Health News

Coronary Clot Aspiration Safe Long Term
After certain types of heart attacks, doctors often use stents to prop open the arteries. Another method that may be used involves removing blood clots through thrombus aspiration (TA), but studies have shown mixed long-term results.
Genetic Test Not Necessary Before Taking Plavix
After an artery-opening procedure following a heart attack, some patients take Plavix ( clopidogrel ) to treat or prevent a blood clot. Though the drug isn't as effective in some individuals, genetic testing is not needed, a recent study suggests.
Stem Cell Transplant Recipients Prone to Problems
Stem cell transplant patients may not only be at risk during treatment. A new study suggests that a decade later they are still more susceptible to psychological conditions and chronic illness.
Blood Test May Diagnose Heart Attack
Scientists have found a biomarker which has allowed them to preliminarily develop a blood test that may be able to diagnose a heart attack by detecting a protein released in the blood.
Stents Help the Medicine Go Down
Patients who have previously suffered from a blood vessel blockage and received a medication-coated stent to prop the artery open may have a lower risk of developing another blockage or having a heart attack.
Limited Stent Use Successful
Some patients with coronary blockage benefit from medicine-coated stents to prop the artery open. A new study confirms stents are safe with limited use.
Too Many Hospital Blood Tests
Taking a diagnostic blood test while hospitalized is a fairly routine process. Most don't think twice about them. But for heart attack patients, such tests could lead to hospital-acquired anemia.
Human Platelet Creation to be Attempted
Inherited bleeding and clotting disorders are not well understood. Scientists hope that a study to create human platelet cells, which could aid chemotherapy patients in need of platelet transfusions, will provide insight into platelet function.
Diesel Fuel Linked to Heart Attack
Compared to any number of dangerous situations someone can find themselves in, driving a car fueled by diesel hardly seems risky. But exhaust fumes may be deceptively nipping at heart health.
Minimizing Adverse Reactions by Stopping the Bleeding
Patients with acute coronary syndromes often must resort to stents or balloon angioplasty to relieve artery constriction. Now the European Society of Cardiology is suggesting new strategies to minimize bleeding during such procedures.