Conventional portable metal detectors, such as those used at security checks, do not pose a risk to heart patients with implanted pacemakers, defibrillators or combined pacemaker-defibrillators. This is the result of a German-Greek study carried out at the 77th annual meeting of the German Society for Cardiology - Heart and Circulatory Research (DGK) was presented.
The director of the Essen University Clinic for Neurology, Prof. Hans Christoph Diener, has now published a study online as a co-author in the New England Journal of Medicine - the most important medical journal. The results represent a breakthrough in modern stroke prevention.
A significant proportion of heart attacks are caused by air pollution. This is the conclusion reached by an international team of researchers with the participation of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute associated with the University of Basel. The research results are published in the current issue of the renowned specialist magazine “The Lancet”.
The fact that the consumption of alcoholic beverages goes hand in hand with better cardiovascular health is not a new observation, but one that has been questioned again and again. However, the data situation is becoming more and more clear for alcohol: A systematic review in the British Medical Journal showed that one or two drinks a day lowers the risk of cardiovascular diseases, coronary heart disease and mortality from these diseases (Ronksley et al, BMJ 2011; 342: d671). The risk of stroke did not decrease, but it did not increase either. On the other hand, the overall mortality was lower than that of the abstainers. That means: those who drink alcohol in moderation live longer.
In their meta-analysis, researchers at the University of Bern found that long-term use of painkillers from the group of so-called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. For the active ingredients etoricoxib, ibuprofen or diclofenac, they also determined an increased risk of stroke.
"Diabetics and heart patients who take a diuretic (" water tablets ") are particularly at risk," warns the specialist society. In both cases of diabetes and diuretic treatment, the vital vitamin is washed out of the body in large quantities through the urine. Diet alone can hardly compensate for these losses.
The survival of patients with heart failure is closely related to their kidney function. A Viennese research team led by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Kurt Huber (3rd Medical Department with cardiology and internal emergency room, Wilhelminenspital, Vienna) wanted to find out whether BUN increases in addition to established markers for dead myocardial tissue (TroponinT, cTnT) and hemodynamic overload, for example in the case of arterial hypertension or heart valve defects (N- terminal B-type natriuretic peptide, Nt-proBNP) can be used for a better risk assessment in stable HI patients. Conclusion: "Even in addition to the well-known risk predictors Nt-proBNP and cTnT, blood urea contributes to a better risk assessment in patients with chronically stable HI", says Prof. Huber.
The Cologne research group analyzed the data of more than 140.000 patients at the cardiology clinic, and around 75.000 of them could clearly be assigned a treating family doctor. It was investigated whether conclusions can be drawn from the age of patients and doctors about the prescription of drugs relevant for heart disease such as aspirin, beta blockers, statins or nitrate sprays.
Men lose physical strength and flexibility with age. At the same time, their testosterone levels also drop. Treating healthy older men with testosterone increases and strengthens their muscles. "Even patients with hypogonadism, whose gonads produce too little testosterone, an artificial testosterone supply can help - young and old," say DGIM chairman Professor Dr. med. Hendrik Lehnert and Dr. med. Alexander Iwen, from the 1st Medical Clinic, University Clinic Schleswig-Holstein, Lübeck Campus.
The cocoa contained in dark chocolate contains many flavanols, which have a beneficial effect on the elasticity of the blood vessels and blood pressure. This has been proven by various short-term clinical studies in recent years. However, there were hardly any results from long-term studies. One reason for the DIfE researchers to check the facts with the help of the Potsdam EPIC * study data and to relate them to the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
The data from a representative survey on risk awareness in the population and among diabetics, which the State Institute for Health and Work North Rhine-Westphalia (LIGA.NRW) and the DHD (Der Herzkranke Diabetiker) foundation at the HDZ NRW recently presented are sobering. Although roughly every second person in North Rhine-Westphalia knew that smoking (51,2%), being overweight (49,9%) and stress (40,3%) increased the risk of a heart attack, just 26,1% named high blood pressure and 11,5 , 5,2% lipid metabolism disorder as risk factors. Diabetes even ranked last with 2000% - even though vascular consequences such as myocardial infarction or stroke threaten the health of the diabetic. In the NRW survey, 505 people were recorded and, in addition, XNUMX patients with diabetes mellitus were interviewed. Almost three quarters of diabetics said they had already attended one or more diabetes training courses.