Heart Health

A drive-thru is a common way to pick up a quick lunch. Could drive-thru angioplasty be just around the corner? February is American Heart Month, and it's a good opportunity to look at some of the latest research and medical breakthroughs in heart health.

Drive-Thru Angioplasty
A couple of nights in the hospital after a heart procedure …that sounds pretty normal. But what if you could go home the very same day? Canadian researchers are perfecting a shortcut for angioplasty that could have you saying "Home Sweet Home" a lot sooner.


When performing an angioplasty, doctors generally thread a catheter through the femoral artery—that's near the groin—up to the heart. Then they inflate a small balloon inside a blood vessel to unclog it. After such an invasive procedure, an overnight stay is required, meaning additional costs and, sometimes, unwanted anxiety.

In the so-called drive-thru angioplasty, the catheter goes into the wrist artery. Patients take a drug to curtail any bleeding and usually go home within four to six hours. Dr. Nieca Goldberg from the American Heart Association tells us, "The sooner we can get our heart patients back into the comfort of their own home and their community, we can start to act on the risk factors that actually caused them to have the procedure." A new study finds that the shorter procedure also causes less bleeding, and it's just as safe as the traditional method.

The Gender Gap in Heart Health
There's another tradition that cardiologists are trying to put behind us: the gender gap. Dr. Goldberg explains, "For a long time, I guess the last 21 years, more women have died of heart disease than men. Yet, when I went to medical school, we were taught that heart disease was largely a man's disease."

A new study adds to mounting evidence that female heart patients are under-diagnosed and under-treated for heart disease. Kaiser Permanente researchers found that, although women with high cholesterol levels benefit as much from lipid-lowering statin drugs as men, they are prescribed for only 58% of women who need them, compared to 67% of men. The keys to narrowing the gap: Women should begin thinking about heart health early in their twenties and continue to have it assessed throughout their lives. Doctors should look for symptoms associated with women's cardiac problems like shortness of breath, unusual fatigue, and lower chest discomfort. Doctors should also recognize that women are as much at risk as men.

Regeneration of Heart Tissue
From the cutting edge of heart research comes the promise of regeneration. Scientists are developing methods to strengthen damaged heart tissue with infusions of the patient's own bone marrow cells, which act like stem cells. Initial studies show heart attack survivors nearly doubled their pumping ability. Researchers say it will be several years before the technique can be used in the fight against heart disease.

Heart Health for Children
The fight against heart disease should really begin in childhood. High blood pressure, which can be a symptom of heart disease, can affect children as well as adults. The American Heart Association recommends all children ages three and older get yearly blood pressure check-ups. Educating your children about heart healthy habits like exercise and good nutrition can be the key to preventing cardiovascular problems in the future.

New CPR Guidelines
The American Heart Association has also recently changed its CPR guidelines. Before, the recommendation was fifteen compressions for every two rescue breaths. The new recommendation doubles the compressions to 30 for every two rescue breaths.

From: http://www.accenthealth.com/features/200602/