An international team of researchers has discovered a natural mechanism that protects the heart from heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), a serious condition in need of effective treatment. The team reports that when the cardioprotective mechanism fails, it promotes the development of HFpEF. Importantly, restoring the mechanism prevents the progression of the condition. The findings provide a promising therapeutic target to prevent and treat this life-threatening disease.

People with a certain heart valve abnormality are at increased risk of severe heart rhythm disorders, even after successful valve surgery. This is according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital in Sweden published in the European Heart Journal. The condition is more common in women and younger patients with valve disorder and can, in the worst case, lead to sudden cardiac arrest.

Major reallocation of healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic meant that elective surgery in children with congenital heart disease (CHD) was significantly reduced, so that those needing urgent, lifesaving and emergency surgery could be treated. However, this prioritisation of the most severely ill children did not increase overall post-operative complications rates or death, a study led by the University of Bristol has shown.  

Complications during pregnancy (or adverse pregnancy outcomes), like gestational diabetes and newly developed high blood pressure, act as nature’s stress test and may uncover an individual’s risk for heart disease later in life, according to new research published in the JACC, the flagship journal of the American College of Cardiology. The study also highlights how weight management before pregnancy may not only improve maternal health but also reduce future cardiovascular disease risk.

 Healthy sleep includes multiple components, such as number of hours of sleep per night, how long it takes to fall asleep, daytime functioning and self-reported sleep satisfaction, and addressing these different dimensions of sleep may help to reduce cardiometabolic health and related risk factors, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement.

The American Heart Association, Helmsley Charitable Trust grant will strengthen and expand Hawaii’s stroke system of care, reducing death and disability rates from stroke in rural populations

The American Heart Association and the Los Angeles Rams provided CPR training and education to improve cardiac emergency outcomes

The persistent higher rate of alcohol deaths in England since the pandemic in 2020 is an “acute crisis” requiring urgent action from government, according to a new study led by researchers at UCL and the University of Sheffield.