Cardiovascular Research: Cardiovascular benefits to testosterone replacement, ♦ Slowing down muscle loss in heart failure patients ♦ Hypertensive patients benefit from acupuncture treatments

Cardiovascular benefits to testosterone replacement, study of 83,000 veterans finds Men whose low testosterone was restored to normal through gels, patches, or injections had a lower risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from any cause, versus similar men who were not treated, a Veterans Affairs database study of more than 83,000 patients found.

Slowing down muscle loss in heart failure patients Whenever cardiac insufficiency or serious heart defects worsen, such deterioration is often associated with a loss of muscular mass and muscular strength. Scientists have now succeeded in identifying the mechanism that underlies this disease, also known as cardiac cachexia. On the basis of these latest findings it may now be possible to influence the processes that strengthen and accelerate protein degradation in the body with the help of certain medications

Updated screening policies could detect more abdominal aortic aneurysms Updating national screening policies could help detect more aortic aneurysms in older men and prevent deaths from this potentially life-threatening condition. Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm in male smokers at age 65 and then all men at age 75 could save more lives with less resources than the current United Kingdom, United States and Europe screening programs.

Hypertensive patients benefit from acupuncture treatments Patients with hypertension treated with acupuncture experienced drops in their blood pressure that lasted up to a month and a half. This work is the first to scientifically confirm that this ancient Chinese practice is beneficial in treating mild to moderate hypertension, and it indicates that regular use could help people control their blood pressure and lessen their risk of stroke and heart disease.

Cardiovascular Research: PTSD increase risk of cardiovascular disease? ♦ Air pollution from wildfires may ignite heart hazards ♦ Body temperature may trigger cardiac death

New guidelines for statin eligibility improve prediction of cardiovascular risk The new guidelines for determining whether patients should begin taking statins to prevent cardiovascular disease issued in 2013 by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association are more accurate and more efficient than an earlier set of guidelines in assigning treatment to adults at increased risk for cardiovascular events and identifying those whose low risk rules out the need to take statins.

Why does PTSD increase the risk of cardiovascular disease?  Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) leads to overactive nerve activity, dysfunctional immune response and activation of the hormone system that controls blood pressure. These changes can ultimately increase risk of cardiovascular disease.

Body temperature may trigger sudden cardiac death When studying the proteins that underlie electrical signaling in the heart, and subjecting those proteins to conditions that are similar to the stress of exercise, researchers have found that in some cases, temperature can cause changes that trigger arrhythmia

Air pollution from wildfires may ignite heart hazards Air pollution from wildfires may increase risk of cardiac arrests, and other sudden acute heart problems, researchers have found. Researchers noted that while breathing wildfire smoke was linked to respiratory problems such as asthma -- evidence of an association between wildfire smoke exposure and heart problems has been inconsistent.

Personalized care for aortic aneurysms, based on gene testing, has arrived Researchers have tested the genomes of more than 100 patients with thoracic aortic aneurysms, a potentially lethal condition, and provided genetically personalized care. Their work will also lead to the development of a 'dictionary' of genes specific to the disease.