High resting heart rate predicts heart risk in women

Checking the pulse predict a the risk of having a heart attack. The results are based on data from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) and they were published in the medical journal BMJ.
WHI investigators examined the relationship between resting heart rate and heart attacks and strokes in 129,135 postmenopausal women participating in the WHI. Subjects had no apparent history of cardiovascular problems at the start of the study, and none were taking medications that affect resting heart rate.
During the nearly eight years of the study, 2,281 women suffered a heart attack or coronary death, and 1,877 had a stroke. Women with the highest resting heart rates (more than 76 beats per minute) were 26% more likely to have a heart attack or die from one than those with the lowest resting heart rates (62 beats per minute or less).
Although a resting heart rate above 76 may not be as powerful a predictor of heart problems as factors such as smoking, diabetes, or cholesterol levels, it’s still a useful indicator — a tip-off that lifestyle changes such as increased physical activity and stress reduction may be in order.

A high-salt diet contributes to hypertension

A high-salt diet contributes to hypertension, and it can also reduce the effectiveness of blood pressure medications, a new study finds.
High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular problems, and heavy salt intake has long been known to contribute to the condition.
Another study describes a significant reduction in high blood pressure from a modest reduction in salt intake. After reducing the salt intake from 9.7 grams a day to 6.5 grams a day, the average reduction in a six-week period was 4.8 points in systolic pressure and 2.2 points in diastolic pressure.
Both studies emphasize the importance of controlling salt intake to keep blood pressure at safe levels.
People have to be aware of the salt content of all the food products they buy.The study recommends adherence to the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, which is low in salt and fat and high in fiber. Such a diet reduces cardiovascular risk in several ways.

SOURCE:  July 20, 2009, Hypertension

Poor sleep ups risk of postpartum depression

Postpartum women sleep less during the early weeks following delivery than during pregnancy and other periods of reproductive age. At the same time, these women have an increased risk of depression, according to findings published in the journal Sleep. Tiredness after delivery may be attributed to lack of sleep, but the reduced daytime energy could also be caused by depression, and women with postpartum depression may also benefit from treatment of sleep problems. when a mother is depressed or complaining of excessive daytime tiredness, it may be important for the partner or other close family to offer support with baby care at night time, to allow the mother a night of recovery sleep.

Being overweight speeds up osteoarthritis

Being overweight or obese can cause rapid deterioration of the cartilage in the knee, leading to osteoarthritist. In fact, for every one-unit increase in body mass index, the chances of rapid cartilage loss increased 11 percent. The association between obesity and rapid cartilage loss remained even after taking into account age, gender and ethnic background. Weight loss is probably the most important factor to slow disease progression. Keeping your weight down — through diet and exercise or weight-loss surgery — could prevent the need for knee-replacement surgery.

SOURCES: August 2009, Radiology

Condom reduces the risk of getting genital herpes

People who use condoms regularly can reduce their risk of getting genital herpes by 30 percent, a new study finds.
The herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2) causes genital herpes, which is a chronic, lifelong viral infection. Although studies have found that regular condom use reduces the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) such as chlamydia and gonorrhea, whether they prevent the transmission of HSV-2 has been less certain.
Using condoms reduces herpes transmission by only 30 percent because, unlike other STDs, herpes is transmitted by skin-to-skin contact. If someone with herpes is shedding virus for an area that is not covered by a condom, the virus will spread whether or not they are using a condom.
The risk of getting herpes increased with the frequency of unprotected sex, and there was no significant difference between men and women in the effectiveness of condoms in preventing herpes transmission.
Using a condom not only reduces the odds of getting herpes, but of other STDs as well. If you don’t know the STD status of your partner, a condom is always a good idea.
SOURCES: Archives of Internal Medicine.

Italy: three-four million cases of swine flu by March 2010

Italy may have had to deal with between three and four million cases of swine flu by March 2010, the country’s deputy health minister said Tuesday.
But Ferruccio Fazio also said that by the end of 2009 some 8.6 million Italians would have been vaccinated against the A(H1N1) virus, with the most vulnerable and those working in the emergency services given priority.
Source (Lang:ITA): Corriere Medico

Video Interview: swine flu and pandemic influenza

Swine flu and pandemic influenza. The question is not IF. The question is WHEN. Video interview with Albert Osterhaus, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Swine flu is “unstoppable”

Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO director of the Initiative for Vaccine Research, reiterated the message that the H1N1 swine flu is “unstoppable” and all countries would need access to a vaccine.

She said healthcare workers should be the main priority group for vaccination, to protect them from the risk of infection, and to ensure they could continue to treat patients with a range of illnesses..

She added that, in no particular order, other priority groups for vaccination would be pregnant women, anyone over six months with chronic health conditions such as respiratory problems, healthy adults under the age of 49, healthy children and healthy elderly people.

Dr Kieny said that obesity had been noted as a risk factor but experts are unsure whether it is obesity itself or the health conditions that arise from it.

Migraine could reduces risk of breast cancer

In a study of more than 9,000 people, Dr. Christopher I. Li of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle and his colleagues found that those with a history of migraines were 26% less likely to develop breast cancer.

Low estrogen levels appear to increase the severity and frequency of migraines in women, the researchers note in their report, while increased levels of the hormone are known to boost breast cancer risk, so it’s “biologically plausible” that migraine sufferers would be less prone to breast cancer.

Migraine patients’ greater use of painkillers non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), could explain some, but probably not all, of their lower breast cancer risk,

SOURCE: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, July 2009.

Denosumab demonstrates superiority over zoledronic acid in patients with advanced breast cancer

Denosumab versus zoledronic acid in the treatment of bone metastases in 2,049 patients with advanced breast cancer met its primary and secondary endpoints and demonstrated superior efficacy compared to zoledronic acid.

This was an international Phase 3, randomized, double‑blind study comparing denosumab with zoledronic acid in the treatment of bone metastases in patients with advanced breast cancer.  Patients enrolled in the study were randomized in a one-to-one ratio to receive either 120 mg of denosumab subcutaneously every four weeks (Q4W) or zoledronic acid administered intravenously at a dose of 4 mg single, 15 minute infusion every four weeks as per the labeled use.

Denosumab is the first fully human monoclonal antibody in late stage clinical development that specifically targets RANK Ligand, the essential regulator of osteoclasts (the cells that break down bone).