According to the latest study, the investigational antihypertensive medication called clevidipine may be able to control blood pressure for heart surgery patients more effectively than ordinary treatments.
In three different studies, the scientists compared clevidipine (an intravenous dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker) to each of the three ordinary methods of treatment (nitroglycerin, sodium nitroprusside or nicardipine).
Two of the examinations discovered that clevidipine provided better blood pressure control than both nitroglycerin and nitroprusside, and nearly the same level of control as nicardipine. Safety outcomes were similar for all these medicines.
The results of the study were expected to be demonstrated on Tuesday at the American College of Cardiology’s annual scientific session, in New Orleans.
More studies necessary
"Undoubtedly, more studies are necessary in order to confirm the benefits of clevidipine, however these preliminary results against three very frequently used treatments show a new, potentially valuable alternative, which is very encouraging," the lead author of the research, Dr Solomon Aronson, of Duke University Medical Centre, said in a prepared statement. "With a better understanding of how to successfully control blood pressure in the course of cardiac surgery, we are convinced that we are able to considerably improve the results of these operations, all while ensuring patient safety."
In another research that is to be demonstrated on Tuesday, the scientists discovered that measuring a particular blood protein - Plasma Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide (pro-BNP) - may help physicians find out whether shortness of breath is connected with problem with the heart or the lung.
The research conducted by Danish scientists that involved 3 000 patients discovered that people with shortness of breath had considerably higher levels of pro-BNP than healthy people. Moreover, the research discovered that heart d orders were connected with a 2.6-fold rise in pro-BNP levels in people with shortness of breath, in comparison with people without any heart conditions. Lung (pulmonary) problems were not connected with an increase in pro-BNP levels.
"Previous study has shown the benefit of measuring pro-BNP tin order o differentiate cardiac versus pulmonary dyspnoea [shortness of breath] in the emergency room setting, however our research is the first to effectively valuate the source of dyspnoea among the general population based on pro-BNP," the lead author of the research, Dr Rasmus Mogelvang, of the University of Copenhagen, exlpained in a prepared statement.
"Taking into account the significance of understanding which kind of dyspnoea is present, we hope that measuring pro-BNP will be used commonly as a screening tool both in emergency and non-emergency settings in order to help physicians assess their patients’ probability of heart disease and treat accordingly," Mogelvang explained.
