Tag Archives: stroke

Introduction Atrial fibrillation (AF) increases an individual’s risk of stroke fivefold.1 Oral anticoagulation (OAC) with warfarin reduces the risk of stroke by 64%.2 Novel or direct oral anticoagulants are non-inferior to warfarin in preventing stroke in non-valvular AF and have a similar bleeding profile, but with a lower risk of fatal intracranial haemorrhage and several practical advantages.3-7 While several antiplatelet agents have been shown to reduce the risk of recurrent stroke, they are considerably less effective than OAC, with a similar risk of major bleeding, and, therefore, are no longer recommended in national guidelines for

New practical NOACs guide A new version of EHRA Practical Guide on the use of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) was launched at the congress. ESC guidelines state that NOACs should be preferred over vitamin K antagonists, such as warfarin, for stroke prevention in AF patients, except those with a mechanical heart valve or rheumatic mitral valve stenosis, and their use in clinical practice is increasing. The guide gives concrete, practical advice on how to use NOACs in specific clinical situations. The guide is published in European Heart Journal (doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehy136). Anti

Large-scale studies examining these key aspects of work have been carried out in the US, but not within the UK and there is a significant data gap. The survey will take only 15–20 minutes to complete and will provide valuable insight in to the professional life of the UK cardiologist. Visit: https://bbk.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/the-organisation-life-work-balance-and-gender-perceptions CASTLE-AF: AF ablation first-line therapy in HF? Results from CASTLE-AF “indicate heart failure patients with co-existing AF should be treated with catheter ablation as a first-line therapy,” says the study’s co-lead investigator Dr Johannes Brachmann, (Cobur

Cardiff Metropolitan University has just launched Stroke Hub Wales (SHW) – a resource facility that will support and coordinate research, innovation and education programmes across Wales – part of the Welsh Government’s five-year strategy to tackle stroke in individuals of all ages. The aim of SHW (www.stroke.wales) is to achieve a step-change in high-impact stroke research for the benefit of the health, wellbeing and prosperity of people in Wales. The hub will act as a resource for researchers, clinicians and allied health professionals across our NHS Trusts, University Health Boards and Universities. It will build on established relat

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New AF guidelines The first collaborative European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS) Guidelines on Atrial Fibrillation (AF) were published at the start of the congress.1 These multidisciplinary guidelines focus on early detection of asymptomatic AF, recommending both opportunistic and targeted screening for all patients aged ≥65 years, or with stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA). In addition, the guidelines deal with long-term challenges in the management of AF patients, with recommendations on what to do when patients develop complications on anticoagulation, re-initiation of an

Introduction Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia with a reported worldwide prevalence of 0.6% in men and 0.4% in women.1 AF is independently associated with a five-fold increased rate of stroke, which is comparable with the risk seen in patients with three or more other stroke risk factors.2,3 Furthermore, strokes related to AF are associated with higher rates of disability and mortality than other strokes.4-6 The cost of AF-related strokes in the UK is estimated to be around £750 million per year.7 AF-related stroke is thought to be secondary to thromboembolism from the left atrium to the cerebral circulation. Ora

BSH Parliament day Professor Andrew Clark (President of the British Society for Heart Failure) is pictured here (centre) carrying out an echocardiogram in the House of Commons. He was at a BSH event to help raise awareness that a person diagnosed with heart failure is likely to have a worse prognosis than if they were diagnosed with most cancers. This is despite the availability of specialist heart failure services that can have a remarkable impact on a patient’s chance of survival, but for which there is inconsistent access over the UK leading to wide variations in care and outcomes. Over 60 MPs, Peers, and professional and patient groups

Dear Sirs, Research on sex difference in mortality after myocardial infarction (MI) since the 1990s has been debated and increased. Several observational studies have shown that younger women, in particular, seemed to have higher mortality rates than men of similar age during the two-year or longer follow-up, although these studies were mainly from the USA.1-3 Recent American studies have also found that, even after full adjustment for potential risk factors, excess risk for in-hospital mortality for women was still noted, particularly among those <50 years old with acute ST-segment elevation MI, leading to 98% (odds ratio [OR] 1.98, 95% c

Yet, not all today’s physicians are keeping step with this new world. All too often adopting new ways of talking to patients or prescribing new technologies and medicines is left by the wayside in favour of keeping to tried and tested habits. Treating a common heart disorder Take the case with atrial fibrillation (AF), which affects around 800,000 people in the UK. Anticoagulation to reduce the risk of stroke is an essential part of AF management but according to the Department of Health many patients are not always appropriately anticoagulated.1 Since 2012, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has approved a number