The popular anticoagulant dabigatran is no more effective than aspirin when it comes to preventing recurrent stroke in patients with a history of embolic events, researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine May 16.

Research backed by Brazil’s Sao Paulo Research Foundation found overweight teenagers face the same increased risk of developing heart disorders as their obese counterparts—a conclusion that contradicts the popular idea that the heavier a person is, the higher their CV risk.

A high intake of grapefruit juice—and other dietary flavonoids found in fruits, vegetables, tea and wine—could correspond to QT interval prolongation in healthy individuals and those with heart disease, leaving them vulnerable to serious arrhythmias like torsades-de-pointes.

Type 2 diabetes patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery as teenagers are more likely to achieve remission of their diabetes and hypertension in adulthood than adults who attempt the same procedure years later, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers have linked a specific type of immune cell found in arterial plaque to increased probability of a stroke or mini-stroke.  

Fragmin (dalteparin sodium), a type of heparin that works as an anticoagulant, was approved by the FDA May 16 to treat symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) in pediatric patients aged one month and up.

A trio of studies presented at the Heart Rhythm Society’s 40th annual scientific sessions earlier this month highlight significant disparities in patient access to implantable cardiac devices—particularly in women and black patients.

More than one-third of statin patients still fail to reach healthy LDL-cholesterol levels a year and a half after initiating treatment, leaving them vulnerable to adverse CV events and thousands of dollars in medical bills, according to a report in the Journal of Managed Care & Specialty Pharmacy.