Cardiovascular

Nurses and other clinicians are being given a new cholesterol target for patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the hope of preventing further cases of stroke or heart attack. The “secondary prevention” target is a first of its kind from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and…

Guidance has been published by Resuscitation UK (RCUK) to help increase cardiac arrest survival rates among athletes and help save lives across all community and professional sporting events. The guidelines include initial assessment and recognition of cardiac arrest, CPR, defibrillation, airway management and transportation of athletes while CPR and defibrillation…

Consultant nurse Catherine Renwick has been awarded a research fellowship to look at evaluating exercise testing and daily physical activity in children with inherited arrhythmic heart conditions. Through her research, she aims to develop a greater evidence base to guide better exercise prescriptions and tailored medications for children with inherited…

Recreational drug use may be a factor in a significant proportion of admissions to cardiac intensive care, with various drugs, such as cannabis, detected in one in 10 patients, suggests a French study. Drug use was also associated with significantly poorer outcomes, with users nearly nine times as likely to…

Health leaders have welcomed a “long overdue” England-wide strategy for tackling six of the most common major medical conditions in the country, but say more detail – and haste – is needed. Cancer, cardiovascular disease (CVD) including stroke and diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders (MSK), mental ill-health, dementia, and chronic respiratory disease…

“I sat down with my faith in my heart and just thought, ‘let's do something for my community’,” explained nurse Rohit Sagoo, reflecting on his decision to launch British Sikh Nurses in 2016. The organisation is now well established, expanding and is receiving recognition for the positive difference it is…

A new virtual ward to safely treat atrial fibrillation patients could prevent thousands of hospital admissions per year, according to UK researchers, who suggest it could ease pressure on the NHS. The researchers behind the initiative, which has been trialed so far in the Midlands, now hope to expand it…

Cardiac nurses are being urged to call out inappropriate behaviour in their workplaces, as part of a new drive to improve the culture within the specialty. A new position statement has been published by the British Junior Cardiologists’ Association (BJCA) and the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) on bullying, harassment and…

The first public hearing from the UK Covid-19 Inquiry has been underway today and recognised the “death, misery and incalculable loss” caused by the pandemic to date. The hearings are due to last three years, until summer 2026. “I used to be a nurse so I know what a good…

Up to 150,000 patients in England with a type of chronic heart failure are set to benefit from a new treatment, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. NICE has issued final draft guidance that recommends dapagliflozin (Forxiga) as an option for adults with symptomatic chronic heart…