Current Pharmaceutical Design - Volume 22, Issue 1, 2016

The response to the harm caused by risk factors related to atherosclerosis may consist of clinical-signs of cardiac and/or blood vessel ischemic pathology sometimes accompanied by arrhythmias and heart failure-, metabolic- signs of altered oxygen transport and pro-thrombotic changes of coagulation-fibrinolysis cascade-, and sympathetic features due to nerve stimulation, which cause changes in heart rate and blood press Read More

Statins exert beneficial effects on cardiovascular [CV] outcomes as well as on inflammation and oxidative stress. The widespread use of statins for both primary and secondary CV disease prevention is based on the evidence from large randomized controlled trials. The benefits of statin treatment outweigh any harm in high risk patients. In this narrative review, we provide an update on several aspects of statin treatment Read More

Both high arterial blood pressure (BP) and elevated levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) air pollution have been associated with an increased risk for several cardiovascular (CV) diseases, including stroke, heart failure, and myocardial infarction. Given that PM2.5 and high BP are each independently leading risk factors for premature mortality worldwide, a potential relationship between these factors would have tremen Read More

Ghrelin is a growth hormone-releasing peptide, isolated from the stomach. Researches in progress documented that ghrelin participates in the stimulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis at the hypothalamic level and in the regulation of energy balance. Growth hormone-independent functions have been ascribed to ghrelin. Among others, a large body of literature demonstrated the presence of specific re Read More

Alterations in myocardial metabolism and blood flow have been described in patients with metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease and cardiomyopathies, and have been implicated in the pathogenesis or prognosis of cardiac conditions. Adipose tissue dysfunction occurs in the above categories of patients. Adipose tissue plays a fundamental role in the modulation and selection of nutrients reaching the myocardium, a Read More

Obesity, a chronic low-grade inflammation disorder characterized by an expansion in adipose tissue mass, is rapidly expanding worldwide leading to an increase in the incidence of comorbidities such as insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. This has led to a renewed interest in the adipose tissue function, historically considered as a passive fat storage. It is now well established that adipose tissue is an Read More

Most recent technical innovations in cardiovascular MR imaging (CMRI) are presented in this review. They include hardware and software developments, and novelties in parametric mapping. All these recent improvements lead to high spatial and temporal resolution and quantitative information on the heart structure and function. They make it achievable ambitious goals in the field of magnetic resonance, such as th Read More

Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) is a non-invasive technology that can be used for diagnosis and monitoring of cardiovascular disease; the number one cause of mortality worldwide. Hyperpolarized imaging agents provide signal enhancement of more than 10, 000 times, which implies large reduction in acquisition time and improved spatial resolution. We review the role of hyperpolarized 13C agents for MR angiography Read More

Hybrid imaging devices including PET/CT and SPECT/CT have seen a great success since these scanners found their way into clinical routine – although this success is mainly based on the use in oncological imaging. But also the advent of PET/MRI holds great promise. The combined assessment of molecular imaging and morphology making use of the variety of PET tracers and the high spatial resolution from CT or M Read More

When designing clinical trials for testing novel cardiovascular therapies, it is highly relevant to understand what a given technology can provide in terms of information on the physiologic status of the heart and vessels. Ultrasound imaging has traditionally been the modality of choice to study the cardiovascular system as it has an excellent temporal resolution; it operates in real-time; it is very widespread and - not unimportant Read More

Vascular aging represents a progressive procedure involving biochemical, enzymatic, and cellular changes of the vascular tree. Early vascular aging (EVA), is defined as the inappropriate for age of vascular damage. Increased for age arterial stiffness is a biomarker that should be considered as a cardiovascular (CV) risk factor that can be manipulated. EVA is a new tool for guidance in everyday clinical praxis for pa Read More