Cardiology
RSSArticles
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Psychiatric Medications and Long QT Syndrome: A Safe Combination?
A retrospective study of patients with electrocardiogram long QT interval syndrome and psychiatric disease suggests that with proper pharmacologic treatment and counseling, the patients can be treated safely with psychiatric drugs known to increase the QT interval.
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Efficacy of Adding Aspirin to OACs for CAD Patients
A randomized, placebo-controlled trial of adding aspirin to oral anticoagulant therapy in patients with chronic coronary artery disease at high risk of atherothrombotic complications and major bleeding was stopped early because aspirin increased the risk of all-cause mortality. In addition, aspirin was associated with an increase in atherothrombotic complications and major bleeding.
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Psychiatric Medications and Long QT Syndrome: A Safe Combination?
A retrospective study of patients with electrocardiogram long QT interval syndrome and psychiatric disease suggests that with proper pharmacologic treatment and counseling, the patients can be treated safely with psychiatric drugs known to increase the QT interval.
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Preventing Ventricular Arrhythmias with Potassium
A Danish randomized trial of augmenting serum potassium by diet or medications compared to usual care in patients with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) has shown that modest increases in potassium resulted in a reduction in the composite endpoint of appropriate ICD therapy or hospitalizations for arrhythmias or heart failure, or death.
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Is Anticoagulation Necessary in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension?
A large French national registry observational study of the use of anticoagulants in patients with pulmonary artery hypertension of diverse etiologies enrolled over 11 years, and a meta-analysis of this study and four other national registry studies, showed that there was no association between anticoagulant use and survival.
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Efficacy of Adding Aspirin to OACs for CAD Patients
A randomized, placebo-controlled trial of adding aspirin to oral anticoagulant therapy in patients with chronic coronary artery disease at high risk of atherothrombotic complications and major bleeding was stopped early because aspirin increased the risk of all-cause mortality. In addition, aspirin was associated with an increase in atherothrombotic complications and major bleeding.
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Mechanical Aspiration for RSIE: Finally, Some Data to Inform a Growing Practice
In this registry of patients undergoing mechanical aspiration for right-sided infective endocarditis, technical success rates were high, with a modest but significant rate of procedural complications. Further research with randomized trials will be needed to better define proper patient selection.
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Wellens’ Syndrome or Not?
Today’s patient is a middle-aged man who presented to the emergency department (ED) with a history of chest pain with exertion during the past two weeks. His chest pain had been increasing and was at its most severe level the day he presented to the ED. The initial serum troponin level in the ED was more than 10,000 ng/L. Does the clinical scenario suggest Wellens’ syndrome?
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Beta-Blocker Interruption Post-MI
An analysis of the secondary outcomes in the French multicentered study of beta-blocker withdrawal in patients with uncomplicated myocardial infarction after one year led to increases in heart rate and blood pressure with potentially deleterious outcomes, especially in patients with a history of hypertension.
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Statins for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms
An analysis of two large, abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening populations from Denmark has shown that high-dose statin therapy reduces the rate of AAA growth, the need for repair, and adverse outcomes, such as rupture and death.