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Fitness instructor couldn't outrun family heart disease, but she could reduce the damage
A few months before her 50th birthday, Angie Mayo and her husband, Carl, headed to Key West, Florida, for an early celebration. She could use the break from the 12-hour shifts at her factory production job and all the time she put in at the gym near her home in Guin, Alabama.
Report redefines overlapping risks of heart and kidney diseases
Citing the vast number of people affected and the serious health consequences, heart health experts are redefining the overlapping effects of obesity, Type 2 diabetes, chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease and rethinking how they predict long-term cardiovascular risks. A presidential advisory from the American Heart Association, published Monday in...
What people with heart disease should know about vaccines today
In some ways, the link between viruses, vaccines and heart health is simple. Think of your heart as a house, said Dr. Jorge Alvarez, an interventional cardiologist at Methodist Cardiology Clinic of San Antonio. "You have the walls of your house, which are like the walls of your heart. You have the doors, which are the valves. And then you have plumbing and electricity.
Personal trainer and weightlifter faced his biggest challenge – open-heart surgery
Alfonso Moretti was about to have surgery for a torn tendon in his calf muscle. At 45, and having been a personal trainer since his late teens, surgeries to repair injuries were nothing new. This would be his eighth. But this time, during a routine exam before anesthesia would be...
Insomnia may be an early risk factor for irregular heart rhythm
Younger adults diagnosed with insomnia were more likely to develop a type of irregular heartbeat – and to do so earlier – than those without a history of insomnia, according to a large study of military veterans. The findings suggest difficulty falling or staying asleep may be an early risk factor for atrial fibrillation, or AFib.
High school and college Latino students get a peek at medical careers
Esteban Rios never planned on going to college, let alone pursue a career in medicine. His grandmother planted the idea in his head. "She really encouraged me to become a doctor, but I didn't see myself as one," he said. Rios grew up in the San Joaquin Valley, a predominantly...
A lifelong series of heart problems turned her into a staunch advocate
As a young girl, Chrissy Gaffney endured occasional fevers and body aches that made her struggle to walk. Although the family doctor diagnosed her with arthritis, her parents weren't convinced. Then, when she was 12, she struggled to breathe while doing the 1-mile run for the presidential physical fitness test....
Gulf War illness may increase risk for heart disease or stroke
Military veterans with Gulf War illness may face a higher risk for heart disease, stroke and several risk factors, a new study suggests. Gulf War illness is a chronic condition with many symptoms that affects about a third of the 700,000 U.S. military personnel who served during the Gulf War in the early 1990s. The study found that veterans with the illness were more than twice as likely to self-report atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, or issues related to plaque buildup that blocks arteries, as veterans who did not have symptoms related to the condition.
Telehealth helps Latino communities in rural areas, but access can still be challenging
Rosa Jaime Alcantar started feeling extreme fatigue last summer. She couldn't quench a constant thirst, and her legs felt as if they were on fire. She went to a nonprofit health center in California's Central Valley, where she learned she had diabetes. She'd been living a sedentary lifestyle since 2016,...
Bodybuilder had a stroke at 25. And 28. At 34, she got a new heart.
When she's not baking cookies for her dessert business, Olivia Rose can often be found pumping iron at the gym. For years, she participated in amateur bodybuilding competitions and even hoped to go pro. At 25, she had the chance to make that happen – if she could finish in...
The exploding fireworks sensation in 33-year-old's brain was a stroke – his second
Bill and Marilyn Ramsey were excited about going to Galveston, Texas, to celebrate a friend's birthday. Their friend, a pilot, flew the couple, along with his wife, in a four-seater plane from their hometown of Wichita, Kansas. It was a tight fit, especially for four hours. Once there, they were...
If you like being healthy, should you put a ring on it? What science says to singles
Single? You're hardly alone. About 46% of American adults are divorced, widowed or have never been married, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and the proportion of never-marrieds has been rising steadily in modern times. A casual glance at health research about the benefits of being wed, though, can read...
She was back on the improv stage 6 months after a stroke at 44
Jamie Stevens went back home to Garnett, Kansas, for her grandmother's funeral and to spend time with her family. After watching her niece's soccer game, Stevens felt a stronger headache than usual. For the past few months, the headaches had been common, a byproduct – she figured – of the...
Stressful, low-reward work may double heart disease risk for men
Men who worked in stressful jobs that they felt required high effort but provided low reward had twice the risk of heart disease as men who were free of such stressors, a study has found. The combined effect of job strain and effort-reward imbalance was similar to the magnitude of...
Can you stop an overdose death? Updated guidelines may help
Saving lives after an opioid overdose isn't just the job of emergency department workers, according to guidelines on how to treat heart-stopping poisonings. Opioids are just one of the substances addressed in the updated American Heart Association guidelines. But the threat posed by overdoses from such drugs, particularly fentanyl, is immense, said Dr. Eric Lavonas, professor of emergency medicine at Denver Health and the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center.
RÁPIDO aims to get native Spanish speakers to recognize stroke signs fast
Norma Hernández was preparing for choir practice for a church service when someone came looking for help. Another church member, a friend of hers, had fallen ill. Hernández rushed to her friend and found him slumped in a chair, his wife standing beside him. He looked tired and pale, recalled Hernández, a certified community health worker in Fort Worth, Texas. "I was talking to him at the same time I was assessing him," she said. "But the more questions I asked, the more I thought something was not right."
How did this dancer's heart transplant go? Recovery included a jig in a hospital hall
Alphonso Aguilar's father had his second heart attack and died on the dance floor while doing the salsa. He was 63 years old. An avid ballroom dancer himself, the younger Aguilar shares his dad's passion and prowess for dance. And, as it turns out, his heart problems. After surviving a heart attack at 51, and learning he'd been born with a heart defect, Aguilar channeled his energy into avoiding his father's fate.
Heart failure at 39, then a stroke. Now she wants to help fellow survivors persevere.
Brooke Bognanni had been struggling with abdominal pain for about six weeks when she fit in a visit with her longtime physician. While describing her symptoms, the active college professor from Baltimore mentioned something else strange. She'd been having trouble catching her breath after walking up the hill and stairs to her second-floor office.
Leg pain while walking could be a sign of artery trouble in older adults
Do your legs hurt when you walk? Experts on peripheral artery disease want you to know that it isn't normal. The condition can cause serious complications, but it can be managed. "Leg pain when you walk is not necessarily a feature of normal aging," said Dr. Natalie Evans, a vascular...
A surprising finding about taking blood pressure lying down
The simple act of having someone lie down for a blood pressure reading might reveal more than expected about their heart health, preliminary research has found. Using data from a large, long-running study, researchers discovered that when compared with readings taken while someone was sitting, readings that showed high blood pressure in people who were lying down did a better job of predicting stroke, serious heart problems and death.
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Heart and Stroke News: Stories about people, science and health, from American Heart Association News.
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