Osteoporosis drug may improve immune system

Osteoporosis drug may save lives by strengthening immune system – An osteoporosis drug zoledronic acid (Reclast) proven to save lives after hip fractures may do so by strengthening the body’s immune system, revealed by geriatrics researchers at Duke University Medical Center.

Sanofi’s Multaq approved to treat heart rhythm disorder, US

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Approves Sanofi’s Multaq dronedarone to Treat Heart Rhythm Disorders – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Sanofi’s Multaq tablets (dronedarone) to help maintain normal heart rhythms in patients with a history of atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter (heart rhythm disorders or arrhythmia).

New CRT therapy prevents heart failure

New therapy found to prevent heart failure – Implanted cardiac resynchronization therapy device with defibrillator (CRT-D) reduced a 29 percent reduction in heart failure or death in patients with heart disease, revealed by researchers.

Bisphenol A BPA may cause heart disease in women

BPA may cause heart disease in women, research shows – New research by a team of scientists at the University of Cincinnati (UC) shows that bisphenol A (BPA) may be harmful for the heart, particularly in women. Results of several studies are being presented in Washington, D.C., at ENDO 09, the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting, June 10-13.

10 genes identified in connection with sudden cardiac death

You’re sitting at your desk and suddenly your heart is beating in overdrive or worse, lurching along like a car on fumes. It is a shocking, uncomfortable and frightening sensation. – Irregular heart rhythms are a common cause of sudden cardiac death or SCD, a condition that accounts for 450,000 deaths annually in the United States.

Depression linked to heart disease in women

Depression linked to heart disease in women

Feeling down and out could break your heart, literally. Research links depression to cardiac death in women without known heart disease. – Relatively healthy women with severe depression are at increased risk of cardiac events, including sudden cardiac death (SCD) and fatal coronary heart disease (CHD).

Implantable defibrillators better for older heart patients

Implantable defibrillators lower risk of death in older heart patients, reported by American Heart Association, USA. – Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) can improve survival in patients with heart damage – even those in their 70s – according to research reported in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

Heart stem cells grow into heart muscles

Researchers have succeeded in growing large numbers of stem cells from adult human hearts into new heart muscle cells. – Dutch researchers at University Medical Center Utrecht and the Hubrecht Institute have succeeded in growing large numbers of stem cells from adult human hearts into new heart muscle cells. A breakthrough in stem cell research.

Cholesterol drug statins may reduce heart’s atrial fibrillation

Special issue of JACC features intriguing link between statins and Atrial Fibrillation (AF) prevention, tools to ensure the highest-quality AF care, and more. – When we’re young, a racing heart often means love is in the air. If you’re a “baby boomer,” it might mean you’ve just joined the 2.2 million Americans who have atrial fibrillation (AF), an irregularity in the heart’s rhythm that grows more common as we age and markedly increases the risk for stroke.

Arthritis drug celecoxib can adversely affect heart rhythm

There has been much concern about the possibility of increased risk for heart attack and stroke in users of NSAID drugs, particularly COX-2 selective NSAIDs such as celecoxib. – COX-2 inhibitors like Celecoxib have come under scrutiny lately due to adverse cardiovascular side-effects stemming from COX-2 reduction. In both fruit fly and rat models, researchers reveal another adverse effect of Celecoxib; this drug can induce arrhythmia. More interestingly, this effect is independent of the COX-2 enzyme.

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