Free Republic

Vitals Major Finding: Eplerenone reduced the risk of cardiovascular death or heart failure hospitalization by 37%, compared with placebo. Data Source: Phase III randomized trial in 2,737 patients with NYHA class II heart failure. Disclosures: EMPHASIS-HF was funded by Pfizer. Dr. Zannad reported receiving grants from and consulting for Pfizer. Two coauthors are Pfizer employees, and several others reported Pfizer grants and consultancy. CHICAGO — Adding eplerenone to standard therapy significantly cut the risk of cardiovascular death and heart failure hospitalization by more than one-third in patients with mild heart failure in the phase III EMPHASIS-HF trial. The primary composite...

Vital Signs: Potassium OverloadFunky fruit can be fatal. by Tony Dajer “Notification!” Brenda shouted as she hung up the red phone. “Eighty-year-old, altered mental status, no palpable blood pressure. Three minutes out.” While nurses gathered IV equipment and an EKG machine, two paramedics rolled in a stretcher bearing a small, moaning, barely conscious Asian woman. “Couldn’t get a blood pressure,” the chief medic said, panting. “Pulse 30 on arrival.” That meant her ventricle had stopped responding to her pacemaker, so they jolted her heart with a shot of atropine, which bumped her heart rate to 60. "Her medical history is...