Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Fresh articles via the Heart Center Online:
Insulin resistance associated with heart failure
Estrogen therapy may help prevent enlarged heart
Insulin resistance associated with heart failure
Jul 22 (HeartCenterOnline) - Insulin resistance appears to increase the risk of developing heart failure, according to a new study published in a leading medical journal.
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which the heart does not pump enough blood to adequately supply the body. It is considered a degenerative condition with no cure, and it is a major cause of death. People with CHF are 4 to 8 times more likely to die than people without the condition, according to background information in the study.
The most common causes of CHF are high blood pressure and atherosclerosis. Other risk factors include diabetes and obesity.
Insulin resistance is a condition in which the body does not respond to available insulin as well as it should and is considered a forerunner of diabetes Until this study, insulin resistance, had not been considered a risk factor for developing CHF.
During the study, a team of physicians in Sweden tracked 1,187 men over the age of 70 between 1990 and 2002. During that time, 104 men developed CHF. After controlling for all the possible risk factors, including previous heart attack, high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and high cholesterol, the research team found that insulin resistance is a valuable predictor for CHF.
The researchers speculated that the connection between obesity and CHF may be mediated by insulin resistance and called for further study. The study was published in the July 20 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Copyright 2000-2005 (HealthCentersOnline)
Publish Date: July 22, 2005
Estrogen therapy may help prevent enlarged heart
Jul 22 (HeartCenterOnline) - It may be premature to declare that estrogen replacement therapy has no place in preventing all forms of heart disease, according to researchers at the University of California, Irving (UCI).
In recent years, hormone replacement therapy with estrogen (HRT) has come under scrutiny because of findings released by the large, multi-year Women's Health Initiative. That study found that HRT did not prevent heart disease among post-menopausal women, as was once thought. Since those results were released, millions of women stopped taking HRT as a means to prevent heart disease.
However, the research team at UCI found that HRT prevented hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or enlarged heart, among post-menopausal women who had experienced a heart attack.
According to a release describing the study, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy occurs in as many as 80 percent of people who experience heart attacks. It may lead to heart failure.
Among pre-menopausal women, heart disease rates are significantly lower than among men the same age. However, after menopause, the rate of heart disease among women climbs rapidly, eventually becoming more common among women than men. Heart disease is the leading killer of American women.
In prepared remarks, the authors of the study say that HRT deserves further study, despite the "intense reaction" to the findings of the Women's Health Initiative. The study appeared in the July 15 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Copyright 2000-2005 (HealthCentersOnline)
Publish Date: July 22, 2005
Insulin resistance associated with heart failure
Estrogen therapy may help prevent enlarged heart
Insulin resistance associated with heart failure
Jul 22 (HeartCenterOnline) - Insulin resistance appears to increase the risk of developing heart failure, according to a new study published in a leading medical journal.
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which the heart does not pump enough blood to adequately supply the body. It is considered a degenerative condition with no cure, and it is a major cause of death. People with CHF are 4 to 8 times more likely to die than people without the condition, according to background information in the study.
The most common causes of CHF are high blood pressure and atherosclerosis. Other risk factors include diabetes and obesity.
Insulin resistance is a condition in which the body does not respond to available insulin as well as it should and is considered a forerunner of diabetes Until this study, insulin resistance, had not been considered a risk factor for developing CHF.
During the study, a team of physicians in Sweden tracked 1,187 men over the age of 70 between 1990 and 2002. During that time, 104 men developed CHF. After controlling for all the possible risk factors, including previous heart attack, high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and high cholesterol, the research team found that insulin resistance is a valuable predictor for CHF.
The researchers speculated that the connection between obesity and CHF may be mediated by insulin resistance and called for further study. The study was published in the July 20 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Copyright 2000-2005 (HealthCentersOnline)
Publish Date: July 22, 2005
Estrogen therapy may help prevent enlarged heart
Jul 22 (HeartCenterOnline) - It may be premature to declare that estrogen replacement therapy has no place in preventing all forms of heart disease, according to researchers at the University of California, Irving (UCI).
In recent years, hormone replacement therapy with estrogen (HRT) has come under scrutiny because of findings released by the large, multi-year Women's Health Initiative. That study found that HRT did not prevent heart disease among post-menopausal women, as was once thought. Since those results were released, millions of women stopped taking HRT as a means to prevent heart disease.
However, the research team at UCI found that HRT prevented hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or enlarged heart, among post-menopausal women who had experienced a heart attack.
According to a release describing the study, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy occurs in as many as 80 percent of people who experience heart attacks. It may lead to heart failure.
Among pre-menopausal women, heart disease rates are significantly lower than among men the same age. However, after menopause, the rate of heart disease among women climbs rapidly, eventually becoming more common among women than men. Heart disease is the leading killer of American women.
In prepared remarks, the authors of the study say that HRT deserves further study, despite the "intense reaction" to the findings of the Women's Health Initiative. The study appeared in the July 15 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Copyright 2000-2005 (HealthCentersOnline)
Publish Date: July 22, 2005
Friday, July 22, 2005
It has been a while. We moved from Texas to Maryland. Where up until this week, it has been 10-15 degrees cooler than Texas. This week, the temperatures are about identical. But that's OK - it's the middle of July, it's supposed to be summer. At least here in the Baltimore area, summer will last for another few weeks, and it'll be getting cooler again by the end of August. In Austin, it will stay in the 90's till October.
Nothing much to write about. Gotta find a new cardiologist now that I'm here. That should be fun. Gotta figure out what my health plan will pay for, now that I'm out-of-state with reference to the Employees Retirement System of Texas. Yeeha.
Anyone taking beta-blockers is going to have problems with heat. If you are taking furosemide/Lasix or related diuretics, you will also have problems with the sun. Suggestion: invest in several cooling bandanas. (Like this one, http://www.brandsonsale.com/zecoba.html , although that's just an example. I have not personally ordered from these people, so I don't know if it's any good. It's just to show you the kind of thing I mean.) For playing in the band in outdoor 4th of July concerts, I wear 2-3 of these - one tied around my forehead, one around my neck, one sorta draped down the center of my back. They really help. I could stand being out in the heat for almost 3 hours with these. Don't overexert yourself, though - you shouldn't try to "tough it out."
Nothing much to write about. Gotta find a new cardiologist now that I'm here. That should be fun. Gotta figure out what my health plan will pay for, now that I'm out-of-state with reference to the Employees Retirement System of Texas. Yeeha.
Anyone taking beta-blockers is going to have problems with heat. If you are taking furosemide/Lasix or related diuretics, you will also have problems with the sun. Suggestion: invest in several cooling bandanas. (Like this one, http://www.brandsonsale.com/zecoba.html , although that's just an example. I have not personally ordered from these people, so I don't know if it's any good. It's just to show you the kind of thing I mean.) For playing in the band in outdoor 4th of July concerts, I wear 2-3 of these - one tied around my forehead, one around my neck, one sorta draped down the center of my back. They really help. I could stand being out in the heat for almost 3 hours with these. Don't overexert yourself, though - you shouldn't try to "tough it out."
