The role of anxiety in hiking heart attack risk also goes beyond the effects of depression, anger, hostility, Type A behavior and other negative emotions. “These psychological factors are important in predicting the risk of heart disease, but anxiety is unique,” Dr. Shen said. “Older men with sustained and pervasive anxiety appear to be at increased risk for a heart attack even after their levels of depression, anger, hostility and Type A behavior are considered.”

And obviously the silver lining… anxiety is treatable. As more research like this takes place I believe that therapy, behavior modifications and anti anxiety drugs will become more accepted. And boy am I glad! I strongly support such things, as y’all know. While they did not examine the same effects of women in this study, researchers stated that it is on the horizon.

via American College of Cardiology.

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Anxiety Grossly Increases Your Risk Of A Heart Attack- No Worries Though

Depression linked to death following heart attack…Depression nearly triples the risk of death following a heart attack, even when accounting for other heart attack risk factors, according to research presented today at the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) annual meeting, which showed that among 360 depressed, post myocardial infarction patients followed for more than six years, those who did not recover from their depression in the first six months were more than twice as likely to die.

Implanting Embryonic cardiac cells prevents arrhythmias-The most dangerous consequence of heart attacks…When researchers at Cornell, the University of Bonn and the University of Pittsburgh transplanted living embryonic heart cells into cardiac tissue of mice that had suffered heart attacks, the mice became resistant to cardiac arrhythmias, thereby avoiding one of the most dangerous and fatal consequences of heart attacks.

Blood transfusions linked to surgery complications in women… Women die and get infections more often than men after heart surgery because they tend to receive more blood transfusions, which boost the risks of bad outcomes, according to a study published in the December Journal of Women’s Health.

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Some Interesting Hearty Links

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease that causes pain, stiffness, swelling, and limitation in the motion and function of many joints. An estimated 2.1 million Americans have RA, most of them women. Although joints are the principal body parts affected by RA, inflammation can develop in other organs as well. Heart attacks, resulting from inflammation of the coronary vessels, are more common in RA sufferers.

Researchers have been studying reducing the risk of heart attacks among patients by using a TNF-inhibitor in conjunction with the tried and true methotrexate. TNF-inhibitor is a drug that blocks cytokines and thus reduces stiffness, pain and swollen joints.

Researchers found that patients on a combination of TNF-inhibitors with methotrexate treatment had a heart attack risk of only 20 percent of the risk compared to patients taking methotrexate alone.

Interestingly enough, there was no benefit to taking the TNF-inhibitors alone. Thus the combination that makes the difference.

Adapted from American College of Rheumatology

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Reducing The Risk Of Heart Attacks By 80% Among Rheumatoid Arthritis Sufferers