Heart Failure

Heart failure occurs when the heart cannot pump as much blood as the body requires. This ineffective pumping can lead to enlargement of the heart as the myocardium works harder pump the same amount of blood. Heart failure may be caused by defects in the myocardium, such as an a heart attack infarct, or due to structural issues such as severe heart valve regurgitation. Heart failure can be divided into HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). The disease is further divided into four New York Heart Association (NYHA) classes. Stage IV heart failure is when the heart is completely failing and requires a heart transplant or hemodynamic support from a left ventricular assist device (LVAD).

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Flu shots improve survival in heart failure patients

Receiving the flu vaccine could improve cardiovascular and all-cause mortality outcomes in patients with heart failure, according to a large-scale study of Danish citizens published Dec. 10 in Circulation.

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Study: Echocardiography may reveal keys to ‘obesity paradox’ in heart failure

A study presented Dec. 6 at the EuroEcho-Imaging 2018 conference in Milan adds to the debate over the "obesity paradox," finding that acute heart failure patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 23 or higher had better survival over nearly three years of follow-up than those with a BMI below that threshold.

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Could chemo trigger Takotsubo in cancer patients?

Heart patients who suffer Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC) could face longer hospital stays, poorer outcomes and more than $150,000 in hospital bills if they’re undergoing chemotherapy simultaneously, researchers report in the American Journal of Cardiology.

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Combo of trastuzumab, carvedilol cuts risk of heart damage in breast cancer patients

Data presented at the 2018 EuroEcho-Imaging congress in Milan suggest breast cancer patients who take the common chemo drug trastuzumab might be able to mitigate their risk of heart damage by supplementing with carvedilol, a beta-blocker used predominantly by cardiac patients.

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Telemonitoring for heart failure linked to 40% drop in mortality at 6 months

Home telemonitoring approaches for heart failure patients are associated with lower odds of death at six months but not beyond that, according to a meta-analysis published in the December issue of Health Affairs.

Polypharmacy linked to functional impairment in seniors with HF

Seniors taking five or more prescription drugs to treat heart failure could be at an increased risk for functional impairment, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

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Natriuretic peptide-guided therapy falls flat in improving HFrEF outcomes

Using a biomarker target to guide the treatment of patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) resulted in higher healthcare costs without significant improvements in quality of life compared to standard treatment, according to an analysis from the GUIDE-IT study.

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Study: Miscarriages raise risk of CHD, heart failure in women

Results from a study published in the Journal of Women’s Health Nov. 27 suggest both miscarriages and a high number of births have a significant impact on women’s cardiovascular health, raising a mother’s risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), heart failure and even serious MI.

Around the web

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.

Eleven medical societies have signed on to a consensus statement aimed at standardizing imaging for suspected cardiovascular infections.