A Rare Case of Mad Honey Disease: A Reversible Cause of Complete Heart Block.

This case describes a patient with hypotension, bradycardia, and third-degree atrioventricular block following ingestion of a grayanotoxin-containing species, or lily of the valley bush. Although unlikely in metropolitan environments, physicians should be aware of the possibility of grayanotoxin ingestion when confronted with new-onset heart block even in nonendemic areas. ().

Prevalence of Chronic Pain and High-Impact Chronic Pain in Cancer Survivors in the United States.

This survey study uses data from the National Health Interview Survey to investigate the prevalence of, and socioeconomic risk factors for, chronic pain and high-impact chronic pain among cancer survivors in the United States.

Is Cardiac Diastolic Dysfunction a Part of Post-Menopausal Syndrome?

Post-menopausal women exhibit an exponential increase in the incidence of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction compared with men of the same age, which indicates a potential role of hormonal changes in subclinical and clinical diastolic dysfunction. This paper reviews the preclinical evidence that demonstrates the involvement of estrogen in many regulatory molecular pathways of cardiac diastolic function and the clinical data that investigates the effect of estrogen on diastolic function in post-menopausal women. Published reports show that estrogen deficiency influences both early diastolic relaxation via calcium homeostasis and the late diastolic compliance associated with cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis.

Outcomes of patients admitted with ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death in the United States.

Background: Mortality caused by ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) remains a problem of epidemic proportions. Understanding current trends on admission of VA, patient characteristics, morbidity, mortality, and health care utilization could help us improve allocation of health care resources and risk prediction.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate clinical outcomes of VA, including ventricular tachycardia (VT), implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) shocks, and sudden cardiac death (SCD); and to identify predictors of morbidity and mortality, patterns of utilization of ICD and VT ablation, and the impact of such metrics on overall health care utilization.

Personalized exercise dose prescription.

Physical activity (PA) is associated with increased longevity and decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, however, the majority of the general population is still sedentary. In order to maximize the health benefits of PA, health care practitioners should be familiarized with the appropriate dose of exercise for each healthy individual, depending on their habitual PA and relative fitness. The aim of this review is to quantitatively describe the lowest and the highest level of exercise that has health benefits, and what should hypothetically be considered 'the sweet spot'.

Non-Vitamin K Antagonist Oral Anticoagulants and Antiplatelet Therapy for Stroke Prevention in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) are frequently used to prevent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. These patients are often also on aspirin or other antiplatelet agents. It is possible that treatment with both NOACs and aspirin or other antiplatelet drug may be effective in decreasing stroke, but data are sparse regarding the efficacy and safety of using both agents for stroke prevention.