Clinical Cardiology Alert 2005-03-01

C-Reactive Protein Levels and Outcomes after Statin Therapy

Two articles have been recently published emphasizing the importance of C-reactive protein in statin treated patients.

Clopidogrel or Aspirin Plus Esomeprazole with GI Bleeding

In patients with healed upper GI lesions that had caused bleeding and who needed antiplatelet therapy for cardiovascular reasons, aspirin plus esomeprazole was superior to clopidogrel for preventing recurrent upper GI bleeding.

Amiodarone or an ICD for Congestive Heart Failure

Patients with New York Heart Association class II or class III congestive heart failure and a left ventricular ejection fraction of 35% or less benefit from ICD therapy but not from amiodarone therapy.

Quality of CPR During Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

Trained paramedics following current CPR guidelines delivered chest compressions in a suboptimal fashion, which resulted in prolonged no flow ratios which may have contributed to the poor survival data presented.