Every year more than one million people receive a pacemaker. Until now, leadless versions were only available for 20% of these patients. However, thanks to an international consortium led by Amsterdam UMC, an improved version will soon be available for all patients. The results of this clinical trial are, today, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Research from Amsterdam UMC has succeeded in further revolutionising the wireless pacemaker. The improved version can now be placed in both the atrium and the ventricle of ...

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) researchers have flipped the script on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) genetics. Scientists long thought that siblings born with ASD share more of their mother’s genome than their father’s. But CSHL Associate Professor Ivan Iossifov and Professor Michael Wigler have now shown that, in many cases, it’s dad who might be playing a bigger genetic role. Autism spectrum disorders cover a range of neurological and developmental conditions. They can affect how a person communicates, socializes, learns, and behaves. ASD may also manifest as repetitive behaviors ...

Prague, Czechia – 22 May 2023:  Women are more than twice as likely to die after a heart attack than men, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2023, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 “Women of all ages who experience a myocardial infarction are at particularly high risk of a poor prognosis,” said study author Dr. Mariana Martinho of Hospital Garcia de Orta, Almada, Portugal. “These women need regular monitoring after their heart event, with strict control of blood pressure, ...

Physicians and scientists from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center will discuss the latest research and clinical trial results on combination therapies for breast cancer, a potential new treatment for patients with recurrent glioma, and advances in PSMA PET guided radiotherapy for patients with prostate cancer, among other topics, at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting. At this year’s scientific forum, Dr. Dennis Slamon, chair of hematology-oncology and director of clinical ...

Virginia Tech researchers with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC have joined a Children’s National Hospital effort to treat deadly brain tumors with ultrahigh frequency sound waves. The scientists are studying how to use an emerging technology called focused ultrasound to fight diffuse midline glioma (DMG), one of the most lethal childhood brain cancers with a nearly 100 percent rate of mortality within five years of diagnosis. A multi-institutional team led by Javad Nazarian, a principal investigator with Children’s National Hospital, will study how to use focused ultrasound to create ...

An international team has used satellite- and ground-based ionospheric observations to demonstrate that an air pressure wave triggered by volcanic eruptions could produce an equatorial plasma bubble (EPB) in the ionosphere, severely disrupting satellite-based communications. Their findings were published in the journal Scientific Reports.  The ionosphere is the region of the Earth's upper atmosphere where molecules and atoms are ionized by solar radiation, creating positively charged ions. The area with the highest concentration of ionized particles is called the F-region, an area 150 to 800 km above the Earth's surface. The F-region plays ...

Investigators from the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai found that women who experience an adverse pregnancy outcome—such as gestational hypertension, preeclampsia or preterm birth—have a higher risk of developing stroke in their lifetime, and at a younger age. The findings, published today in the peer-reviewed journal Stroke, also found that compared to women with one uncomplicated pregnancy, a woman who had two or more pregnancies impacted by an adverse pregnancy outcome had a twofold higher increase of stroke. “We understand from past studies in the U.S. that women have a greater risk of experiencing a stroke and a disproportionate ...

Snow is melting earlier, and more rain is falling instead of snow in the mountain ranges of the Western U.S. and Canada, leading to a leaner snowpack that could impact agriculture, wildfire risk and municipal water supplies come summer, according to a new study from the University of Colorado Boulder. Published in Nature Communications Earth & Environment, the study documents more than 60 years of change in snowpack water storage across Western North America. It found that from 1950 to 2013, snowpack water storage ...

Study’s findings may help inform tobacco cessation support efforts. In a recent study, current smoking and vaping were associated with a higher burden of symptoms among adult cancer survivors, but these symptoms were not related to survivors’ desire to quit smoking. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. Continued smoking after a cancer diagnosis lowers survival rates, increases the likelihood of additional cancers, and decreases the effectiveness ...

Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech), Tohoku University, Fujitsu Limited, and RIKEN today announced that they will embark on the research and development of a distributed training of Large Language Models (LLM) [1]on supercomputer Fugaku in May 2023, within the scope of the initiatives for use of Fugaku defined by Japanese policy. LLMs are AI models for deep learning that serve as the core of generative AI including ChatGPT[2]. The four organizations aim to improve the environment for creating LLMs that can be widely used by academia and companies, contribute to improving the research capabilities of AI in Japan, and increase the value of utilizing Fugaku in both ...

Despite our understanding of nutrition expanding remarkably in recent times, few aspects of our diet continue to confuse and divide the experts like nitrate.   For a long time nitrate has been viewed warily, with previous research showing it could potentially be linked to causing cancer.   However, subsequent research has revealed dietary nitrate also has various cardiovascular health benefits, which could help reduce the risk of related conditions such as heart disease, dementia and diabetes.   So, how can one dietary compound have such contrasting potential risks and benefits?   Edith Cowan University’s (ECU) Nutrition and Health ...

Increasingly, social robots are being used for support in educational contexts. But does the sound of a social robot affect how well they perform, especially when dealing with teams of humans? Teamwork is a key factor in human creativity, boosting collaboration and new ideas. Danish scientists set out to understand whether robots using a voice designed to sound charismatic would be more successful as team creativity facilitators. “We had a robot instruct teams of students in a creativity task. The robot ...

A new article published in the Journal of Animal Ecology suggests that current measures to protect grasslands in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau are damaging the ecosystem and should be stopped. The existing policy, introduced in 2000, calls for the eradication of small burrowing mammals. These include the mountain-dwelling herbivores, the plateau pika, and another small rodent, the zokor. Both are keystone species and are known as ecosystem engineers due to their modification of and impact on the environment. The ...

A retrospective analysis of patient data from the COPDGene study suggests that targeting mucus plugs could help prevent deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease—the fourth leading cause of death in the United States Many patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) experience airway-clogging mucus plugs, an accumulation of mucus in the lungs that can affect quality of life and lung functioning. A new study led by researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding ...

Prague, Czechia – 21 May 2023:  Sacubitril/valsartan leads to greater reduction in plasma NT-proBNP levels compared to valsartan alone after stabilisation for worsening heart failure in patients with an ejection fraction (EF) above 40%, according to late breaking science presented today at Heart Failure 2023, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC),1 and published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Principal investigator Dr. Robert Mentz of Duke University Medical Center, Durham, US said: “These data add to the evidence supporting a potential treatment benefit of sacubitril/valsartan ...

A new device invented with the help of an electrophysiologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center makes a heart procedure safer for patients suffering from atrial fibrillation (AFib), a common irregular heart rhythm. AFib affects millions of people worldwide and greatly increases their risk of stroke and heart failure. To treat AFib, doctors use cardiac ablation to help restore the heart’s rhythm. Heat or cold energy delivered through a catheter destroys the heart tissue causing rapid and irregular heartbeats. ...

PHOENIX (May 20, 2023) – George D. Dangas, MD, PhD, MSCAI, Professor of Medicine (Cardiology and Surgery), and Director of Cardiovascular Innovation at the Zena and Michael A. Weiner Cardiovascular Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine of Mount Sinai in New York City, and Chief of Cardiology at Mount Sinai Queens assumed the office of president of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) today during the closing ceremonies at the SCAI 2023 Scientific Sessions in Phoenix, AZ. Dr. Dangas is an authoritative voice in the performance of nonsurgical cardiovascular and valve interventions using both established ...

PHOENIX (May 20, 2023) – Njambi Mathenge, MD, MPH, an interventional cardiology fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital has been selected as the recipient of the SCAI-Women in Innovations (SCAI-WIN) CHIP Fellowship, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions announced today. The $115,000 fellowship opportunity was made possible by support from Abiomed (founding supporter), Boston Scientific, Medtronic, and Shockwave Medical, Inc., and is offered to interventional cardiology (IC) fellows or practicing interventional cardiologists interested in ...

PHOENIX (May 20, 2023) – Today during the SCAI 2023 Scientific Sessions, thirty early-career interventional cardiologists were the inaugural recipients of a newly created award highlighting excellence in interventional cardiology. 30 in Their 30’s is a new recognition program created by the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) for early-career members for their proven leadership and demonstration of SCAI’s core values. 30 in Their 30’s recognizes the best and brightest young professionals in interventional cardiology. This award ...

PHOENIX (May 20, 2023) – Today, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) announced its 2023 Master Interventionalists of SCAI (MSCAI) designation recipients during the SCAI 2023 Scientific Sessions in Phoenix. The MSCAI designation is awarded to individuals who have demonstrated excellence in invasive/interventional cardiology over the course of their career and for their commitment to the highest levels of clinical care, innovation, publication, and teaching. This year’s MSCAI designations were awarded to the following group of outstanding interventionalists: David ...

New Orleans, May 20, 2023 – Today, the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Society (APHRS), and Latin American Heart Rhythm Society (LAHRS) released a new clinical practice guideline on cardiac physiologic pacing (CPP) strategies to restore ventricular synchrony and improve cardiac performance. The 2023 HRS/APHRS/LAHRS Guideline on Cardiac Physiologic Pacing for the Avoidance and Mitigation of Heart Failure is intended to provide guidance to clinical cardiac electrophysiologists, cardiologists, and other clinicians on the use of CPP, which includes cardiac resynchronization therapy and conduction system pacing, in patients ...

Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) Global Scientific Information and Computing Center (GSIC) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) announced to build its next-generation supercomputer, TSUBAME4.0, to accelerate AI-driven scientific discovery in medicine, materials science, climate research, and turbulence in urban environments. Tokyo Tech is one of the world's leading universities in science and technology. With the TSUBAME4.0 supercomputer, users will have the ability to train ...

Prague, Czechia – 20 May 2023:  People with strong legs are less likely to develop heart failure after a heart attack, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2023, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 Myocardial infarction is the most common cause of heart failure,2 with around 6–9% of heart attack patients going on to develop the condition.3,4 Previous research has shown that having strong quadriceps is associated with a lower risk of death in patients with coronary artery disease.5 This study tested ...

Prague, Czechia – 20 May 2023:  The first investigator-initiated study of remote pulmonary artery pressure monitoring has found that it improves quality of life and reduces heart failure hospitalisations in patients with chronic heart failure. The findings are presented today in a late breaking science session at Heart Failure 2023, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC),1 and published in The Lancet. Principal investigator Dr. Jasper Brugts of Erasmus University Medical Centre, ...

Transthyretin-related cardiac amyloidosis is a progressive disease characterized by the deposition of amyloid protein fibrils in the heart. Amyloid fibril deposition thickens and stiffens the heart walls, and the disease is also known as stiff-heart syndrome. The accumulation of amyloid fibrils causes heart failure, and patients suffer from fluid retention, fatigue, and arrhythmias. The disease can be caused by genetic mutations or related to aging. Prognosis is poor, and untreated patients survive for an average of just 3 years. Now, the ...