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Some flu vaccine reactions might be a good sign for people with heart disease
People with heart disease who forego annual flu vaccination for fear of having an adverse reaction may wish to reconsider. New research finds individuals with high-risk heart disease who experience mild to moderate side effects are less likely to be hospitalized for heart or lung problems or die from any cause.
As cardiac arrest deaths fall, Black and rural communities lag
Cardiac arrest deaths have dropped significantly in the U.S., except in Black and rural communities, according to new research. Cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating unexpectedly. A heart attack can trigger cardiac arrest, but so can other heart and non-heart issues. Higher bystander CPR rates and improved cardiovascular care have saved lives, but cardiac arrest was still a factor in more than 370,000 deaths in the United States in 2019.
How a middle-of-the-night heart attack at 40 became her wake-up call
Intense chest pain awakened Natalie Latham from a deep sleep. Surely, she figured, it was from the spicy soup she'd eaten the night before. Natalie had worked a full day in her role as marketing director for a bank in Brandon, Mississippi, then took one of her sons to baseball practice. Afterward, they picked up dinner from one of their favorite restaurants.
Upping your step count, even in small amounts, may increase life span
Adding 1,000 or even 500 steps to your daily routine could lead to a longer life, new research suggests. Experts have long endorsed walking as a free and easy way for people to get a wide variety of health benefits, including improved sleep, prevention of weight gain and reduced risks for serious conditions like heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
COVID-19 pandemic erased decade of progress in lowering heart disease death rate
After steadily declining for nearly a decade, the heart disease death rate rose significantly during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, new research finds. The increase erased years of progress, especially among Black and younger adults. "Prior to 2020, death rates from heart disease had been declining among adults...
New guidelines revise how aortic disease is diagnosed and treated
The American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology have issued new guidelines for diagnosing and managing diseases that affect the body's largest artery, providing recommendations for surgery, imaging, family screening and more. The updated guidance replaces two older documents for identifying and treating disease in the aorta, the artery...
Heart inflammation risk remains rare after third COVID-19 vaccine dose
A third dose of the Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine poses no more risk of heart inflammation than a second dose, a large study suggests. The findings could help allay concerns about risk going up with each additional dose. Cases were rare. Most appeared within seven days of vaccination and...
Hearts from COVID-19-positive donors appear safe for transplant
Donor hearts from people with COVID-19 may be just as safe as those from people without, finds a short-term analysis of the first such transplants done in the United States. "These findings suggest that we may be able to be more aggressive about accepting donors that are positive for COVID-19 when patients are in dire need of an organ for heart transplantation," study researcher Samuel T. Kim said in a news release. Kim is a third-year medical student at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Marital stress may make heart attack recovery tougher
Marital stress – especially if it's severe – may make it harder for younger adults to regain good physical and mental health following a heart attack, increasing the likelihood for chest pain and hospital readmission, a new study suggests. "Health care professionals need to be aware of personal...
Former Grand Slam tennis champion wants his survival story to help everyone, everywhere
Murphy Jensen looked across the tennis court and smiled – a joyful, mischievous grin. At 6-foot-5, with a smooth face and scalp, the bright flash of his teeth radiated warmth and happiness. Of course it did. This is a guy so peppy that a friend insists "the sun decides where to shine based on where Murphy goes."
Telehealth may be just as good as clinic visits for treating high blood pressure
Telehealth care by pharmacists is an effective alternative to clinic-based care for managing high blood pressure, a new study has found. Scientists know that high blood pressure is a major modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular-related deaths in the U.S. But controlling the condition, also known as hypertension, has been difficult.
Healthy fun or health risk? The two sides of fear
The good news is that fear can persuade us to avoid dangerous situations or help us flee from an angry bear. The bad news is that fear can lead to chronic stress, with serious health consequences. So should that affect your Halloween plans?. Probably not, said Zachary Sikora, medical director...
Protecting LGBTQ people from the health risks of social isolation
The ways Donald M. Bell and his Chicago neighbors connect with one another are as simple as they are significant. "We have certain rituals that pull certain clumps of people together," said Bell, 73. Sometimes, it's gathering to watch "Jeopardy!" in the community room of their senior apartment building. Other times, they make meals for each other, because cooking for one can be hard, but sharing is easy.
California boy needed surgery to fix unusual heart defect
On her first visit to the hospital to check on her newborn patient, the pediatrician detected a heart murmur. A few days later, at Cix Greene's first office visit, the doctor didn't hear it. It was almost eight years later, at the boy's annual checkup, before she heard it again. She told Cix's mother to take him to a pediatric cardiologist.
Triathlete's pain was the start of a rare form of heart attack
MaryKay West was at work in Portland, Oregon, after a long weekend in Southern California. Her husband, Jeff, had a work assignment there and she and their daughter, Anna, had visited. They'd gone for walks, shared nice meals and done a little sightseeing. And, as usual, MaryKay had gone for a run.
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Heart and Stroke News: Stories about people, science and health, from American Heart Association News.
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