Research and News

Welcome to the Doctor's Corner
The Research and News Section of the CARE Website dedicated to the latest updates in cardiovascular disease. This section will be updated frequently with the most current information on cardiovascular disease and wellness. Don't forget to sign up for our CARE Collaborative Bulletin for other exciting updates in the area of women's wellness.

Question: Should women have routine screening ultrasound to screen for abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA)?

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm in Women: Prevalence, Risk Factors and Implications for Screening
Derubertis BG, Trocciola SM, Ryer EJ, et al.
J Vasc Surg. 2007;46:630-635.
 
In this study, 10,012 women with cardiovascular risk factors were provided with free screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm. During the study, 74 women were found to have abdominal aortic aneurysm. The factors that were most likely to be associated with an increased risk for abdominal aortic aneurysm included: increasing age, history of tobacco use, and cardiovascular disease. Women with multiple risk factors had a prevalence rate of AAA as high as 6.4%.

Although AAA is not very common in the general population, some women may be at increased risk for this condition. Women with specific risk factors (age, smoking, cardiovascular disease) may be at substantially increased risk for aneurysm. Therefore, ultrasound screening may be beneficial. If you have these risk factors, you may wish to discuss the best screening methods for cardiovascular disease and aneurysm with your healthcare provider.

Question: Is there a link between depression and cardiovascular disease?

Depression, Inflammation, and Incident Cardiovascular Disease in Women with Suspected Coronary Ischemia

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute - Sponsored WISE Study.
Vaccarino A, Johnson BD, Merz NB, et al.
J Am Coll Cardiology 2007;50:2044-50.

This study examined the question, “is there a link between cardiovascular disease and depression?” The study reviewed the levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin (IL)-6 in women with suspected coronary disease who completed surveys to determine whether or not they had symptoms of depression. CRP and (IL)-6 have been reported to be increased in women with cardiovascular disease. When compared to women without depression, women with depression had a 70% higher CRP and a 25% higher (IL)-6. Depression was a significant predictor of cardiovascular disease. However, the inflammatory biomarkers (CRP and IL-6) explained only a small portion of the association between depression and cardiovascular disease.

The relationships between depression, inflammatory markers and cardiovascular disease are unclear. For example, both depression and inflammation might cause cardiovascular disease, but the pathways are unclear.This study suggests that in women with cardiovascular disease, depression and inflammation influence cardiovascular disease through separate pathways. Further study is needed to truly understand the link between depression and cardiovascular disease.