Heart Disease for Doctors

May 16 2024

GLP-1 receptor agonists confer better outcomes after AF ablation in patients with diabetes

In patients with type 2 diabetes who underwent ablation for atrial fibrillation, those taking a GLP-1 receptor agonist had lower risk for AF recurrence, mortality and other outcomes, researchers reported at Heart Rhythm 2024.
“Recurrence of AF after ablation is common and happens in 20% to 45% of patients,” Aakash R. Sheth, MD, cardiology fellow at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Harrisburg, who presented the results, told Healio. “One of the main reasons is comorbidities like hypertension and diabetes. Several preclinical studies ... predominantly done in mice

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From Healio.com CARDIOLOGY • Heart Disease for Doctors • 0

May 16 2024

TAVR equal to surgery in younger low-risk patients, but not if they have bicuspid valves

In younger patients with severe aortic stenosis at low surgical risk, transcatheter aortic valve replacement was associated with similar outcomes to surgical AVR, except in those with bicuspid valves, researchers reported.
The results of the NOTION-2 trial were presented by Ole De Backer, MD, PhD, MBA, professor of cardiology at Copenhagen University and structural interventional cardiologist at The Heart Center – Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen, Denmark, at EuroPCR, and simultaneously published in the European Heart Journal
De Backer and colleagues randomly assigned 370 patients aged 75

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From Healio.com CARDIOLOGY • Heart Disease for Doctors • 0

May 15 2024

Low testosterone tied to increased risk for mortality, CVD events

Men with low testosterone concentrations had a higher risk for all-cause mortality, and those with very low testosterone also had an increased risk for CVD mortality, a study in Annals of Internal Medicine showed.
“Given the effects of testosterone on male libido, virilization, and body composition ... an important question has been whether and when lower endogenous testosterone concentrations are related to poorer health outcomes,” Bu B. Yeap, MBBS, a professor in the Medical School at the University of Western Australia, and colleagues wrote.
Prior research on the associations

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From Healio.com CARDIOLOGY • Heart Disease for Doctors • 0

May 15 2024

Recall of LVAD implant kit designated class I; two deaths reported

Abbott/Thoratec Corp. announced the recall of its left ventricular assist device implant kit due to complaints of blood leakage or air entering the seal interface between the LVAD inflow cannula and the apical cuff.
The FDA has identified the recall of the LVAD implant kit (HeartMate 3) as a class I recall, the most serious type of recall, as use of the devices may cause serious injury or death. The FDA stated this recall is a correction, not a product removal.
Blood leakage or air entering the seal interface between the LVAD inflow cannula and the apical cuff could impair integrity of blood

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From Healio.com CARDIOLOGY • Heart Disease for Doctors • 0

May 15 2024

In women with small aortic annuli, TAVR with self-expanding valve has better hemodynamics

In women with severe aortic stenosis and small aortic annuli who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement, a self-expanding valve was linked with better hemodynamic outcomes vs. a balloon-expandable valve at 1 year.
There were no differences between the groups in clinical outcomes at 1 year, according to new data from the SMART trial presented by Roxana Mehran, MD, director of interventional cardiovascular research and clinical trials at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, at EuroPCR.
As Healio previously reported, in the main results of SMART, patients assigned TAVR with a

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From Healio.com CARDIOLOGY • Heart Disease for Doctors • 0