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Great strides have been made over the last 40 years in reducing the number of Canadians who smoke. Yet, smoking tobacco remains a leading cause of preventable illness, hospitalization and death. People who smoke daily average twice as many days in hospital as people who have never been daily smokers

All of us have experienced anxiety, sadness, frustration or other negative emotions. While they can cause mental distress, they can also take a toll on your heart health, especially if these feelings are persistent or frequent. Understanding and dealing with our moods is important for both

Atrial fibrillation is a complex condition in that its causes vary from person to person, impacting its underlying mechanisms, what triggers episodes and which treatments are effective in each individual. In addition, afib can be difficult to diagnose because it is often episodic nature and in some

A pocket hematoma is a pooling of blood around a device such as a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) following the implant procedure. Research led by the Ottawa Heart Institute has found that patients who experience a clinically significant pocket hematoma (CSH) are

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

With enthusiasm and a shared sense of purpose, experts in women and heart disease gathered in Ottawa this April for the first Canadian Women’s Heart Health Summit. Attendees included leading figures in clinical care and research from across North America. The event aimed to lay the groundwork for

In the 1950s, available advice on women and heart health largely consisted of information on how to help husbands recover from their heart attacks. As the famous ad says, we’ve come a long way, baby. Progress is being made in addressing women’s heart health, progress that was amply demonstrated at

It was on May 11, 1976, that Phase 1 of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute opened for business. What began in 1969, as the Cardiac Unit of The Ottawa Hospital, took a major step toward becoming the internationally recognized cardiac centre that it is today. “It was a very exciting time,”

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

As we age, the aortic valve in our hearts can become hardened due to calcium deposits that build up over time. This is the most common cause of aortic stenosis which affects the opening and closing of the valve, restricting blood flow to the rest of the body. The condition affects more than 100,000