Candesartan cilexetil: an update.

Introduction: Candesartan cilexetil is one of the most often-used first-line drugs regarding the management of arterial hypertension. Moreover, this drug has proven its effectiveness in chronic heart failure and exerts beneficial effects in diabetes, stroke, dementia and atrial fibrillation.

Areas Covered: This review focuses on the use of candesartan cilexetil in Phase II and Phase III trials and their implications for clinical usage in the treatment of arterial hypertension and heart failure.

Long-term prognosis of the transient left ventricular dysfunction syndrome (Tako-Tsubo cardiomyopathy): focus on malignancies.

Background: The pathophysiology and long-term prognosis of the transient left ventricular dysfunction syndrome (LVDS, Tako-Tsubo cardiomyopathy) is largely unknown.

Aims: To investigate the prevalence of malignancies and long-term mortality in patients with LVDS.

Methods And Results: Fifty patients with LVDS (47 females and 3 men, age 70+/-10 years) and 50 age- and gender-matched control patients with acute anterior myocardial infarction (MI) were evaluated.