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For people who show no symptoms of heart disease, there is little short-term benefit to having their heart vessels scanned for plaque buildup, a new study suggests.

While interesting, new technologies such as CT angiography haven’t demonstrated in clinical trials that they are useful for asymptomatic patients. Moreover, CT angiography is not needed to get the best treatment and the best prevention for heart disease, said lead researcher Dr. John W. McEvoy, a heart specialist at Johns Hopkins University.

“In asymptomatic patients, while it makes sense in some respects to want to know if there is any heart disease, studies to date don’t demonstrate that knowing whether or not you have coronary disease makes any difference to what can be done to change the outcome,” he said.
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New Swedish research suggests that the drug Inspra reduces the threat of major cardiovascular complications among patients who have a mild form of heart failure.

This latest finding builds on earlier work that was published by the New England Journal of Medicine last fall. That study suggested that Inspra (eplerenone), an aldosterone antagonist, helps control cardiovascular complications among patients with a history of serious chronic heart failure.

Since far more people suffer from mild heart failure, this new finding could mean the drug might benefit a far broader group of patients, the researchers added.
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Coronary artery disease (CAD) occurs when fatty deposits known as plaque build up in the heart’s arteries.

Whether you’ve never had CAD or have been diagnosed with the condition, the University of Maryland Medical Center offers these suggestions: Read more »