Caffeine Effects on PVC Frequency: A Self-Experiment
Palpitations due to premature beats, either ventricular contractions (PVCs) or atrial contractions (PACs), can be extremely vexing even when we know they are benign. For many individuals, these extra-systoles come in waves that are seemingly random and inexplicable. This unpredictability can add to the anxiety they create. A reader recently shared his attempt to sort […]
No Aspirin Needed After LVAD, ARIES-HM3 Trial Says
PHILADELPHIA — Dropping aspirin from the antithrombotic regimen after HeartMate 3 left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation appeared safer than the usual combination approach in the ARIES-HM3 trial. Atop warfarin or other vitamin K antagonist therapy, placebo was noninferior to low-dose aspirin for the primary composite endpoint of survival free of stroke, pump thrombosis, major […]
Deadly Arrhythmias Less of a Risk for HF Patients on Dapagliflozin
An SGLT2 inhibitor seemed to offer protection from reduced ventricular arrhythmias in heart failure patients, according to a post hoc analysis of DAPA-HF. In that trial, the cohort randomized to dapagliflozin (Farxiga) had a reduced first occurrence of any ventricular arrhythmia, resuscitated cardiac arrest, or sudden death (5.9% vs 7.4% for placebo group; HR 0.79, […]