Glycaemic control and cardiovascular disease: is there a light at the end of the tunnel?

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have been shown by numerous studies to have a substantially increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), including coronary artery disease, ischemic stroke and heart failure, even after adjusting for other known risk factors.1,2 First reported in the Framingham studies and followed by additional data including a meta-analysis of 102 prospective studies, diabetes confers about a two-fold excess risk for coronary heart disease and ischemic stroke in both men and women, and about a 2-fold and 5-fold excess risk of heart failure in diabetic men and women.1-3 However, there is still a debate as to whether improved glycaemic control reduces the excessive CVD risk of T2DM patients.

Intracardiac mass as initial cardiac manifestation of Behçet's disease: think before you cut.

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic multisystemic inflammatory disorder. Cardiac abnormalities including intracardiac thrombi have been described in up to 16% of cases. The clinical presentation of cardiac complications in BD may include fever, dyspnea, chest pain, hemoptysis, and edema.

Efficacy of adalimumab therapy for life-threatening pulmonary vasculitis in Behçet's disease.

Inflammatory large-vessel vasculitis in Behçet's disease may cause life-threatening arterial aneurysms that are prone to rupture. We report a patient with Behçet's disease with right ventricular thrombus and large aneurysms of the pulmonary arteries that led to recurrent episodes of hemoptysis. Following relapses and only partial response to repeated courses of cyclophosphamide and steroids, the patient was treated with adalimumab (Humira) and is now in clinical remission for over 30 months, with regression of her pulmonary lesions.

Sex differences in risk factors for coronary artery disease and stroke in men and women aged 45-65 years.

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) and stroke both result from atherosclerosis. Risk factor profiles for CAD and stroke have been reported to differ between middle-aged men and women.

Objective: To compare, for men and women aged 45-65 years, between risk factor profiles for CAD and stroke.