Heart Matters

According to recent data, more than 50 percent of patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) are hospitalized. Given that troubling statistic, how can we as clinicians work together to reduce the risk of hospitalization among patients with HFpEF? Joining Dr. Charles Turck to share their multidisciplinary perspectives on this important topic are cardiologist Dr. Jonathan Rich and primary care provider Dr. Paul Doghramji.

Some patients who recover from COVID-19 may continue to experience long-term cardiovascular complications. So what symptoms should we be looking out for? Joining Dr. Matthew Sorrentino to discuss the long-term cardiovascular impacts of COVID-19 is Dr. William Li.

Cardiovascular disease is currently the leading cause of death for pregnant and postpartum women in the United States, and from a global perspective, hypertensive complications during pregnancy result in 50,000 maternal deaths each and every year. This, along with the increasing rates of peripartum cardiomyopathy diagnoses, is why a new subspeciality of cardiology is needed. So what exactly is cardio-obstetrics? To learn more about how this emerging subspecialty is helping to provide better care for our pregnant and postpartum patients, Dr. Hector Chapa speaks with Drs. Erin Michos and Anum Minhas.

In a groundbreaking procedure, a 57-year-old man with life-threatening heart disease received a heart from a genetically altered pig. Surgeons at the University of Maryland Medical Center performed the 8-hour operation, making it the first successful transplant of a pig's heart into a human being. And while much is still uncertain, what could this achievement mean for the future of organ transplantation? That’s what ReachMD hosts Dr. Matthew Sorrentino and Dr. Javed Butler explore together.

Please note: Since the date of publication, David Bennet, the patient who received a heart transplant from a pig, died at the age of 57 at the University of Maryland Medical Center on March 8, 2022.

Sudden cardiac death is rare in younger patients, but it remains one of the leading causes of death in young athletes. To learn more about this, Dr. Alan Brown is joined by Dr. Joseph Marek, Clinical Cardiologist and Senior Medical Director of Cardiopulmonary Service at Advocate Medical Group, to share how his foundation, Young Hearts 4 Life, is working to increase awareness for sudden cardiac arrest and provide young athletes resources.

What do we need to know about the relationship between heart failure and ejection fraction? Dr. Javed Butler is joined by Dr. Faiez Zannad, Emeritus Professor of Cardiology at Université of Lorraine, to discuss current updates in ejection fraction and share what we need to know.

Can cardiac rehabilitation programs play a role in the management of breast cancer survivors? Dr. Maryam Lustberg, Chief of Breast Medical Oncology and the Director of The Breast Cancer Center at Smilow Yale Cancer Center, shares the common risk factors between cardiovascular disease and cancer and why these types of programs are beneficial to patient care.

Not all patient subgroups respond to medication the same way, making equal representation in clinical trials essential. Dr. Javed Butler is joined by Dr. Ileana Piña, a Heart Failure Cardiologist and Clinical Professor of Medicine at Central Michigan University, to talk about how we can improve diversity in cardiovascular clinical trials.

Sheng Xu, Professor of Nanoengineering, Bioengineering, Computer and Electrical Engineering at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, meets with Dr. Alan Brown to discuss his innovative technology to change the way we predict cardiovascular risks.

Dr. Yvonne Michael, an Associate Professor at the Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University, discusses risk factors that we should take into consideration when examining postmenopausal patients with coronary heart disease.