BHF data reveals early heart disease deaths rise to highest level In 2022, over 39,000 people in England died prematurely of cardiovascular conditions The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has revealed new data showing that early heart disease deaths in England have risen to the highest level seen since 2008. New figures show that over 39,000 people in England died prematurely of cardiovascular conditions, including heart attacks, coronary heart disease and stroke, in 2022. Cardiovascular disease is a general term for conditions that affect the heart or blood vessels in the body. In the UK, there are currently around 7.6 million people living with heart and circulatory diseases. Before 2012, the number and rate of deaths from these types of conditions among people under the age of 75 were falling. However, recent statistics have shown that the rate of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease has increased in England for three years. ...
A new trial led by researchers at the University of Edinburgh has revealed that a new blood test in emergency departments can spot more patients with injuries to their heart muscle, producing lower rates of future heart attacks and deaths. Funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and published in the BMJ journal, the new blood test could improve diagnosis for one in five patients who have a heart muscle injury. In the UK, heart attacks are responsible for around 100,000 hospital admissions every year. During a heart attack or heart injury stemming from other heart conditions, a protein known as troponin is released into the blood. The new test detects very low levels of troponin more accurately than older versions of the tests, which have been used by doctors for years to help diagnose these conditions in people with chest pains and related symptoms. Researchers analysed the results of ...
Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight loss injection Wegovy could prevent up to 1.5 million heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular events in the U.S. over 10 years, according to a study released this week. Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, also found that Wegovy could result in 43 million fewer Americans with obesity over a decade. Notably, the study was partly funded by Novo Nordisk. The study results complement the initial data the Danish company released last week from a large clinical trial, which found that Wegovy slashed the risk of serious heart problems and heart-related death by 20%. Novo Nordisk’s trial studied overweight or obese patients with established cardiovascular disease, while UC Irvine’s study examined similar patients, albeit without the disease. Together, the results suggest that Wegovy and, likely, similar obesity drugs have significant health benefits beyond shedding unwanted pounds. Physicians and Wall Street analysts hope that could eventually ...
Dive Brief QuidelOrtho’s recall of a test to detect heart attacks was labeled Class I by the Food and Drug Administration, the most serious type of recall, the agency said in a Monday notice. The San Diego-based diagnostic manufacturer flagged a problem with the tests in late May after receiving reports that the tests showed lower than expected troponin levels, which could result in delayed or missed diagnosis of a heart attack. The recall affects nearly 7,800 tests, and QuidelOrtho is instructing clinicians to immediately discontinue using the product, and instead use a different test or send patients to another testing site. Dive Insight Quidel’s Triage Cardiac Panel is intended to help diagnose heart attacks. The test uses a blood sample, and can deliver results in about 20 minutes, according to the company’s website. It is important to detect heart attacks quickly to ...
Your heart needs a continuous supply of oxygen-rich blood for nourishment and a heart attack occurs when the heart muscles do not get enough oxygen-rich blood. The blood flow in the heart muscles should be restored quickly to avoid permanent damage, else you will suffer a heart attack.
In the field of cardiovascular health, some individuals fall into an ambiguous “intermediate zone” of risk for heart attacks or strokes—neither distinctly low nor high-risk, yet potentially on the cusp of heart disease. This grey area calls for improved methodologies for accurate risk prediction. Traditionally, risk assessments like the widely recognized Framingham Risk Score have utilized factors such as levels of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ cholesterol to categorize individuals into risk groups. However, these conventional tools have several limitations, especially in identifying the risks for those in this intermediate category. This oversight is particularly critical as heart disease can progress silently, making early detection crucial to avoid late-stage interventions that are less effective. Now, scientists have developed and validated a novel, blood-based risk score based on lipids (fats in the blood). The tool, outlined in a paper published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, was developed by scientists ...
During and after a heart attack, the heart’s muscles suffer damage leading to the formation of scar tissue known as cardiac fibrosis. This scar tissue lacks the flexibility and contractility of healthy heart muscle, and its permanent presence can impair the heart’s pumping ability, potentially resulting in heart failure. Cardiac fibrosis is associated with all forms of heart disease, including those resulting from the overloading of the heart due to high blood pressure. Despite substantial investment in research seeking treatments to manage cardiac fibrosis, these efforts have largely been unsuccessful. There is a pressing need for innovative treatments that could halt or even reverse cardiac fibrosis, offering hope to millions affected. Scientists have now developed a first-of-its-kind integrated map of heart cells that sheds light on the process of cardiac fibrosis and could aid in preventing damage following a heart attack. This breakthrough achieved by researchers at the Victor Chang ...
A study conducted by European researchers from the University of Glasgow, the University of Oxford, KU Leuven and the University of Leicester has revealed the shifting trends and persistent challenges in heart health and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the UK. Published in the BMJ, researchers analysed the electronic health records of 22 million people from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink, CPRD GOLD and Aurum. CVD affects around seven million people in the UK and is a significant cause of disability and death. Affecting around 2.3 million people in the UK, coronary heart disease is the most common form of heart and circulatory disease and occurs when coronary arteries become narrowed by a build-up of fatty material within their walls. In the last 20 years, the study found a 19% reduction in the overall incidence of heart-related disease, including significant reductions in heart attacks and stroke, between 2000 and 2019, with ...
The EST identified 30% of patients with a blood supply/demand mismatch Researchers from King’s College London (KCL) have revealed that the revival of a heart stress test was successful when put to the test against contemporary standards in heart care. Published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology, the electrocardiogram exercise stress test (EST) was accurate in identifying abnormalities in the heart’s blood supply. Previously, the EST was a popular way of assessing patients with angina – attacks of chest pain caused by reduced blood flow to the heart. The test required a patient to exercise on a treadmill or stationary bike while a cardiologist distinguished whether the blood supply to the heart muscle matched the demand during physical stress. However, due to its perceived inaccuracies, the EST test fell out of favour. KCL researchers, however, questioned this after discovering that an abnormal EST was successful in picking up ...
Heart attacks are the leading cause of death globally, with their incidence on the rise. Despite this, many high-risk individuals either remain unidentified or fail to adhere to preventive treatments. Notably, the period preceding a heart attack is marked by significant biological changes. For instance, the risk of a heart attack doubles in the month following a divorce and increases fivefold in the week after a cancer diagnosis. Based on the hypothesis that several vital biological processes are active during the months before a heart attack, researchers have now suggested that these could be detected using a simple blood test. Researchers at Uppsala University (Uppsala, Sweden) have developed an online tool that, when used in conjunction with standard blood test results, can help clinicians determine if a person is at an elevated risk of experiencing a heart attack within the next six months. The study involved analyzing blood samples from ...
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