Admission is free, open to all AICD patients and Friends, held in the Testing Waiting Room in the Springfield Location from 5:30-6:30pm.

Please note that the Healthy Living support group meetings will be held every 4th Tuesday of the month.

Hypothermia is the standard of care in cardiac arrest patients with the goal of improving neurological outcomes and enhancing survival. Drs. Agarwal and Allaqaband reported increased survival rates by 43% in younger patients (<65 years) and by 29% in older patients. Nearly twice as many younger patients — 71% as compared with 36% of older patients — went home without sustaining significant injury. Patients undergoing cardiac catheterization had better outcomes.

I am greatly encouraged to see these outcomes. I can remember my trepidation when we instituted systemic hypothermia on a 38-year-old woman post-arrest in 2008, which ultimately resulted in a total recovery.

Barry M. Cohen, MD
Medical Director, Cardiac Catheterization Lab Morristown Medical Center, Morristown, N.J.

For full article click here

ASSOCIATES IN CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE
2253 South Street
Scotch Plains, NJ 07076
908-654-3080

From Route 22: Take Route 22 West past Bowcraft Amusement, GrilleStone, and McDonalds (all on the right of rte 22) Stay in the right lane. Turn right after McDonalds at the sign that says Scotch Plains, Fanwood, Berkeley Heights, Route 78. Make the next left at the light and that will take you back over Rte 22. Get into the right lane and you will make a right at the stop sign onto Park Avenue. Go straight for 1.2 miles (6 lights). Half way the street name changes to Martine Ave, just continue. The 6th light will be South Avenue and you will make a left at that light. Go ½ mile to the next light. We are in the building on the left just after that light. 1st floor Suite 2.

From 78 West: Take 78 West to Exit 41 (it will say Berkeley Heights/Scotch Plains). At the end of the ramp make a right turn. Go to the next light and make another right. You will be on Plainfield Ave. The road will wind a lot. Go 1.7 miles and 2 lights. Make a right turn and stay in the right lane. This will take you over Route 22. Get into the right lane and you will make a right turn at the stop sign onto Park Avenue. Go straight for 1.2 miles (6 lights). Half way the street name changes to Martine Avenue, just continue. The 6th light will South Avenue and you will make a left at that light. 1st floor, Suite 2.

The new expansive location will have new state of the art equipment so that we can better serve our patients. Please make a note of the change in address for future appointments and the phone number will remain the same. (908) 464-4200

Admission is free, open to all AICD patients and friends, held in the Testing Waiting Room in the Springfield Location from 5:30-6:30pm. If you are looking for great tips for a healthier heart, this is the group for you!

To register or learn more about the program, call 908-598-5548 or email education@sageeldercare.org. The program is free and located at 290 Broad Street in Summit.

If you would like to attend this speaking engagement please register by calling (908) 709-7600. You will need a valid ID to enter. Please go to the Continuing Education Office at Union County Colleg at 1033 Springfield Ave., Cranford, NJ.

Please try to join us in celebrating a new you!

Americans Still Eat Too Much Salt

Despite repeated warnings about the health effects of a high-salt diet, Americans haven’t cut back – at all.

A new study found that salt consumption is the same today as it was nearly 50 years ago, an amount well above current U.S. guidelines.

Eating too much salt can increase blood pressure – and boost the risk for heart disease and stroke.

Long-term study

Harvard researchers analyzed 38 studies that involved a total of 26,000 people and that spanned more than four decades – from 1957 to 2003. They focused on the amount sodium that people had in their urine. This test is the best way to check salt consumption, because 40 percent of salt is sodium.

You need sodium for proper body functioning. But most fresh foods – vegetables, fruits, and meats, for instance – already contain sodium as a natural ingredient. There’s no need to add any.

More processed food

Because people eat more processed foods today than in 1957, the researchers thought they would find that salt intake had increased over time. But decade after decade, people consumed about 3,700 mg of sodium a day.

That’s more than half again the maximum amount of sodium recommended. Current guidelines say adults should consume no more than 2,300 mg (about one teaspoon) a day. For people who have or are at risk for high blood pressure, the upper limit is 1,500 mg a day.

Since the 1980s, the federal government has advised Americans to cut back on salt to reduce the risk for high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, also notes that although salt intake has remained constant for almost 50 years, rates of high blood pressure and heart disease have increased in the last two decades.

Rising obesity rates, however, may play a more critical role in hypertension than salt intake, the researchers note.

Personalize the right amount

The study’s main message, says David McCarron, M.D., lead author of an accompanying journal editorial, is that the intense effort to get people to limit their salt intake hasn’t worked.

It may be that people need a set amount of salt and are hard-wired to seek it, he says. To wit:

• Dr. McCarron led a 2009 study that looked at urine samples of 19,151 people in 33 countries over a 24-year period. The average daily sodium intake was 3,726 mg a day, even across diverse groups of people and diets, and without change over time.

• In a 12-year study of more than 13,000 people from Switzerland, people averaged around 3,680 mg a day.

In light of these studies, the editorial says, guidelines should limit salt for those at risk for high blood pressure and heart disease rather than issue a broad, one-amount-fits-all recommendation.

Always talk with your health care provider to find out more information.

Go Easy on the Salt

The American Heart Association offers these suggestions to keep your salt intake under control:

• Eat mostly foods that are fresh or unprocessed.

• When shopping, choose low-sodium or no-salt-added frozen and canned foods.

• Perk up dishes with alternatives to salt, such as herbs, vinegar, spices, or even citrus fruits.

• Go easy on salty snacks like chips, popcorn, salted nuts, and pretzels.

• Check the labels of baked products. Many contain baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), a significant source of sodium.

Always talk with your health care provider to find out more information.

Peripheral Artery Disease Treatment Improved

A new approach to clearing plaque from arteries is helping doctors treat patients who require a procedure called balloon angioplasty.

Balloon angioplasty is among the standard treatments for peripheral artery disease (PAD). In the U.S., about 8 million people have peripheral artery disease, and about half have no symptoms.

PAD is frequently found in people with coronary artery disease because atherosclerosis, which causes coronary artery disease, is a widespread disease of the arteries.

Disease requires careful management

In PAD, plaque reduces the amount of blood flow to the limbs and decreases the oxygen and nutrients available to the tissue.

Symptoms include painful cramping in the hips, thighs, or calves when walking, climbing stairs, or exercising.

To correct this problem, a doctor inserts a catheter into an artery and guides it to the blockage, then opens the artery by inflating a balloon at the tip of the catheter.

The doctor typically uses a stent to keep the artery open. A stent is a tiny metal “scaffold” that is left open inside the artery to it from reclosing.

Inflating the balloon can knock loose particles of plaque, which travel down the leg. A large particle can block blood flow, a condition called distal embolization. In the most severe cases, distal embolizations can require leg amputation or even be fatal.

Some doctors have used a filter device to prevent debris from escaping, but using this filter isn’t yet approved by the FDA.

New device increases safety for patient

The new report shows that the device that was studied opens the artery just like a standard angioplasty balloon.

After the artery is opened, the doctor deflates the balloon. The negative pressure sucks up the debris, which is trapped inside as the balloon retracts.

Researchers report their findings in the medical journal Endovascular Today.

In two clinical trials totaling 123 patients, the device had a success rate of 97 to 99 percent and consistently outperformed filter devices typically used to capture debris particles, report the study authors.

Robert Dieter, M.D., of the Loyola University Health System, and Dr. Aravinda Nanjundappa, M.D., of West Virginia University, say they expect to see a shift by doctors to using this new method now that it has been approved by the FDA.

Always talk with your doctor to find out more information.

More about PAD

When PAD symptoms occur, the most common is a painful calf cramping called intermittent claudication. It happens with exercise and eases with rest.

The cramping may occur in one or both legs, depending on the location of the clogged or narrowed artery. The pain disappears when you rest because the muscles need less blood at rest.

Other symptoms of PAD may include:

• Changes in the skin, including decreased skin temperature, or thin, brittle, shiny skin on the legs and feet

• Diminished pulses in the legs and the feet

• Gangrene (dead tissue due to lack of blood flow)

• Hair loss on the legs

• Impotence

• Wounds over pressure points like heels or ankles that don’t heal

• Numbness, weakness, or heaviness in muscles

• Burning or aching pain at rest, commonly in the toes and at night while lying flat

• Paleness of the skin when the legs are elevated

• Reddish-blue discoloration of the extremities

• Restricted mobility

• Severe pain

• Thickened, opaque toenails

Steps to prevent PAD are primarily aimed at managing risk factors:

• Smoking cessation, including avoiding secondhand smoke and all tobacco products

• Dietary changes, including reducing fat, cholesterol, and sugar, and increasing amounts of fruits and vegetables

• Treatment of dyslipidemia (high blood cholesterol levels) with medications as determined by your doctor

• Weight loss

• Moderation in alcohol consumption

• Medications as determined by your doctor to reduce your risk for blood clot formation

• Exercising a minimum of 30 minutes daily

• Control of type 2 diabetes

• Control of high blood pressure

A prevention plan may also be used to prevent or lessen the progress of PAD once it has been diagnosed.

Always talk with your doctor to find out more information.