It also shows that restoring the integrity of the epigenome reverses age-related symptoms.
Learn more at https://hms.harvard.edu/news/loss-epi…
Tag Archives: Harvard Medical School
Heart Health: Function & Benefits Of Pacemakers
“The likelihood of needing a pacemaker increases with age,” says Dr. Sunil Kapur, a cardiologist at the Heart and Vascular Center at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “The good news is that today’s pacemakers have evolved from fixing irregular heartbeats to helping the heart maintain its normal function, which allows many men with certain heart conditions to stay active longer.”
A pacemaker monitors the heart’s rhythm and, when necessary, generates a painless electrical impulse that triggers a heartbeat.
The most common use for a pacemaker is when the heart beats too slowly or pauses, which triggers dizziness, shortness of breath, or fainting. (You should see your doctor immediately if you have any of these symptoms.) A pacemaker also can help your heart chambers beat in sync and improve blood flow if your heart isn’t pumping enough blood. In some cases, a pacemaker may be needed to treat a heartbeat that is too fast or irregular.
These issues can stem from problems with the heart’s electrical signaling, a heart defect, an enlarged or thick heart muscle, heart failure, or a heart attack.
Several tests can help your doctor determine if you need a pacemaker: an electrocardiogram, which measures the heart’s electrical activity; Holter monitoring, in which you wear a small device to track your heart’s rhythm; or an echocardiogram, which uses sound waves to produce images showing your heart’s size, structure, and motion.
Heart Disease: The Best Ways To Lower High LDL Cholesterol Levels
What is a healthy target for LDL cholesterol?
Target LDL depends on many factors, including your age, family history, and personal history of cardiovascular disease. For people at intermediate risk, LDL should be lowered by 30% to 50%. For those who have already had a heart attack, target LDL is no more than 70 mg/dl (note: automatic download).
Which non-statin therapies are recommended first?
Five non-statin therapies described in this post aim to help people achieve target LDL goals while minimizing side effects. They may be combined with a statin or given instead of statins.
Each helps lower LDL cholesterol when diet and statins are not sufficient, such as when there is a family history of high cholesterol (familial hypercholesterolemia). But so far, only two options are proven to reduce cardiovascular risk — the risk for heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and other issues affecting the heart and blood vessels.
Ezetimibe (Zetia)
What it does: Lowers LDL and cardiovascular risk by reducing cholesterol absorption.
How it’s given: A daily pill
Relatively inexpensive and often given with statins.
PCSK9 inhibitors, alirocumab (Praluent) and evolocumab (Repatha)
What it does: A protein called PCSK9 controls the number of LDL receptors on cells. These medicines are monoclonal antibodies against PCSK9 that increase LDL receptors on the liver, helping to clear circulating LDL from the bloodstream.
How it’s given: A shot every two to four weeks
Highly effective for lowering LDL, but expensive and may not be covered by insurance.
Studies: What Makes For Successful Recoveries
Inflammation is the body’s first line of defense, occurring as droves of immune cells rush to the site of injury or acute illness to make repairs and stem further damage.
When successful, inflammation helps the body survive and heal after trauma. However, when recovery following an inflammatory response goes awry, it signals that damage is still occurring — and the inflammation itself can cause further injury, leading to more-severe illness or even death.
But what differentiates a good inflammatory recovery from a bad one?
A new study, led by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, published Aug. 22 in Nature Communications, yields critical clues.
The scientists identified universal features of the inflammatory responses of patients who successfully recovered after surgery or acute illnesses such as COVID-19, heart attack, and sepsis. These features, they discovered, include precise paths that white blood cell and platelet counts follow as they return to normal.
Eye Health: Why Corneal Transplants Are Rising
At one time, replacement parts for the eyes must have seemed unimaginable. Nowadays, if the inner lens of the eye becomes clouded by a cataract, a routine surgery to swap it out with a new artificial lens restores vision.
But what happens if the outer lens of the eye (the cornea) becomes damaged or diseased? You can have that replaced, too. “It’s not as common as cataract surgery, but many people get corneal diseases after age 50 and may need a corneal transplant,” says Dr. Nandini Venkateswaran, a corneal and cataract surgeon at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts Eye and Ear.
More than 49,000 corneal transplants occurred in 2021 in the US, according to the Eye Bank Association of America.
What is the cornea?
The cornea is a dome of clear tissue at the front of each eye, covering the iris and pupil, that acts as a windshield that protects the delicate eye apparatus behind it, and focuses light onto the retina, which sends signals that the brain turns into images (your vision).
You need this combo of windshield and camera lens to focus and see clearly. But many things can go wrong within the five layers of tissue that make up the cornea. That can make it hard to see and rob you of the ability to read, drive, work, and get through other activities in your day.
How does damage to the cornea occur?
It may stem from a number of causes:
- Injuries, such as a fall. “Falls are a big reason for people to come in with acute eye trauma. The cornea can be damaged easily if something pokes it,” Dr. Venkateswaran says.
- Previous eye surgeries. “Especially for adults who’ve had several eye surgeries — such as cataract and glaucoma surgeries — the inner layers of the cornea can become damaged and weakened with age,” she adds.
- Illness. Problems like severe corneal infections, or genetic conditions such as Fuchs’ endothelial dystrophy, can cause vision loss.
What are the options for treating corneal damage?
Cornea treatment depends on the type of problem you have and the extent of the damage. “It’s a stepwise approach. Sometimes wearing a specialty contact lens or using medications can decrease swelling or scarring in the cornea,” Dr. Venkateswaran says.
Knee Osteoarthritis: New Study Shows Telehealth Visit Benefits (Harvard)
Research: Combating Antibiotic Resistance
‘HARVARD MEDICINE’: THE AGING ISSUE – AUTUMN 2021
HARVARD STUDY: VITAMIN D LOWERS THE RISK OF YOUNG-ONSET COLORECTAL CANCER
COMMENTARY:
Vitamin D has many beneficial effects, but my comments will be restricted to the effect of vitamin D on cancer.
Interest in this association was started by the observation that certain cancers are less common near the equator, where there is more sunlight exposure, and therefore more natural vitamin D generation in your skin.
The most information on cancer in humans Is available on colorectal, breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancer. Colorectal cancer, highlighted DWW our posting, is the only cancer that apparently is affected by vitamin D.
Several studies have suggested that vitamin D can decrease cancer cell growth, stimulate cell death, and reduce cancer blood vessel formation. Increasing cell death, or apoptosis, is what interests me the most, since this is one of the factors which increases inflammation in aging.
The infographics stated that only 300 international units of vitamin D is necessary to produce a 50 Percent reduction in cancer, and that a healthy diet generally supplies this.
I personally take 5000 international units vitamin D. This produces a blood level of about 60 ng/mL, and what the NFL recommends to keep their players healthy, and well within the maximum recommended level of 120 ng/milliliter.
Excessive vitamin D can produce an elevated calcium blood level, and mine is within normal limits. I take the higher dose because of vitamin D’s other effects, such is benefiting the immune system in a time of Conid-19.
I suggest that you get a vitamin D blood level, and also a calcium blood level if you elect to take more of this useful vitamin.
–Dr. C
ATHEROSCLEROSIS: STRESS, LACK OF SLEEP & EXERCISE AND POOR DIET RAISE RISKS
Swirski acknowledged that “there is no question” that genetics play a role in cardiovascular health, but in the last several years, four risk factors — stress, sleep interruption or fragmentation, diet, and sedentary lifestyle — have been clearly identified as contributing to atherosclerosis, commonly referred to as hardening of the arteries, which can lead to a variety of complications, including death.
Doctors Without Waiting Rooms 