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This article examines the question "Are there specific health benefits from moderate drinking on cardiovascular disease risk?" The epidemiological evidence is reviewed, focusing primarily on recent studies that examine possible [...]

Introduction Epidemiological studies have consistently shown an apparent protective association between light to moderate alcohol consumption and coronary heart disease, (1) but interpreting these findings remains a subject of much [...]

Introduction Incidence rates of coronary heart disease in middle aged men are about three times higher than in women.[1] Conversely, after a myocardial infarction women have been reported to have [...]

Rodney Jackson Louisiana Department of Natural Resources Baton Rouge Cumulative production from Chandeleur Sound off Louisiana and the area immediately to the south exceeds 34,116,065 bbl of oil and condensate [...]

The benefits of drug treatment for patients with raised blood pressure or blood cholesterol are directly related to their pretreatment risk of a cardiovascular disease event.[1 2] This guide provides [...]

Background: Some epidemiologic studies have described positive associations between prostate cancer risk and meat consumption, but underlying mechanisms have not been identified. Heterocyclic amines are mutagens formed during the cooking of meat. Well-done meat has been associated with increased risks of colorectal and breast cancers in humans. This study examined associations between prostate cancer risk and 1) estimated daily intake of heterocyclic amines from cooked meat and 2) level of cooked-meat doneness. Methods: A population-based, case-control study involving 317 case patients with prostate cancer and 480 age-matched control subjects was carried out in Auckland, New Zealand. Levels of meat doneness and daily intake of heterocyclic amines were determined from self-reported dietary data and experimentally measured heterocyclic amine levels in locally sourced meat samples cooked under controlled conditions to varying degrees of doneness. Results: The heterocyclic amines found in the highest concentrations in meat samples were 2-amino-1,6-dimethylfuro[3,2-e] imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (IFP) and 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo [4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) from well-done chicken and pork and very well-done beefsteak. Meat doneness was weakly and inconsistently associated with prostate cancer risk for individual types of meat, but increased risk was observed for well-done beefsteak (relative risk = 1.68; 95% confidence interval = 1.02-2.77; two-sided P for trend = .03). A weak positive gradient of increased risk was associated with estimated daily exposure to IFP but not with the other major heterocyclic amines. Conclusions: Meat doneness and estimated intake of heterocyclic amines from cooked meat were not clearly associated with prostate cancer risk. [J Natl Cancer Inst 1999;91:2038-44]

In 2000 the UK government launched the national service framework for coronary heart disease, setting national standards for improving prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. In agreement with recent recommendations on preventing [...]

Australia's Lipid Management Guidelines 2001 provide general principles for prescribing cholesterol-lowering treatments, and recommend treatment for patients with total cholesterol levels above 4 mmol/L. The guidelines require a cost-benefit analysis before endorsement because of the impact on Australia's national pharmaceutical budget.

To establish whether plasma vitamin measurements made after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) can be used in case-control studies of coronary artery disease, the short-term effect of AMI on plasma concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin [D.sub.3], beta-carotene, vitamin E and retinol was investigated. Sequential measures of these vitamins were made during the first 48 hours after AMI in 13 patients admitted to the hospital within 4 hours after the onset of symptoms. Plasma levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D did not change significantly during the first 12 hours after onset of symptoms. Beta-carotene levels increased significantly (p [is less than] 0.05) during the first 12 hours and then decreased, whereas levels of vitamin E and retinol progressively decreased during the first 48 hours by 26 and 25%, respectively. These results suggest that, of these vitamins, only plasma measurements of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 collected within 12 hours of onset of symptoms may provide reliable information for case-control studies of AMI. (Am J Cardiol 1989;64:971-974), Because of the known effect of vitamins on blood factors relevant to coronary artery disease, researchers have suggested that abnormal levels of some vitamins may actually contribute to coronary disease and lead to acute myocardial infarction (AMI, heart attack). In order to study vitamin levels using a type of experimental design called the 'case-control' approach, the stability of these levels immediately after infarction must be determined. This study design compares a person with an AMI with another person similar in as many ways as possible but who is healthy, and so the normal vitamin levels must first be determined. Blood samples were collected from 13 patients who had been diagnosed with AMI and whose duration of symptoms had not lasted more than four hours. Samples were taken on admission to the hospital, every eight hours during the first 24 hours, and again at 48 hours. Vitamins measured in their blood included retinol (vitamin A1), beta-carotene, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and vitamin E. Results showed that vitamin D levels did not change during the first 12 hours after AMI, while retinol and vitamin E decreased steadily over the first 48 hours and beta-carotene levels first increased, then decreased. These changes were most likely the result of the acute reaction to the AMI rather than to other associated variables such as concentration of the blood. As such, they indicate that, since a patient's vitamin D level after an AMI is probably similar to what it was before, it could be used to find a matching individual without disease for a case-control study. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Clinical guidelines are systematically developed statements designed to help practitioners and patients make decisions about appropriate health care for specific circumstances.[1] Clinicians are being inundated by a tidal wave of [...]

Randomised controlled trials have consistently shown that lowering blood pressure by about 10-12 mm Hg systolic and 5-6 mm Hg diastolic reduces the relative risk of stroke by about 40% [...]