Patients who have a heart attack followed by return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), but not consciousness, have a poor prognosis. The neurological outcomes for these so-called ROSC patients can be aided by rapid cooling of the body (therapeutic hypothermia) in the cardiac catheterization lab, but...
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An Overview from the Cardiovascular Perspective Diabetes is a large and growing problem in Canada, with diabetic patients at much greater risk for dangerous cardiovascular events, including recurrent heart attacks and the development of heart failure. Because it’s such a major contributor to heart...
Minimally invasive cardiac surgery (MICS) is staking a middle ground between open-heart surgery and catheter-based procedures. Not surprisingly, there are pluses and minuses with each specific procedure, and some are more established than others. All offer the advantages of keeping the heart beating...
In two lively talks, Peter Liu, MD, Scientific Director of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, took a big picture point of view. In his plenary presentation to the Vascular Summit, Dr. Liu highlighted the inextricable link between vascular health and aging. Vascular aging leads to vascular...
For patients experiencing an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the most dangerous type of heart attack, treatment in a dedicated regional program saves lives. However the benefit specifically to elderly STEMI patients—aged 75 or older—from rapid treatment has not been clear. Among several...
Lorraine Montoya Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) patients tend to be older than most cardiac patients and thus more likely to be frail. Assessment of frailty may hold value in predicting patient outcomes. In a pilot study presented by Heart Institute advanced practice nurse Lorraine...
The promise and challenges of cardiac regenerative medicine—facilitating the growth of new tissue to repair damage to the heart following a heart attack—received wide attention at CCC/Vascular 2013. The labs of University of Ottawa Heart Institute researchers Darryl Davis, MD and Erik Suuronen, PhD...
In a Canadian Cardiovascular Society featured program item, cardiologist Thais Coutinho, MD, a recent Heart Institute recruit from the Mayo Clinic, presented interesting findings on arterial stiffness and hypertension. Globally, hypertension is the leading risk factor for death, yet only about half...
In a randomized clinical trial, a Heart Institute group led by Bob Reid, PhD evaluated a program designed to impact the heart health of family members of patients with heart disease. “Family members of patients are in a teachable moment that gives us the opportunity to prevent them from becoming the...
People with Type D personality are distressed. They tend to experience negative emotions and keep these emotions inside, not sharing them with others. Personality traits such as these are considered stable over time. As would be expected, Type D individuals with cardiovascular disease have a poor...
The arteries in our body are lined with a layer of cells called the endothelium. The very first step in the development of cardiovascular disease—the primary cause of heart attack and stroke—takes place when the endothelium begins to function abnormally. In research presented at the Canadian...
While modern medicine is heavily dependent on sophisticated technologies to diagnose and treat disease, health care generally lags behind other sectors in adopting advances in information technology. A number of presentations at the 2014 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress looked at ways in which...
Until the new oral anticoagulant (NOAC) drugs became available, beginning in 2009, warfarin was the workhorse for managing stroke risk in patients with atrial fibrillation. In his Research Achievement Award presentation, Stuart Connolly, MD, of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., provided a...
At the 2014 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress and American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, Heart Institute researchers presented several studies that tested novel ways to visualize the heart’s structure and function. Developing methods to predict which plaques in the arteries may be at high...
The Canadian Cardiovascular Congress travels to the West Coast this year. With topics ranging from sedentary behaviour to stem cells, the University of Ottawa Heart Institute has more than 90 items on the program at CCC 2014. Our program guide will help you find them all. Presentations and...
A number of Ottawa Heart Institute staff and trainees were honoured at this year’s Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, recognizing their accomplishments at both early and established phases of their careers. Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) Research Achievement Award Rob Beanlands, Chief of...
A form of heart failure known as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF, pronounced “hefpef”) is becoming more common but remains poorly understood. No effective treatment options exist. Women are twice as likely to suffer from HFpEF as men, but the reasons for this are also unclear...
Cancer and heart disease are the two leading causes of death. As we live longer lives, we are more likely to eventually have one or the other. But for many cancer patients, treatment of their condition makes it much more likely that they will have to deal with both. More people are surviving cancer...
Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a dangerous condition that is not well understood. It primarily affects women in their 30s to 50s who have no standard risk factors for heart disease. A tear forms in the wall of an artery allowing blood to pool between the inner and outer layers of...
Many of the patients admitted to hospital with a STEMI heart attack (ST-elevation myocardial infarction) have major blockages in blood vessels other than the one directly responsible for the heart attack. The best strategy for treating these patients remains an open question for cardiologists...