induced Myocardial Ischemia Prognostic

Pooled analysis of 2 US prospective cohort studies of patients with stable coronary heart disease (CHD) suggested that myocardial ischemia with mental stress, compared with no ischemia with mental stress, was significantly associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) death or nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI). The analysis included 918 […]


CAC Diagnostic Value Age Dependent

A Danish cohort study showed that the diagnostic value of a coronary artery calcium (CAC) score was age dependent, with smaller added diagnostic value for younger patients. The cohort included 23 759 symptomatic adult patients who underwent computed tomography angiography between January 2008 and December 2017; median age 58, 55% […]


SBP-Mortality Association Modified by Frailty

A German longitudinal study suggested that the association between systolic blood pressure (SBP) and all-cause mortality in older adults may be modified by frailty, with a tendency toward lower risk among those with SBP≥130 mm Hg in frail older adults. The study included 1170 participants (median age 73.9 years, 41.6% […]


BP and Heart Rate Patterns Prognostic

A longitudinal cohort study in Italy suggested that non-dipping and reverse dipping blood pressure (BP) patterns are associated with an increased prevalence of cardiac autonomic neuropathy and reduced survival. The study recruited 349 diabetic patients (52% women, age 57.1±11.9 y, BMI 29.4±5.9 kg/m2, HbA1c 8.6±2.1%, 284 with type 2 diabetes) […]


MIND Diet Linked to Better Cognitive Resilience

A US longitudinal clinical-pathologic study revealed that healthy diet is associated with cognitive resilience (defined as performing better than expected given burden of neuropathology) independently of common brain pathology in older adults. The study included 569 decedents with valid dietary data, cognitive testing proximate to death, and complete autopsy data. […]