Call for an instant quote 0345 90 80 161
Open Mon to Fri 09:00 - 17:30 | Sat 09:00 - 16:00 (GMT)
31 May 2017 07:48
In heart failure, the heart muscle is damaged and stops working properly
Health experts have questioned the benefits of beta blockers in treating certain heart attack patients.
Researchers at the University of Leeds said patients given beta blockers after suffering a heart attack with heart failure did not benefit.
Helping the heart work
Beta blockers reduce the activity of the heart and lower blood pressure.
They have to be given to heart attack patients who have suffered heart failure. In these patients they help the heart work more effectively.
Heart failure sees the heart muscle suffer damage and fail to work properly. All heart attack patients, whether or not they have also suffered heart failure, are recommended beta blockers.
Researchers looked at how beta blockers benefited those heart attack patients who hadn't also suffered heart failure. Comparing death rates of those treated with beta blockers, they found no statistical difference in over one year of suffering the heart attack.
Anyone who has suffered heart problems can arrange specialist medical travel insurance ahead of a trip overseas.
What the researchers say
Chris Gale, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Leeds and Consultant Cardiologist at York Teaching Hospital Trust, said: "There is uncertainty in the evidence as to the benefit of beta-blockers for patients with heart attack and who do not have heart failure.
"This study suggests that there may be no mortality advantage associated with the prescription of beta blockers for patients with heart attack and no heart failure."
The study was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
20 October 2017
Women are more likely to have a successful natural birth while lay on their side rather than stood upright, a study of more than 3,000 first-time mothers has found.
[more...]
19 October 2017
The onset of winter and a reduction in daylight hours are leading experts to issue advice to sufferers of seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
18 October 2017
Overweight patients should be referred to slimming groups by their GPs to ward off type 2 diabetes, new study findings suggest.
14 October 2017
Officials are hoping a new airport on the remote island of St Helena will boost tourism, after spending £285,000 of taxpayer money on the airport's development.
06 October 2017
Organ donation could soon be "opt out" following a consultation on "presumed consent", the Department of Health has confirmed.
17 October 2017
Almost 85,000 holidaymakers have been flown home as part of the large-scale repatriation scheme in the wake of Monarch's collapse.
13 October 2017
A top doctor is urging the Government to support GPs as they struggle with time and resources to tackle "chronic" loneliness in older people.
12 October 2017
Millions of pounds spent on junk food advertising is prompting NHS obesity costs to soar into the billions, a health coalition warns.
11 October 2017
An adventurer from Gloucester is planning on conquering a nationwide run across America - dressed as superhero Adventureman.
10 October 2017
Animals are successfully being used to treat Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder at a Manchester hospital.
07 October 2017
Eating tropical fruit such as banana and avocado can ward off heart disease, a new study suggests.
05 October 2017
Just one hour of exercise each week can help keep depression at bay, a long-term study has found.