Aetna Grants $458,000 to Chicago Area Nonprofits in 2009

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

CHICAGO–(Business Wire)–
In 2009, Aetna (NYSE: AET) and the Aetna Foundation awarded community grants and
sponsorships in the Chicago area totaling $458,000, with a particular focus on
disease prevention, obesity and health screening.

The contributions support Aetna`s commitment to enhancing the quality of health
care and promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care. In total,
the Aetna Foundation, Aetna and its employees awarded more than $24 million
nationally in 2009.

The 25 Chicago-area grant recipients were:

* Action for Healthy Kids, Inc.;
* After School Matters, Inc.
* Age Options;
* American Heart Association – Midwest Affiliate;
* Association House of Chicago;
* Centro Comunitario Juan Diego;
* Chicago Historical Society;
* Chicago Metropolis 2020
* Chicago Run;
* Chicago United;
* CommunityHealth;
* Dreams for Kids;
* Erie Family Health Center, Inc.;
* Goodcity Chicago;
* International Association of Black Actuaries;
* Latin Women in Action;
* Mexican American Chamber of Commerce of Illinois;
* National Center for Healthcare Leadership;
* National Commission on Correctional Healthcare;
* National Museum of Mexican Art;
* Oral Health America;
* Robert Crown Center for Health Education;
* South Side Community Art Center;
* The Joffrey Ballet; and
* Western DuPage Special Recreation Foundation.

“Aetna is proud to support organizations in Chicagoland which are making great
strides in targeting health care issues that affect our communities,” said Bill
Berenson, market head for Aetna in Illinois. “As a responsible corporate
citizen, we recognize our obligation to help address these critical needs.”

The largest of those awards was for $125,000 given to the American Heart
Association in support of its Start! walking program. Start! encourages
businesses and individuals to undertake walking programs and provides them with
tools for success.

“Aetna and the Aetna Foundation are proud to partner with organizations across
the country in support of their good work, and we look forward to continued
relationships as we focus our giving in key areas going forward,” said Anne
Beal, MD, MPH, president of the Aetna Foundation. “For 2010 and beyond, we are
transitioning to a new approach that encompasses a more concentrated
grant-making focus on specific health issues of national concern, enhanced
communication and measurement of the impact of our grants, a more proportionate
distribution of our charitable giving across the country, and a more holistic
relationship with our community partners that capitalizes on our employee
presence and the generosity and talents of our employee volunteers.”

The Aetna Foundation has opened the call for proposals for the 2010 grant cycle.
Grant applicants should visit www.AetnaFoundation.org for more information on
how to apply for a grant and to learn more about the following Aetna Foundation
focus areas for grant making in 2010 and beyond:

* Addressing the rising incidence of obesity among U.S. residents, including
children;
* Promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care for common
chronic conditions and for the prevention of infant mortality; and
* Advancing integrated health care, by:

* Improving coordination and communications among health care professionals;
* Creating informed and involved patients; and
* Promoting cost-effective, affordable care.

About the Aetna Foundation

The Aetna Foundation is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of
Aetna Inc. Since 1980, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation have contributed over $379
million in grants and sponsorships. As a national health foundation, we promote
wellness, health, and access to high-quality health care for everyone. This work
is enhanced by the time and commitment of Aetna employees, who have volunteered
nearly 2 million hours since 2003. Our current giving is focused on addressing
the rising rate of adult and childhood obesity in the U.S.; promoting racial and
ethnic equity in health and health care; and advancing integrated health care.
For more information, visit www.AetnaFoundation.org.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation`s leading diversified health care benefits companies,
serving approximately 36.1 million people with information and resources to help
them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a
broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and
related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group
life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care
management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups,
individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans,
governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates.
For more information, see www.aetna.com and Aetna`s annual report at
www.aetna.com/2009annualreport.

Aetna
Scot Roskelley, 312-928-3034
roskelleye@aetna.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

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Aetna Grants $102,000 to Kansas City, Lawrence, St. Joseph & Maryville Nonprofits in 2009

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

LEAWOOD, Kan.–(Business Wire)–
Aetna (NYSE: AET) and the Aetna Foundation in 2009 awarded community grants and
sponsorships in Kansas City, Lawrence, St. Joseph and Maryville totaling
$102,000, with a particular focus on disease prevention, obesity and health
screening.

The contributions support Aetna`s commitment to enhancing the quality of health
care, and promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care. In
total, the Aetna Foundation, Aetna and its employees awarded more than $24
million nationally in 2009.

The 10 area grant recipients were:

* American Heart Association;
* Crittenton Center;
* Health Care Access, Inc.;
* Heartland Foundation;
* Spofford;
* The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation;
* United States Conference of Catholic Bishops;
* United Way of Greater St. Joseph;
* YMCA of Greater Kansas City; and
* YWCA of St. Joseph.

“Aetna is proud to support organizations in the area which are making great
strides in targeting health care issues that affect our communities,” said Keith
Barnes, Aetna`s market head in Kansas and Missouri. “As a responsible corporate
citizen, we recognize our obligation to help address these critical needs.”

The largest of those awards was for $75,000 given to the American Heart
Association in support of its Kansas City Start! walking program.

“Aetna and the Aetna Foundation are proud to partner with organizations across
the country in support of their good work, and we look forward to continued
relationships as we focus our giving in key areas going forward,” said Anne
Beal, MD, MPH, president of the Aetna Foundation. “For 2010 and beyond, we are
transitioning to a new approach that encompasses a more concentrated
grant-making focus on specific health issues of national concern, enhanced
communication and measurement of the impact of our grants, a more proportionate
distribution of our charitable giving across the country, and a more holistic
relationship with our community partners that capitalizes on our employee
presence and the generosity and talents of our employee volunteers.”

The Aetna Foundation has opened the call for proposals for the 2010 grant cycle.
Grant applicants should visit www.AetnaFoundation.org for more information on
how to apply for a grant and to learn more about the following Aetna Foundation
focus areas for grant making in 2010 and beyond:

* Addressing the rising incidence of obesity among U.S. residents, including
children;
* Promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care for common
chronic conditions and for the prevention of infant mortality; and
* Advancing integrated health care, by:

* Improving coordination and communications among health care professionals;
* Creating informed and involved patients; and
* Promoting cost-effective, affordable care.

About the Aetna Foundation

The Aetna Foundation is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of
Aetna Inc. Since 1980, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation have contributed over $379
million in grants and sponsorships. As a national health foundation, we promote
wellness, health, and access to high-quality health care for everyone. This work
is enhanced by the time and commitment of Aetna employees, who have volunteered
nearly 2 million hours since 2003. Our current giving is focused on addressing
the rising rate of adult and childhood obesity in the U.S.; promoting racial and
ethnic equity in health and health care; and advancing integrated health care.
For more information, visit www.AetnaFoundation.org.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation`s leading diversified health care benefits companies,
serving approximately 36.1 million people with information and resources to help
them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a
broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and
related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group
life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care
management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups,
individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans,
governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates.
For more information, see www.aetna.com and Aetna`s annual report at
www.aetna.com/2009annualreport.

Aetna
Scot Roskelley, 312-928-3034
roskelleye@aetna.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

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Aetna Grants $350,000 to Ohio Nonprofits in 2009

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

CLEVELAND–(Business Wire)–
Aetna (NYSE: AET) and the Aetna Foundation in 2009 awarded community grants and
sponsorships in Ohio totaling $350,000, with a particular focus on disease
prevention, obesity and health screening.

The contributions support Aetna`s commitment to enhancing the quality of health
care and promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care. In total,
the Aetna Foundation, Aetna and its employees awarded more than $24 million
nationally in 2009.

The 13 Ohio grant recipients were:

* American Heart Association;
* Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland;
* Center for Vocational Alternatives – Columbus;
* Children`s Defense Fund;
* Children`s Hunger Alliance;
* Cityfolk – Dayton;
* Cystic Fibrosis Foundation;
* Diversity Center of NE Ohio;
* Make-A- Wish Foundation – Cleveland;
* New Albany Walking Club;
* OneSight;
* University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children`s Hospital; and
* YWCA of Greater Cincinnati.

“Aetna is proud to support organizations in Ohio which are making great strides
in targeting health care issues that affect our communities,” said Jay Timm,
Aetna`s market head in Ohio. “As a responsible corporate citizen, we recognize
our obligation to help address these critical needs.”

The largest of those awards was for $125,000 given to the American Heart
Association in support of its Columbus Start! walking program and its Cleveland
Kids at Heart program.

“Aetna and the Aetna Foundation are proud to partner with organizations across
the country in support of their good work, and we look forward to continued
relationships as we focus our giving in key areas going forward,” said Anne
Beal, MD, MPH, president of the Aetna Foundation. “For 2010 and beyond, we are
transitioning to a new approach that encompasses a more concentrated
grant-making focus on specific health issues of national concern, enhanced
communication and measurement of the impact of our grants, a more proportionate
distribution of our charitable giving across the country, and a more holistic
relationship with our community partners that capitalizes on our employee
presence and the generosity and talents of our employee volunteers.”

The Aetna Foundation has opened the call for proposals for the 2010 grant cycle.
Grant applicants should visit www.AetnaFoundation.org for more information on
how to apply for a grant and to learn more about the following Aetna Foundation
focus areas for grant making in 2010 and beyond:

* Addressing the rising incidence of obesity among U.S. residents, including
children;
* Promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care for common
chronic conditions and for the prevention of infant mortality; and
* Advancing integrated health care, by:

* Improving coordination and communications among health care professionals;
* Creating informed and involved patients; and
* Promoting cost-effective, affordable care.

About the Aetna Foundation

The Aetna Foundation is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of
Aetna Inc. Since 1980, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation have contributed over $379
million in grants and sponsorships. As a national health foundation, we promote
wellness, health, and access to high-quality health care for everyone. This work
is enhanced by the time and commitment of Aetna employees, who have volunteered
nearly 2 million hours since 2003. Our current giving is focused on addressing
the rising rate of adult and childhood obesity in the U.S.; promoting racial and
ethnic equity in health and health care; and advancing integrated health care.
For more information, visit www.AetnaFoundation.org.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation`s leading diversified health care benefits companies,
serving approximately 36.1 million people with information and resources to help
them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a
broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and
related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group
life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care
management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups,
individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans,
governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates.
For more information, see www.aetna.com and Aetna`s annual report at
www.aetna.com/2009annualreport

Aetna
Scot Roskelley, 312-928-3034
roskelleye@aetna.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

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Having sex is good for heart – even after a heart attack

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, May 22 (ANI): Most heart attack survivors avoid sex because they fear it will trigger another attack. But a new study suggests that sex is good for the heart — even after a heart attack.

Researchers say that it is a myth that sex is a dangerous activity for heart patients.

“The likelihood of dying during sexual intercourse, even among people who have had a heart attack, is really small,” Live Science quoted lead author Dr. Stacy Lindau of the University of Chicago, as stating.

Researchers reported at the American Heart Association”s Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke that many people pointlessly become prudes after surviving a heart attack. A third of men and 60 percent of women abstained the year after a heart attack.

In films, mind-blowing sex often becomes heart-stopping sex. But in real life, there is little need for such worries.

Most doctors consider sex safe once the patient is feeling up for moderate exercise.

After all, “sexual activity is a moderate physical activity,” said senior author Dr. John Spertus of the University of Missouri in Kansas City.

In the study of 1,760 acute heart attack patients, less than half received information regarding sex. Women, in particular, were unlikely to receive advice on when, or if, to resume sex.

This lack of communication carried over to the bedroom. Men were 1.3 times and women 1.4 times more likely to report a diminished sex life if they hadn”t been offered advice on the subject from their doctors.

Spertus suggested that doctors, patients and their loved ones should proactively bring up questions about sex.

“The goal is to restore people”s total health. Not only by minimizing the risk of the next heart attack but also by maximizing quality of life,” Spertus said. (ANI)

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Diet high in B-vitamins ‘lowers heart risk’

April 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 16 (ANI): Foods containing the B-vitamins folate and B-6 can cut the risk of death from stroke and heart disease for women and may reduce the risk of heart failure in men, a Japanese study has found.

The study has been reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

“Japanese people need more dietary intake of folate and vitamin B-6, which may lead to the prevention of heart disease,” said Hiroyasu Iso, M.D., professor of public health at Osaka University.

Sources of folate include vegetables and fruits, whole or enriched grains, fortified cereals, beans and legumes. Sources of vitamin B-6 include vegetables, fish, liver, meats, whole grains and fortified cereals.

To reach the conclusion, boffins analyzed data from 23,119 men and 35,611 women (ages 40–79) who completed food frequency questionnaires as part of the large Japan Collaborative Cohort (JACC) Study. During a median 14 years of follow-up, 986 died from stroke, 424 from heart disease and 2,087 from all diseases related to the cardiovascular system.

Investigators divided participants into five groups based on their intake of folate, vitamin B-6 and vitamin B-12. Comparing those with the diets lowest and highest for each nutrient, they found that higher consumption of folate and vitamin B-6 was associated with significantly fewer deaths from heart failure in men, and significantly fewer deaths from stroke, heart disease and total cardiovascular diseases in women. Vitamin B-12 intake was not associated with reduced mortality risk.

The protective effects of folate and vitamin B-6 didn’t change when researchers adjusted for the presence of cardiovascular risk factors, nor when they eliminated supplement users from the analysis.

Folate and vitamin B-6 may help guard against cardiovascular disease by lowering homocysteine levels, the investigators said. Homocysteine is an amino acid in the blood that’s affected by diet and heredity. Folic acid and other B vitamins help break down homocysteine in the body. (ANI)

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Take Care Clinics at Select Walgreens Now Offering Free Blood Pressure Screenings

April 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Available at All Locations Nationwide Through May 31
CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa.–(Business Wire)–
According to the American Heart Association, hypertension, or high blood
pressure, affects more than 73 million people in the United States, but is
widely undiagnosed and untreated. To help patients identify if they are at risk,
Take Care Health Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Walgreens (NYSE, NASDAQ:
WAG) and the nation`s largest and most comprehensive provider of convenient care
clinics and worksite health and wellness centers, is now offering free blood
pressure screenings at all 359 Take Care Clinics nationwide through May 31.

“Nearly 22 percent of individuals in the United States with hypertension are
unaware of their condition according to the American Heart Association,” said
Sandra Ryan, RN, MSN, CPNP, FAANP and chief nurse practitioner officer for Take
Care Health Systems. “Take Care nurse practitioners and physician assistants
will provide free blood pressure screenings to identify at-risk patients, and
refer them to the appropriate level of care for treatment. In addition, Take
Care health providers will serve as an educational resource to answer questions
about hypertension and risk factors associated with the disease.”

Free blood pressure screenings are available to all patients 18 years and older.
If a patient`s blood pressure is elevated, the provider will recommend a return
visit to a Take Care Clinic or follow-up with a primary care provider to rule
out or confirm a diagnosis of hypertension. If a patient does not have a primary
care provider, the Take Care health provider will offer a list of area providers
accepting new patients.

A majority of Americans with hypertension are untreated or undertreated,
potentially unaware that their current behavior and treatment may not be
generating adequate results. There are several lifestyle modifications a person
can make, including smoking cessation, weight loss if overweight and an increase
in physical activity.

“High blood pressure increases the risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke,
and kidney disease. Given the accessibility and convenience of Take Care Clinics
across the country, we can play a vital role in identifying individuals with
undiagnosed or untreated hypertension, helping to decrease the risk for
cardiovascular disease,” said Peter Miller, president and CEO of Take Care
Health Systems. “These free blood pressure screenings reinforce Take Care
Clinics` commitment to offering quality healthcare services that meet the needs
of patients and their families.”

Take Care Health Systems is dedicated to battling the prevalence of serious
chronic healthcare conditions which impact millions each year. In February,
Walgreens and Take Care Clinics offered free blood glucose screenings at
thousands of locations across the country, offering a convenient access point to
receive diabetes awareness and education. Additional efforts by Take Care
Clinics to screen, diagnose and treat hypertension will be unveiled later this
summer.

Take Care Clinics are walk-in, professional health care centers located at
select Walgreens drugstores across the country. Board-certified family nurse
practitioners and physician assistants treat patients 18 months and older for
common illnesses and are licensed to write prescriptions when necessary that can
be filled at the patient`s pharmacy of choice.

About Take Care Health Systems

Take Care Health Systems (http://www.takecarehealthsystem.com), a wholly owned
subsidiary of Walgreens (NYSE, NASDAQ: WAG) and part of Walgreens Health and
Wellness division, is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite
health and wellness centers and convenient care clinics in the country. TCHS is
comprised of Take Care Consumer Solutions (www.takecarehealth.com) and Take Care
Health Employer Solutions (www.takecareemployersolutions.com). Take Care
Consumer Solutions manages Take Care Clinics at select Walgreens drugstores
throughout the country. Patient care at each of the Take Care Clinics is
provided by Take Care Health Services, an independently owned state professional
corporation established in each market. Take Care Health Employer Solutions
manages primary care, health and wellness, occupational health, pharmacy and
fitness centers at large employer campuses. Combined, Take Care Health Systems
manages more than 700 worksite and retail health care centers.

Take Care Health Systems
Gabe Weissman, 484-351-3040
gabriel.weissman@takecarehealth.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

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Soon, pill that signals it has been swallowed

April 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 1 (ANI): University of Florida engineering researchers are designing a pill which confirms that patients have taken their medication.

The boffins have added a tiny microchip and digestible antenna to a standard pill capsule. The prototype is intended to pave the way for mass-produced pills that, when ingested, automatically alert doctors, loved ones or scientists working with patients in clinical drug trials.

“It is a way to monitor whether your patient is taking their medication in a timely manner,” said Rizwan Bashirullah, UF assistant professor in electrical and computer engineering.

Such a pill is needed because many patients forget, refuse or bungle the job of taking their medication.

The American Heart Association calls patients’ failure to follow prescription regimens “the number one problem in treating illness today.”

Bashirullah, doctoral student Hong Yu, UF materials science and engineering Professor Chris Batich and Neil Euliano of Gainesville-based Convergent Engineering designed and tested a system with two main parts.

One part is the pill, a standard white capsule coated with a label embossed with silvery lines. The lines comprise the antenna, which is printed using ink made of nontoxic, conductive silver nanoparticles. The pill also contains a tiny microchip, one about the size of a period.

When a patient takes the pill, it communicates with the second main element of the system: a small electronic device carried or worn by the patient – for now, a stand-alone device, but in the future perhaps built into a watch or cell phone. The device then signals a cell phone or laptop that the pill has been ingested, in turn informing doctors or family members.

Bashirullah said the pill needs no battery because the device sends it power via imperceptible bursts of extremely low-voltage electricity. The bursts energize the microchip to send signals relayed via the antenna. Eventually the patient’s stomach acid breaks down the antenna – the microchip is passed through the gastrointestinal tract — but not before the pill confirms its own ingestion.

“The vision of this project has always been that you have an antenna that is biocompatible, and that essentially dissolves a little while after entering the body,” Bashirullah said.

The team has successfully tested the pill system in artificial human models, as well as cadavers. (ANI)

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Erectile dysfunction plus heart disease ups death risk

March 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 16 (ANI): Men with cardiovascular disease and erectile dysfunction (ED) are at an increased risk of death, according to a new study.

Reporting in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, German researchers stated that erectile dysfunction (ED) is a strong predictor of death from all causes and of heart attack, stroke and heart failure in men with cardiovascular disease (CVD).

In the first study to show that ED is predictive of death and cardiovascular outcomes, researchers found that men with CVD and ED (compared to those without ED) were twice as likely to suffer death from all causes and 1.6 times more likely to suffer the composite of cardiovascular death, heart attack, stroke and heart failure hospitalization.

“Erectile dysfunction is something that regularly should be addressed in the medical history of patients; it might be a symptom of early atherosclerosis,” said Michael Böhm, M.D., lead author of the study and chairman of internal medicine in the Department of Cardiology and Intensive Care at the University of Saarland, Germany.

The worldwide study included 1,519 men from 13 countries in a substudy of the ONTARGET and TRANSCEND trials of cardiovascular patients. The men answered a questionnaire to determine whether they had ED. Men with ED were then categorized as having mild, mild-to-moderate, moderate or severe ED. The questionnaires were given at the initial visit, after two years or at the final visit after an average follow-up of five years. (ANI)

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Lowering BP risky for patients with diabetes, heart disease

March 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, March 15 (ANI): A University of Florida researcher has urged caution in reducing blood pressure in patients with diabetes and coronary disease.

According to Rhonda Cooper-DeHoff, an associate professor of pharmacy and medicine at UF, new data show an increased risk of heart attack, stroke or death for patients having blood pressure deemed too high or too low.

She suggests raising the systolic bar above 120 for blood pressure in patients with diabetes and coronary artery disease, saying that levels between 130 and 140 appear to be the most healthful.

Based on hypertension treatment guidelines, doctors have assumed that with regard to blood pressure, “the lower, the better,” Cooper-DeHoff said. But, The International Verapamil SR-Trandolapril study, known as INVEST, suggests that the range considered normal for healthy Americans may actually be risky for those with a combined diagnosis of diabetes and coronary artery disease.

Cooper-DeHoff said: “Our data suggest that in patients with both diabetes and coronary artery disease, there is a blood pressure threshold below which cardiovascular risk increases.”

Nearly two out of three adults with diabetes have high blood pressure. Normal blood pressure as defined by the American Heart Association is less than 120 systolic and less than 80 diastolic. Blood pressure greater than 140 is still associated with a nearly 50 percent increase in cardiovascular risk in patients with diabetes. But efforts to reduce systolic blood pressure to below 130 did not appear to offer any additional benefit to diabetics with coronary artery disease compared with reduction of systolic blood pressure to between 130 and less than 140.

Cooper-DeHoff”s research reveals for the first time that this group of patients also had a similar increase in risk when their blood pressure was controlled to lower than 115 systolic — the range recommended as normal by the American Heart Association.

Stephan Brietzke, an endocrinologist who did not participate in the research, said Cooper-DeHoff”s findings parallel recent studies looking at blood sugar control, which suggest a U-shaped curve with higher cardiovascular risks at both “too high” and “too low” extremes.

Cooper-DeHoff”s presented the findings of her study on March 14 at the American College of Cardiology”s 59th annual scientific session in Atlanta. (ANI)

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Obama is fit, but must junk fatty food: Doctor

March 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama’s doctor has given him an excellent bill of health but has obliquely asked him to cut down on those cheese burgers he sneaks off to eat once in a while.

“The president is in excellent health and ‘fit for duty’,” Dr. Jeff Kuhlman, a Navy captain and physician to the president wrote in his report after Obama’s first check-up on Sunday. “All clinical data indicate that he will remain so for the duration of his presidency.”

The doctor did recommend Obama change his eating habits a bit. “Recommend dietary modification to reduce LDL cholesterol below 130,” Kuhlman wrote.

The report – made publicly available as Americans want to know the state of health of their chief executive – lists Obama’s LDL level at 138. LDL, or low-density lipoprotein, is what’s known as “bad” cholesterol, according to the American Heart Association.

“Cool” Obama had a resting heart rate of 56 and a blood pressure reading of 105-62. Kuhlman noted that the 48-year-old president should keep up his efforts to stop smoking. Obama’s medications include nicotine replacement therapy.

The 6-foot-1-inch president weighed in at 179.9 pounds with his shoes and workout attire on.

His body mass index (BMI) is 23.7. According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, that’s in the upper end of the “normal” weight range. “Overweight” begins at 25.0.

The White House said Obama’s doctor recommended his next physical take place in August of next year, when the president turns 50.

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Oxygen-saturated blood can reduce heart muscle damage after an attack

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, September 16 (ANI): An infusion of blood that is “supersaturated” with oxygen (SS02) can reduce the amount of damaged heart muscle immediately following a life-threatening heart attack, say researchers.

This is a finding made during a clinical trial, published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions.

“The benefit of this therapy increased with the scope of the heart attack,” said Dr. Gregg W. Stone, lead author and professor of medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and director of cardiovascular research and education in the Center for Interventional Vascular Therapy at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center.

“The data show that heart muscle can be saved even after severe heart attack,” added Dr. Stone, who is also the immediate past chairman of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation in New York.

The AMIHOT-II study focused on patients having the most serious types of heart attacks – those with anterior ST-segment elevation myocardial infarctions (STEMIs) – and on those treated within 6 hours.

Nearly half of the 733,000 Americans who suffer acute coronary syndromes-heart attack or chest pain-each year have a STEMI, according to the American Heart Association.

When a large area of the heart is damaged, heart failure is more likely, and catheter-based percutaneous coronary intervention is a procedure that can effectively open blocked arteries in STEMI patients, Dr. Stone said.

In the trial, the “supersaturated” oxygen was delivered through catheter directly to the area of the heart muscle affected by the heart attack.

The size of the “infarct zone”-the amount of damaged tissue-was significantly reduced in the patients that received the “supersaturated” oxygen.

Upon analysis of their data from the study, the researchers observed that the median size of the “infarct zone” was 20 percent in the patients that received the “supersaturated” blood, and 26.5 percent in the control group.

Besides that, at 30 days after the treatment a key safety measure-the rates of major adverse cardiac events-were not statistically different between the two groups. (ANI)

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Soon, simple blood test to identify stroke survivors at risk of another cardiovascular event

August 28, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Aug 28 (ANI): A simple blood test would soon help identify stroke survivors at risk of another cardiovascular event, say researchers.

The research team from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill suggests that measuring blood flow in the ankle may identify stroke survivors at risk of subsequent events such as asymptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD) and transient ischemic attack (TIA).

In the test, the ankle brachial index, compares blood flow in the ankle to blood flow in the arm to detect poor circulation caused by fatty plaque buildup in the lower body, a condition known as peripheral artery disease (PAD).

The findings revealed that 26 percent of the survivors had asymptomatic PAD, and they had three times more subsequent cardiovascular events – stroke, heart attacks or death – in the following two years compared to those without PAD.

Furthermore 50 percent with asymptomatic PAD suffered subsequent events, compared with 16 percent of those without the disease. PAD was significantly associated with future vascular events, especially strokes.

PAD occurs when arteries in the extremities become obstructed by plaque. Leg pain, cramping, weakness and limping during physical exertion are the primary symptom.

“ABI measurement may be appropriate for screening stroke/TIA patients who may be at high risk for vascular events,” said lead researcher Dr Souvik Sen, M.P.H., director of the Stroke Centre at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

“The test is easily performed in less than 15 minutes at the physician’s office or at bed-side in hospitalized patients,” he added.

The study is published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. (ANI)

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Feeling hopeless can up stroke risk in women

August 28, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, August 28 (ANI): Scientists at the University of Minnesota Medical School say that the feeling of hopelessness may make increase the risk of stroke in women.

Writing in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, the researchers have revealed that even healthy middle-aged women, when feeling hopeless, seem to experience the thickening of arteries in the neck, a precursor to stroke

Linking hopelessness with negative thinking and the feeling of uselessness, they say that it affects arteries independent of clinical depression, and before women develop clinically relevant cardiovascular disease.

For their study, the researchers looked at 559 healthy women-average age 50, 62 percent white, 38 percent African American-who did not show any signs of clinical cardiovascular disease.

They measured hopelessness with a two-item questionnaire assessing expectancies regarding future and personal goals. Depressive symptoms were measured with a 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Thickness of neck arteries was assessed using ultrasound.

The researchers found consistent, progressive, and linear association between increasing neck artery thickness and rising levels of hopelessness.

They say that the overall difference in arterial thickening between women with higher versus lower hopelessness scores, about .02 millimetres (mm), was equal to about one year of thickening.

Those with the highest hopelessness scores had an average .06 mm greater thickening than those in the lowest group – a clinically significant difference. This correlation remained after adjusting for any influence of age, race, income, cardiovascular risk factors, and depression.

“Previous studies have shown that hopelessness is associated with cardiovascular disease outcomes in men and also in women with documented heart disease. However, this is the first study to suggest that hopelessness may be related to subclinical cardiovascular disease in women without clinical symptoms of heart disease and who are generally healthy,” said Dr. Susan A. Everson-Rose, principal investigator of the study, associate director of the Program in Health Disparities Research, and associate professor of medicine.

“These findings suggest that women who experience feelings of hopelessness may have greater risk for future heart disease and stroke. In fact, our data indicate that hopelessness may be uniquely related to cardiovascular disease risk. We did not see similar relations when looking at global depressive symptoms,” Everson-Rose said

The researchers used data from Chicago and Pittsburgh sites of the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN) to examine associations of hopelessness, and depressive symptoms with carotid IMT, an early marker of atherosclerosis.

“The findings we observed are based on cross-sectional data – a snapshot in time – so we look forward to examining the longitudinal relations between hopelessness and heart disease risk in women,” Everson-Rose said. (ANI)

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Heavy drinking, type 1 diabetes may double death risk in stroke patients

July 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, July 10 (ANI): Heavy drinking, type 1 diabetes or having a preceding infection are likely to double the risk of death in stroke patients, according to a new study.

While heart failure was associated with seven times the risk of death, active cancer malignancy was linked to sixteen-fold risk in stroke patients.

However, the overall death rate is low among the age group of 15 to 49 years, said Dr Jukka Putaala, who led the Finnish study.

According to the study, risk of death was 2.7 percent at one month, 4.7 percent at one year and 10.7 percent at five years.

Putaala suggests that detecting heavy drinking, heart failure, cancer, type 1 diabetes and preceding infection as risk factors is important as they can be modified by lifestyle changes, strictly controlled medication or medical procedures in most patients.

The findings appear in journal of American Heart Association. (ANI)

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Component of vegetable protein linked to lower BP

July 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, July 7 (ANI): A new study has shown that consuming an amino acid commonly found in vegetable protein is associated with lower blood pressure.

The study, conducted by Jeremiah Stamler, M.D., lead author of the study, and colleagues, showed that a 4.72 percent higher dietary intake of the amino acid glutamic acid as a percent of total dietary protein correlated with lower group average systolic blood pressure, lower by 1.5 to 3.0 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Group average diastolic blood pressure was lower by 1.0 to 1.6 mm Hg.

In the study, researchers examined dietary amino acids, the building blocks of protein.

Stamler, professor emeritus of the Department of Preventive Medicine in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, Ill, said that glutamic acid is the most common amino acid and accounts for almost a quarter (23 percent) of the protein in vegetable protein and almost one fifth (18 percent) of animal protein.

In the study, researchers analyzed data from 4,680 middle-age people participating in an international population study on the effects of dietary nutrients on high blood pressure. Participants were from the U.S., U.K., China, and Japan.

The results showed that a nearly 5 percent higher intake of glutamic acid as a percent of total protein in the diet was linked to lower average blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure was lower by an average of 1.5 to 3.0 points and diastolic blood pressure was lower by 1.0 to 1.6 points.

Stamler said that the study might help explain on a molecular level why the Dieatary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet lowers blood pressure.

The DASH eating pattern, developed by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, is rich in fruits, vegetables and low-fat and nonfat dairy products as well as whole grains, lean poultry, nuts and beans.

The study has been published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. (ANI)

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How cornflakes, white bread, French fries raise heart attack risk

June 27, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, June 26 (ANI): Exactly how cornflakes, white bread, French fries and other high-carb foods increase the risk of heart problems has now been shown by Tel Aviv University researchers.

Dr. Michael Shechter of the university’s Sackler School of Medicine and the Heart Institute of Sheba Medical Center, who led the study in collaboration with researchers from the Endocrinology Institute, looked inside the arteries of students eating a variety of foods, and visualised exactly what happens inside the body when the wrong foods for a healthy heart are eaten.

He found that foods with a high glycemic index distended brachial arteries for several hours.

Elasticity of arteries anywhere in the body can be a measure of heart health. But when aggravated over time, a sudden expansion of the artery wall can cause a number of negative health effects, including reduced elasticity, which can cause heart disease or sudden death.

Dr. Shechter used used a clinical and research technique pioneered by his laboratory in Israel to visualize what happens inside our arteries before, during and after eating high carb foods.

“It’s very hard to predict heart disease,” says Dr. Shechter, a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association.

“But doctors know that high glycemic foods rapidly increase blood sugar. Those who binge on these foods have a greater chance of sudden death from heart attack. Our research connects the dots, showing the link between diet and what’s happening in real time in the arteries,” he added.

The researcher believes that the finding of his study may lead to a whole new way to show patients the effects of a poor diet on the body.

During the study, 56 healthy volunteers were divided into four groups. One group ate a cornflake mush mixed with milk, a second a pure sugar mixture, the third bran flakes, while the last group was given a placebo (water).

Over four weeks, Dr. Shechter applied his method of “brachial reactive testing” to each group. The test uses a cuff on the arm, like those used to measure blood pressure, which can visualize arterial function in real time.

Dr. Shechter revealed that before any of the patients ate, arterial function was essentially the same. He further said that after eating, except for the placebo group, all had reduced functioning.

He said that enormous peaks indicating arterial stress were found in the high glycemic index groups: the cornflakes and sugar group.

“We knew high glycemic foods were bad for the heart. Now we have a mechanism that shows how. Foods like cornflakes, white bread, french fries, and sweetened soda all put undue stress on our arteries. We’ve explained for the first time how high glycemic carbs can affect the progression of heart disease,” says Dr. Shechter.

During the consumption of foods high in sugar, there appears to be a temporary and sudden dysfunction in the endothelial walls of the arteries.

Endothelial health can be traced back to almost every disorder and disease in the body.

“(It is) the riskiest of the risk factors,” says Dr. Shechter, who practices at the Chaim Sheba Medical Center – Tel Hashomer Hospital, where he offers a treatment that can show patients – in real time – if they have a high risk for heart attacks.

Dr. Shechter recommends sticking to foods like oatmeal, fruits and vegetables, legumes and nuts, which have a low glycemic index.

He also says that exercising every day for at least 30 minutes is an extra heart-smart action to take.

The results of the study have been published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. (ANI)

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Traffic jams ‘triple heart attack risk’

March 14, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 14 (ANI): Being in heavy traffic triples your risk of heart attack within one hour, warn researchers.

Researchers reported at the American Heart Association’s 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention that people who have had a heart attack are likely to report having been in traffic shortly before their symptoms began.

In the German study of patients who had a heart attack, researchers found the patients to be more than three times as likely to have been in traffic within an hour of the onset of their heart attack.

The researchers also observed small but statistically significant increases in the chance that a heart attack occurred within six hours after exposure to traffic.

Time spent in any mode of transportation in traffic was associated with a 3.2 times higher risk than time spent away from this trigger. Females, elderly males, patients who were unemployed, and those with a history of angina were affected the most by traffic.

“Driving or riding in heavy traffic poses an additional risk of eliciting a heart attack in persons already at elevated risk,” said Annette Peters, Ph.D., lead author of the study and head of the research unit at the Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum Muchen, Germany.

“In this study, underlying vulnerable coronary artery disease increased the risk of having a heart attack after driving in traffic,” the expert added.

To reach the conclusion, researchers reviewed cases of heart attack through the KORA registry in Augsburg, Southern Germany between February 1999 and December 2003. They used a standardized interview with 1,454 patients to collect data on potential triggers of heart attack, including exposure to traffic in the four days prior to heart attack symptom onset.

The patients had a known date and time of heart attack and all had survived 24 hours after the heart attack. Participants were asked what they did the day of the heart attack, where they went, the means of transportation and time spent in traffic.
he average age of the participants was 60 years and about 25 percent were women.

The study showed that about 8 percent of the heart attacks in the group were attributable to traffic, Peters said. (ANI)

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Lack of vitamin D may make teens fat

March 13, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 13 (ANI): Lack of vitamin D is not only bad for the bones, it may also lead to fatter adolescents, according to a new study.he study of more than 650 teens age 14-19 has found that those who reported higher vitamin D intakes had lower overall body fat and lower amounts of the fat in the abdomen, a type of fat known as visceral fat, which has been associated with health risks such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and hypertension.

The group with the lowest vitamin D intake, black females, had higher percentages of both body fat and visceral fat, while black males had the lowest percentages of body and visceral fat, even though their vitamin D intake was below the recommended levels. Only one group – white males – was getting the recommended minimum intake of vitamin D.

“This study was a cross-section so, while it cannot prove that higher intake of vitamin D caused the lower body fat, we know there is a relationship that needs to be explored further,” said Dr. Yanbin Dong, a molecular geneticist and cardiologist at the Medical College of Georgia Prevention Institute.

Potential study participants had their weekday and weekend diets tracked by researchers seven times during a three-month period.

Those who provided at least four diet reports were included in the final group of 659.

Body fat percentages were measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scans, which can measure total body composition. Visceral fat was measured in a subset of 432 teens.

The findings were resented this week at the American Heart Association’s Joint 49th Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention and Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism in Palm Harbor, Fla. (ANI)

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Reducing salt intake may lead to fewer deaths

March 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, March 12 (ANI): A reduction in salt consumption by people may help decrease the incidences of death, say researchers.

Making a presentation at the American Heart Association’s 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, University of California-San Francisco researchers said that for every gram of salt that people reduce in their diets daily, a quarter of a million fewer new heart disease cases and over 200,000 fewer deaths would occur over a decade.

The researchers revealed that the results were derived from a validated computer-simulation of heart disease among U.S. adults.

“A very modest decrease in the amount of salt – hardly detectable in the taste of food – can have dramatic health benefits for the US. It was a surprise to see the magnitude of the impact on the population, given the very small reductions in salt that we were modelling,” said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of Medicine and of Epidemiology at the university.

The researchers say that a 3-gram-a-day reduction in salt intake could result in six percent fewer cases of new heart disease, eight percent fewer heart attacks, and three percent fewer deaths.

They said that African Americans, who are more likely to have high blood pressure and whose blood pressure may be more sensitive to salt, could derive even more health benefits.

They reckoned that among African Americans, new heart disease cases could be reduced by 10 percent, heart attacks by 13 percent, and deaths by six percent.

“It’s clear that we need to lower salt intake, but individuals find it hard to make substantial cuts because most salt comes from processed foods, not from the salt shaker,” Bibbins-Domingo said.

“Our study suggests that the food industry and those who regulate it could contribute substantially to the health of the nation by achieving even small reductions in the amount of salt in these processed foods,” the researcher added.

Because the majority of salt in the diet comes from prepared and packaged foods, the results of the study reveal the need for regulatory changes or voluntary actions by the food industry to make achievable changes in heart health, Bibbins-Domingo said.

The researchers say that they will next try to assess the cost-effectiveness of various interventions already being used to reduce salt consumption in other countries, including industry collaborations, regulations and labelling changes. (ANI)

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‘Short-sleepers’ at ‘five-fold diabetes risk’

March 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 12 (ANI): People who sleep less than six hours a night are nearly five times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, suggests a new study.

The study showed that people who slept less than six hours a night during the work week were nearly five times more likely to develop abnormal fasting blood sugar levels, an important precursor for diabetes.

“This study supports growing evidence of the association of inadequate sleep with adverse health issues. Sleep should be assessed in the clinical setting as part of well-care visits throughout the life cycle,” said Lisa Rafalson, Ph.D., lead author of the study and National Research Service Award fellow and research assistant professor at the University at Buffalo in New York.

“While previous studies have suggested that there may be many genes that each have a very small effect on the risk of diabetes, there is no known genetic predisposition to sleep disturbances that could explain our study’s results, especially in this limited sample size,” Rafalson said.

“It is more likely that pathways involving hormones and the nervous system are involved in the impaired-sleep/fasting glucose association,” she said.

In the study involving 1,455 participants, the researchers found that people who slept less than six hours a night were 4.56 times more likely to become diabetics over six year period.

“Our findings will hopefully spur additional research into this very complex area of sleep and illness,” said Rafalson.

The study was presented at American Heart Association’s 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention. (ANI)

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