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Despite major advances in technology and treatment over the past several decades, cardiovascular disease is still the leading cause of death in the world. In fact, cardiovascular illness has continued to increase at an epidemic rate globally despite a general reduction in age-related mortality over...

To coincide with coverage of the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Summit, this edition of “Rapids Beats” is dedicated to news related to women and heart disease. Why Women Are Less Likely to Receive Statin Therapy Statin drugs, which lower cholesterol, are equally effective in men and women at...

As commentaries on radiation go, Peter Parker likely summed it up best: “With great power comes great responsibility.” Although no one at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute has had to deal with the complications of acquiring superpowers from a radioactive spider, the staff is profoundly aware...

The 9p21 risk variant is the strongest known common genetic risk factor for heart disease in Caucasians and Asians. Beginning with the discovery of 9p21 in 2007, studies have consistently shown that having one copy of a genetic variation in 9p21 increases a person’s risk of heart disease by 15 to 20...

Roughly half of our risk of getting heart disease is due to our genetics. The other half is due to age, lifestyle and other environmental factors. Of the genetic half, some of the risk comes from rare genetic variants that have a big impact on a person’s individual risk. Some comes from the additive...

A recent study of close to 200,000 men and women found that shorter people are at higher risk of coronary artery disease than their taller counterparts, with every 2.5-inch (6.35-cm) change in height affecting their level of risk by 13.5%. This means that, if you are 5 feet tall, your risk of...

A good night’s sleep restores energy, improves performance and generally makes you feel better. Getting the right amount of sleep is also important for good heart health. A South Korean study of more than 47,000 adults found that people who sleep about seven hours a night have significantly fewer...

So far in 2016, Heart Institute researchers have won more than $7 million in research funding, including major awards from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada. Perhaps most remarkable is the Institute’s...

For decades, patients taking the anti-clotting drug warfarin who required the implantation of a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter defibrillator have posed a dilemma. If they are at moderate to high risk of stroke caused by a blood clot, how are doctors to balance the risk of surgical bleeding...

There is a flood of advice in the world about diets and healthy eating. From the food pyramid to fad diets, from books to blogs to celebrity chefs, some of it is good information, some of it is outrageous, and a lot of it is complicated and hard to live by. Healthy eating shouldn’t be hard, but it...

Late last year, Statistics Canada released new figures detailing the leading causes of death in the country. Based on 2007 data, the report noted that cancer and heart disease were the two leading causes of death for Canadians, and these were responsible for slightly more than one-half (51 per cent)...

Cigarette smokers face twice the risk of heart disease compared with non-smokers, and most of them—more than 60%—want to quit. About half of Canadian smokers try to kick tobacco every year. Unfortunately, the likelihood of success for those who attempt to quit on their own is dismal: fewer than 5%...

Sexuality is a fundamental part of being human. It’s a big part of our quality of life and a significant source of pleasure and intimacy. So it’s no surprise that concerns about sexual activity are common among people living with heart disease or recovering from a cardiac event. The worries and...

According to a recent Harvard University study, each year 1.65 million people die worldwide from high-sodium diets that lead to heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular disease. The review of existing research found that most people eat far more salt than recommended, and salt is a major...