Rheumatic Heart Disease
Medical students’ unawareness of rheumatology ‘rooted right from the undergraduate level’
Undergraduate medical schools show “significant variation” in rheumatology training, with some students receiving as few as 4 hours of teaching specific to the specialty, according to data published in Clinical Rheumatology.
B-Cell Targeted Therapies
Access to surgery where rheumatic heart disease is endemic a barrier to improving survival
Much of the mortality in rheumatic heart disease was attributable to heart failure, and was significantly reduced by interventional treatment, which may stand as a barrier to improving mortality in lower-income countries, data show.
‘AI holds great promise’ in early diagnosis of rheumatic heart disease
Artificial intelligence may have a role in the early detection of rheumatic heart disease using mitral regurgitation jet analysis, according to study findings published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Blood pressure remains largest contributor to global CVD; mortality on the rise
Global CV mortality and the prevalence of important cardiometabolic risk factors increased through 2022, with high BP remaining the strongest contributor, according to the 2023 update to the Global Burden of Disease special report on CVD.
INVICTUS
Vitamin K antagonist vs. rivaroxaban (Xarelto, Janssen/Bayer) for reducing rate of ischemic stroke and mortality in adults with rheumatic heart disease-associated atrial fibrillation.
INVICTUS trial supports vitamin K antagonists for rheumatic heart disease-associated AF
In patients with rheumatic heart disease-associated atrial fibrillation, vitamin K antagonist therapy was associated with a lower rate of ischemic stroke and mortality compared with rivaroxaban, without increasing risk for major bleeding.
Death, disability from rheumatic heart disease decreased globally from 1990 to 2019
Despite an increased incidence and prevalence of rheumatic heart disease worldwide from 1990 to 2019, death and disability caused by the condition trended downward, according to data published in Arthritis Research & Therapy.
AHA advisory: Oral penicillin safer than injectable for high-risk rheumatic heart disease
Oral penicillin may be safer than the injectable option for people with rheumatic heart disease who are at high risk for a cardiac reaction, according to a new American Heart Association presidential advisory.
Secondary antibiotic prophylaxis reduces progression of rheumatic heart disease in children
In children and adolescents with latent rheumatic heart disease, secondary antibiotic prophylaxis was associated with lower risk for disease progression at 2 years, researchers reported at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.