Cardiovascular research: How to improve cardiac arrest survival in three easy steps ♦ Seeking treatment earlier may improve heart attack outcomes ♦.Cardiovascular disease in adult survivors of childhood cancer

Seeking treatment earlier may improve heart attack outcomes While hospitals have made strides in reducing the time it takes to treat heart attack patients once they arrive at the hospital, patient delays recognizing symptoms and seeking treatment are associated with increased damage to the heart, according to a study.

Treatment time lags for heart attack patients with prior bypass graft surgery Heart attack patients who had previously undergone coronary artery bypass graft surgery were less likely than other heart attack patients, including those with prior angioplasty, to be treated within the 90-minute recommended 'door-to-balloon time,'

How to improve cardiac arrest survival in three easy steps Although survival rates for people who suffer cardiac arrest outside a hospital are extremely low in most places, emergency physicians propose three interventions to improve survival rates and functional outcomes in any community

.Cardiovascular disease in adult survivors of childhood cancer For adult survivors of childhood cancer, cardiovascular disease presents at an earlier age, is associated with substantial morbidity, and is often asymptomatic. According to researchers, the type and frequency of screening that should be used in this group is not clear.

Cardiovascular Research: Heart disease: Jamming the signal ♦ Safer, faster heart scans in view ♦ Nurse staffing, work environments affect survival after in-hospital cardiac arrest

Heart injury reduced after bariatric surgery but not lifestyle intervention Heart function in morbidly obese patients returns to normal after bariatric surgery but not after lifestyle intervention. The results suggest that bariatric surgery may reduce the risk

Nurse staffing, work environments affect survival after in-hospital cardiac arrest Patients with in-hospital cardiac arrest have low survival rates -- but why do some hospitals achieve higher survival than others? Higher nurse staffing levels and better working conditions may be part of the answer.

Safer, faster heart scans in view T1 mapping technique provides clearer imagery and could be used with a wider range of patients than current techniques as it does not require the rare earth heavy metal Gadolinium.

Heart disease: Jamming the signal A short peptide has been developed that inhibits the activation of a signal pathway in monocytes that enables monocytes to adhere stick to endothelial cells and penetrate sites of acute inflammation.

Children's Health:Nearsightedness progression in children slowed down ♦ Cardiac arrest in children during spine surgeries ♦ For kids prone to wheezing with respiratory infections, early antibiotics help?

Programmable electronic glasses provide children effective, digital lazy eye treatment Programmable digital glasses for lazy eye work as well as eye patching, study shows, improving vision by about 2 lines on the reading chart after 3 months. First new effective lazy eye treatment in 50 years.

Study quantifies risk of cardiac arrest in children during spine surgeries Although the vast majority of pediatric spine surgeries are safe, a handful of neuromuscular conditions seem to fuel the risk of cardiac arrest during such operations, according to new research.

For kids prone to wheezing with respiratory infections, early antibiotics help? In children whose colds tend to progress and lead to severe wheezing and difficulty breathing — such that they are given oral corticosteroids as rescue therapy — researchers have shown that giving a common antibiotic at the first sign of cold symptoms can reduce the risk of the episode developing into a severe lower respiratory tract illness

Nearsightedness progression in children slowed down by medicated eye drops Atropine .01 percent eye drops slow down nearsightedness by roughly 50 percent in five-year clinical trial on Singaporean children. Researchers suggest low-dose drops safe as 'first line' defense against rapid development of nearsightedness in children

Cardiovascular Research: So long, stethoscope? New device, smartphone alter exams ♦ Improving safety, decreasing risks of new blood thinners

Angina is linked with abnormal heart blood flow in patients with female-pattern heart disease

Chest pain in female-pattern heart disease is linked with abnormal heart blood flow, demonstrated with a drug commonly used to alleviate chest pain patients with coronary artery disease, which was found to be ineffective in patients with moderate female-pattern heart disease, but may offer some relief for sicker patients.

Improving safety, decreasing risks of new blood thinners By reversing the effects of the blood thinners apixaban and rivaroxaban within minutes, this new antidote may help to save the lives of patients taking blood thinners that experience major bleeding complications.

So long, stethoscope? New device, smartphone alter exams A smartphone-based device known as Heart Buds performed just as well as traditional stethoscopes and better than a disposable model in identifying heart murmurs and other vital sounds during patient exams

Lowering body temperature increases survival, brain function in cardiac arrest patients with non-shockable heart rhythms Lowering the body's temperature in cardiac arrest patients with 'non-shockable' heart rhythms increases survival and brain function. Patients who received the treatment were about three times more likely to survive cardiac arrest and have better neurological function compared to those who did not receive it

Cardiovascular Research:Milk proteins may protect against cardiovascular disease ♦ Drug candidate can improve a failing heart’s function ♦ Interventions among healthy people save the most lives

Milk proteins may protect against cardiovascular disease The Maillard reaction is a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars that results in browned foods like seared steaks and toasted bread. When proteins and sugars are mixed together and heated, new chemical compounds are formed. Some are responsible for new flavors and some, according to a new study may protect us against cardiovascular disease.

Swift intervention doubles survival rate from cardiac arrest Researchers have found that early cardiopulmonary resuscitation more than doubles the chance of survival for patients suffering out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The percentage of patients who receive life-saving resuscitation has also increased substantially thanks to so-called SMS Lifesavers

New powerful drug candidate can improve a failing heart’s function An experimental drug improves the ability of heart muscle cells damaged by heart failure to pump blood.

Severely impaired stroke survivors regain arm function after intensive physical therapy Time may heal all wounds, but in the case of stroke survivors, the key to better recovery is to spend more time in an intensive physical therapy program.

Interventions among healthy people save the most lives Mortality from coronary heart disease declined in Sweden from 1986 to 2002. The improvement was due mainly to a reduction in risk factors among the healthy population and, to a lesser extent, treatment of people who already had developed heart disease. A study explores the reasons for the trend

Cardiovascular Research: Deciphering causes of sudden death ♦ Better function after stroke if clots removed ♦ Cognitive problems are common after cardiac arrest

Cognitive problems are common after cardiac arrest  Half of all patients who survive a cardiac arrest experience problems memory and attention. Surprisingly, however, a control group had largely the same level of problems. This suggests that it is not only the cardiac arrest and the consequent lack of oxygen to the brain that is the cause of the patients’ difficulties.

Game-changer for stroke treatment: Better function after stroke if clots removed Patients with severe strokes had far better outcomes when they were treated using not only a drug to dissolve the blood clot causing the stroke, but also with a procedure to grab, dislodge and remove the clot, according to an international study.

Should they stay or should they go? Study finds no harm from hospital policies that let families observe CPR  When a hospital patient’s heart stops, the drama starts, as doctors and nurses work furiously at resuscitation. Some hospitals allow family members to watch, while the majority do not. Now, a study has shown for the first time on a national scale that patients do just as well after a cardiac arrest either way

Applied physics helps decipher causes of sudden death  Sudden cardiac death accounts for approximately 10% of natural deaths, most of which are due to ventricular fibrillation. Each year it causes 300,000 deaths in the United States. Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that the transition to calcium alternans, an arrhythmia associated with increased risk of sudden death, has common features with the magnetic ordering of metals. This new finding improves our understanding of the physical causes of sudden death and will advance the design of drugs to prevent it.

Cardiovascular Research:Cardiac tissue grown on 'spider silk' substrate ♦ Physical therapy effective treatment for stroke ♦ Eating out = high blood pressure?

Cardiac tissue grown on 'spider silk' substrate Genetically engineered fibers of the protein spidroin, which is the construction material for spider webs, has proven to be a perfect substrate for cultivating heart tissue cells. The cultivation of organs and tissues from a patient’s cells is the bleeding edge of medical research – regenerative methods can solve the problem of transplant rejection. However,it’s quite a challenge to find a suitable frame, to grow cells.

Mental practice, physical therapy effective treatment for stroke A combination of mental practice and physical therapy is an effective treatment for people recovering from a stroke, according to researchers. Mental practice and physical therapy are interventions used to improve impaired motor movement, coordination and balance following stroke. Mental practice, also known as motor imagery, is the mental rehearsal of a motor action without an overt action. Physical therapy consists of repetitive, task-oriented training of the impaired extremity.

Eating out = high blood pressure? A recent study on university-going young adults is the first ever to show an association between meals eaten away from home and high blood pressure. These findings highlight lifestyle factors that can affect hypertension and emphasize the importance of being aware of the salt and calorie content in food, to facilitate better meal choices when eating out

Selenide protects heart muscle in the wake of cardiac arrest  Damage to heart muscle from insufficient blood supply during cardiac arrest and reperfusion injury after blood flow is restored can be reduced by nearly 90 percent if selenide, a form of the essential nutrient selenium, is administered intravenously in the wake of the attack.

Health News: Lack Of Food Safety Kills 2.2 M every Year ♦ Breastfeeding women and sex ♦ Deadly protein in Huntington's disease patients' spinal fluid

Lack Of Food Safety Kills 2.2 M every Year LACK of government policies on food and water safety is causing the death of 2.2 million people, including children, every year across the globe. Pesticides and fertilisers in the past 50 years has grown nearly 170 times. As a consequence, persistent residues of the chemicals contaminate food and disperse in the environment

Breastfeeding women and sex: Higher sex drive or relationship management? New mothers in the Philippines spend more time in the bedroom with their partner in the first few weeks after giving birth than they did before they became pregnant. This might be a type of survival strategy to keep the relationships with the fathers of their new babies alive and well, to ensure continued support for their offspring.

New test measures deadly protein in Huntington's disease patients' spinal fluid A new test has been able to measure for the first time the build-up of a harmful mutant protein in the nervous system of patients during the progression of Huntington's disease (HD). HD is a genetic neurodegenerative disease that usually develops in adulthood and causes abnormal involuntary movements, psychiatric symptoms, and dementia. It is caused by a single gene mutation that results in the production of mutant huntingtin protein.

Middle-aged athletes at low risk for sudden cardiac arrest while exercising Middle-aged athletes are at low risk for having a sudden cardiac arrest while playing sports, and those who do have a greater chance of surviving the usually-fatal condition, shows a new study.

Consequences of driving drunk are paying off Punishments for drivers whose blood alcohol content is measured above legal thresholds for impairment have reduced the likelihood of repeat offenses, says an economist. To further discourage drunk driving, the researcher suggests lowering the thresholds and instituting harsher penalties based on blood alcohol content.