I was surprised to learn from a recent press release that the American College of Cardiology is planning to have some live participants at its annual scientific sessions meeting in May. The college said it is also partnering with a technology company to offer these participants a wearable monitoring device “as an added safety measure…
A Coke, A Smile, And 120 Million Dollars
September 24, 2015 by Leave a Comment
As I’ve reported in the past Coca-Cola has a long history of giving money to medical organizations and researchers. Now we know just how much. In response to a New York Times story this summer, Coke has disclosed details of its financial support to a great number and broad variety of health organizations and initiatives. Over the past five years, it…
Cardiology Group Withdraws ‘Choosing Wisely’ Recommendation
September 22, 2014 by Leave a Comment
In the end it wasn’t wisdom for the ages. The American College of Cardiology said today that it was withdrawing one of its five recommendations in the “Choosing Wisely” campaign. In 2012 the ACC recommended that heart attack patients should have only their culprit artery unblocked. It said that patients and caregivers should question whether complete revascularization of all…
What To Expect At The American College of Cardiology Meeting
March 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The ACC begins this Saturday in Washington, DC. Here’s a preview of some of the most highly-anticipated late-breaking clinical trials. On Saturday morning at the opening session the world will finally learn more about the failure of Symplicity HTN-3, the Medtronic trial of renal denervation…. … Click here to read the entire post on Forbes. …
More Guideline Controversy: Blood Pressure Expert Decries ‘Political Correctness’
February 3, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Now add “political correctness” to the long list of criticisms directed against the recent publication of new and updated cardiovascular guidelines. One leading hypertension expert writes that the authors of the recent AHA/ACC/CDC Science Advisory on blood pressure control were chosen not for their expertise but for political expediency. … Click here to read the full post on Forbes. Confusion…
Missing High Blood Pressure Guideline Turns Up In JAMA
December 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment
After years of delay and many twists and turns, the hypertension guideline originally commissioned by the NIH has now finally been published in JAMA. The evidence-based document contains a major revision of hypertension treatment targets and includes new and somewhat simplified recommendations for drug treatment. The previous US hypertension guideline was published more than a decade ago….
Controversy Erupts Over Accuracy Of Cardiovascular Risk Calculator For Guidelines
November 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment
In the face of a highly critical story in the New York Times by Gina Kolata about the new cardiovascular guidelines, authors of the guidelines and leaders of the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology defended the value and integrity of the guidelines. The Times story claims that the cardiovascular risk calculator used to assess individual risk in the new guidelines is deeply flawed. “In…
The Fate Of New Cholesterol Drugs Depends On IMPROVE-IT
November 14, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Prospects for the highly anticipated new class of cholesterol-lowering drugs, the PCSK9 inhibitors, took a wild roller coaster ride this week. The publication of new lipid guidelines by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology led many observers to think that the promising new drugs under development by Regeneron (in partnership with Sanofi),…
After Long Wait, Updated US Cardiovascular Guidelines Now Emphasize Risk Instead Of Targets
November 12, 2013 by 1 Comment
Updated cardiovascular health guidelines were released today by the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC). The guidelines are designed to provide primary care physicians with evidence-based expert guidance on cholesterol, obesity, risk assessment, and healthy lifestyle. The new guidelines reinforce many of the same messages from previous guidelines, but also…
Former ACC CEO Takes Reins Of Cardiovascular Research Foundation
October 15, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) announced today that it had appointed Jack Lewin as its next President and Chief Executive Officer. Lewin is the former CEO of the American College of Cardiology. In April 2012 the ACC announced his abrupt departure from the college. No explanation was ever given for the sudden change. … Click here to read the full…
Both Overuse And Underuse Explain Disparities In Heart Procedures
September 18, 2013 by 1 Comment
A new study finds that groups who have often been found to receive less medical care– non-whites, women, and people without private insurance or who are from urban and rural areas– are less likely to undergo coronary revascularization. But the same study finds that this disparity may be in no small part due to the fact…
Fuster To Succeed DeMaria As Editor Of JACC
August 15, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The American College of Cardiology has announced that Valentin Fuster will be the next editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Fuster will succeed the current editor, Anthony DeMaria, beginning in 2014. … Click here to read the full post on Forbes. …
Observational Study Lends Support to CRT Guidelines
August 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
A large observational study published in JAMA suggests that patients with left bundle-branch block (LBBB) and longer QRS duration derive the most benefit from a cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator (CRT-D). The findings appear to support current, but often criticized, guidelines from the American College of Cardiology, American Heart Association, and the Heart Rhythm Society, in which a class I recommendation…
The Guidelines Are Dead. Long Live The Guidelines.
August 9, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Following last month’s surprising announcement that the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute would no longer issue guidelines, leaders of the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology have now announced that are “officially assuming the joint governance, management and public distribution” of the enormously influential cardiovascular prevention guidelines, including the much-delayed and much-anticipated hypertension and cholesterol guidelines (formerly…
Cardiology Goes Better With Coke
July 23, 2013 by 3 Comments
At the bottom of this post I’ve reprinted an email cardiologists are receiving from the American College of Cardiology. See the bottom of the message for the disclosure that Coca Cola is paying for this educational program. I don’t have much to say about this though I wonder what the faculty of this program will…
Hypertension And Cholesterol Guidelines Delayed Again As NHLBI Gets Out Of The Guidelines Business
June 19, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) will no longer issue guidelines, including the much-delayed and much-anticipated hypertension (JNC 8) and cholesterol (ATP IV) guidelines. Instead, the NHLBI will perform systematic evidence reviews that other organizations, including the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology, will use as a resource for their own guidelines….
Spinning RECORD: Battle Over Rosiglitazone Heats Up Two Weeks Before Crucial FDA Meeting
May 24, 2013 by 1 Comment
Battle lines are being drawn two weeks before a highly unusual two-day FDA advisory committee meeting to discuss the contentious diabetes drug rosiglitazone (Avandia, GlaxoSmithKline). This will be the second time an FDA panel has wrestled with the fate of the drug and expectations have been that the discussion will once again be heated. But at…
Actelion Executive To Head American College of Cardiology
April 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Shalom “Shal” Jacobovitz will be the new chief executive officer of the American College of Cardiology, the ACC announced today. Jacobovitz is currently the president of the US division of Actelion Pharmaceuticals, best known for its pulmonary hypertension drugs. Click here to read the complete story on Forbes. …
Following An Embargo Break PREVAIL Trial Won’t Be Presented At ACC
March 9, 2013 by 2 Comments
UPDATED–The already complicated story behind the PREVAIL trial, which was designed to confirm the safety and efficacy of the Watchman left atrial appendage closure device, just got even more complicated. This morning, after the trial’s sponsor, Boston Scientific, prematurely distributed to investors a press release summarizing the results of the trial, the ACC announced that…
Trials Of Niacin And Atrial Fibrillation Device Will Headline American College Of Cardiology Program
January 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Two big trials will highlight this year’s American College of Cardiology meeting in March in San Francisco. First is the PREVAIL trial testing Boston Scientific‘s long-anticipated Watchman left atrial appendage closure device for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation. Second is the detailed presentation of the controversial failed HPS2-THRIVE trial of extended-release niacin and laropiprant. Read my…
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