The current system for classifying patients with heart failure (HF) is dependent upon the confirmation of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), a measurement of the heart’s ability to pump blood from the left ventricle. While patients with HF can be identified through the use of electronic medical records, the data on LVEF is oftentimes unavailable. […]
Congratulations to Dr. Padma Kaul and her team on being awarded a Spring 2023 CIHR Project Grant for the Diabetes and Cancer Outcomes in a Real-world Setting (DISCOURSE) Study. Cancer is becoming the major cause of hospitalization and death among people with diabetes. Given that they may be at a higher risk of developing cancer, there […]
Although many severe outcomes associated with COVID-19 have lessened with each successive wave, a recent study reveals that there is a persistent increased risk for cardiovascular hospitalization, especially among younger men between the ages of 18 and 65. This retrospective cohort study utilized Ontario administrative health databases to analyze data from adults who had at least one […]
It is important to account for sex and gender in randomized clinical trials (RCTs), as these factors can directly impact how individuals experience health conditions and respond to treatment. Sex is defined by biological characteristics, such as hormones, gene expression, and anatomy, whereas gender is a construct based on the social, environmental, cultural, and behavioral […]
The Spring 2023 issue of the Canadian Cardiac Chronicle newsletter is now available! Highlights from this issue include: Read and subscribe to the newsletter here.
Current guidelines recommend quadruple therapy, consisting of four drugs: angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitors (ARNis), sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor (SGLT2is), mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs), and beta blockers (BBs), for the management of patients with heart failure (HF) and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), a condition in which the heart is unable to pump out blood effectively. However, even before […]
Frailty is a state of reduced physiological capacity across multiple body systems that increases vulnerability and adverse health outcomes in older adults. While frailty is a known key contributing factor to morbidity and death in patients with heart failure (HF), the link between frailty and health status is not well understood in patients with HF […]
We are pleased to share the 2022 CVC Annual Report! The theme of this year’s report – Patient Centered. Data Driven. – illustrates the many ways that the CVC’s extensive body of research utilizes data to inform patient care and improve outcomes for those with cardiovascular disease. In a world where the volume, velocity, and variety of […]
A pharmaco-invasive strategy that halved the dose of tenecteplase in older ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients resulted in better reperfusion than primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Reperfusion was measured by electrocardiographic data in the ECG core laboratory at the Canadian VIGOUR Centre (CVC), University of Alberta (U of A), and is a key component of […]
CVC founding director Dr. Paul Armstrong and Dr. Jon Meddings (former dean of the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary) have published an op-ed in the Calgary Herald and Edmonton Journal about how a pandemic of misinformation threatens hard-earned lessons of Alberta’s health-care community. Read the full article here
The CVC is pleased to announce the addition of two new associate faculty members. Dr. David Collister is a nephrologist at the University of Alberta Hospital and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on randomized controlled trials and prospective observational studies in chronic kidney disease and dialysis, precision medicine approaches to uremic […]
New research published in The Lancet Regional Health Americas found that adherence to diabetes screening guidelines is sub-optimal, especially among young males. Despite lower rates of adherence to screening, males have higher rates of prediabetes and diabetes compared to females. This paper is the first publications from them Real-world Evidence on the Association Between Diabetes […]
We are pleased to share the 2021 CVC annual report! This year’s theme, Global Vision ⟷ Local Action, highlights a variety of the CVC’s activities that have started at a global or national scale and have subsequently translated into local initiatives. The theme also reflects our organization’s aim to bring people from different places together in the […]
The SODIUM-HF trial was presented during the Late-Breaking Clinical Trial session at the American College of Cardiology in Washington, DC on April 02, 2022, and a simultaneously published in The Lancet Journal. The SODIUM-HF study examined the effects of a low-salt diet compared to usual dietary recommendations for people with heart failure. The trial took place […]
The New Trends in Fibrinolysis symposium, sponsored by Boehinger Ingelheim, took place virtually on August 28th as part of the 2021 ESC Congress. Chaired by CVC Founding Director Dr. Paul Armstrong, the session sought to: Recognize the challenges in STEMI care, particularly in reducing ischaemic time and establishing STEMI networks. Apply given strategies to overcome […]
“We build too many walls and not enough bridges.” -Isaac Newton While the pandemic walled us in physically, the CVC continued to build virtual bridges to improve our understanding of cardiovascular disease. Accordingly, the theme of our 2020 CVC annual report is ‘Bridging the Gap‘ and it collates some of the key advances engineered in part […]
The CVC is proud to congratulate co-director Dr. Padma Kaul on her recent appointment as the Heart & Stroke Chair in Cardiovascular Research. As per the University of Alberta announcement, In her role as Heart & Stroke Chair in Cardiovascular Research, Dr. Kaul will be responsible for being a leader in the development of cardiovascular […]
Vericiguat is the first soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator approved to treat heart failure.
New Research published in Circulation suggests that women are at greater risk than men of dying or developing heart failure in the five years following their first severe heart attack. The study also found that at the time of their heart attacks women were typically older and more likely to have complicated medical histories. For […]
A new research story on BeTheCure.ca highlights Deborah McLeod’s experience as a participant in the VICTORIA trial, and the important discoveries that have been made about vericiguat and its impact on patients with heart failure. To learn more about Deborah’s story and the vital role patient participation has in clinical research, view the blog post here: bethecure.ca/stories/deborah/
