Don’t Wait, Ablate to Prevent VT Episodes After an ICD Shock?
WASHINGTON — Researchers made a strong case that earlier was better when it comes to catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardias (VTs) in people with implantable cardiac defibrillators (ICDs). After a first ICD shock, 23 patients with ischemic or non-ischemic cardiomyopathy soon underwent radiofrequency VT ablation and ended up with 4% incidence of worsening heart failure […]
EHR Pop-Ups Spur Better GDMT Implementation in Heart Failure
WASHINGTON — A large health system took advantage of its electronic health records (EHR) software to increase utilization of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) in the outpatient setting. In the PROMPT-HF study, clinicians randomized to a clinical decision-support intervention got electronic alerts every time they accessed the EHR of a heart failure outpatient not on one […]
Tide Turns on Withholding Blood Pressure Meds for Pregnant Women
WASHINGTON — Consensus is growing that clinicians can be confident treating mild hypertension in otherwise healthy pregnant women without hurting their babies, based on the CHAP study. In this large randomized trial, treating high blood pressure (BP) to a target of <140/90 mm Hg resulted in better outcomes than did usual care, as evidenced by […]
Add-On Mavacamten Cuts Need for Septal Reduction in Obstructive HCM
WASHINGTON – Treatment with investigational mavacamten allowed patients with advanced obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (oHCM) to avoid septal reduction therapies (SRT), a researcher reported. In the VALOR-HCM study among 56 patients with documented oHCM who received add-on mavacamten to maximally-tolerated medical therapy, 17.9% met the composite endpoint (decision to move to SRT by week 16 or […]
Low-Salt Diet Helpful for HF Symptoms, But Not Necessarily for Clinical Events
WASHINGTON — A dietary intervention reduced sodium intake, but did not reduce clinical events, for people with heart failure (HF), according to the SODIUM-HF trial. Between patients randomized to a low-sodium diet or usual care for 12 months, there was no statistically significant difference in the combined outcome of cardiovascular-related admissions to hospital, cardiovascular-related emergency […]
House Members Remain Divided on Universal Healthcare
WASHINGTON — Democratic and Republican House members appeared as far apart as ever Tuesday on the issue of the best way to achieve universal healthcare coverage in the U.S. “Republicans are serious on this committee about trying to solve the healthcare problems we have in America, but bigger government and government-run healthcare is not the […]
Abortion Stays in Spotlight at SCOTUS Nominee’s Senate Hearing
WASHINGTON — During the third day of her Senate Judiciary Committee nomination hearing, Republican senators continued peppering President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson Wednesday with questions about her views on abortion. “Can an unborn child feel pain at 20 weeks?” asked Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). “I don’t know,” replied Jackson, who, if confirmed, […]
‘We Are Turning a Corner on COVID’: HHS Secretary Calls for More Funding
WASHINGTON — In order to be able to turn the corner on the COVID pandemic, the Biden administration needs Congress to allocate more funding for the federal government, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said at a press conference on Friday. “I’m going to lay out to Congress what we can do with what they give us […]
Meet the Primary Care Doc Who Wants the World to Go Back to Normal
Like many doctors, Washington, D.C.-based internist Lucy McBride, MD, found herself fielding question after question from worried patients when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020. She decided that the best way to reach everyone would be to send out mass email blasts to all her patients, addressing the most commonly voiced concerns. Two years […]
More Research Needed on Use of Premium Cigars, Report Finds
WASHINGTON — Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, except when it’s a “premium cigar.” But what does “premium” mean, and do premium cigars affect people’s health differently than other cigars, or cigarettes? These are just a few of the questions that the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine tried to tackle in its […]