Recent Blog Articles
Wildfires: How to cope when smoke affects air quality and health
PTSD: How is treatment changing?
Virtual mental health care visits: Making them work for you
How healthy is sugar alcohol?
A bird flu primer: What to know and do
New urine test may help some men with elevated PSA avoid biopsy
Dupuytren's contracture of the hand
Why play? Early games build bonds and brain
Moving from couch to 5K
How — and why — to fit more fiber and fermented food into your meals
Stroke Archive
Articles
More protection for your heart? It's just a shot away
A yearly influenza vaccine may help lower the risk of serious cardiovascular complications, especially among people who've had a recent heart attack. Pneumonia and shingles vaccines also help reduce heart attack and stroke risks. Early fall is a good time to get back on track with these vaccines. Several different types of flu shots are available; experts advise getting whichever one is most readily available. For those ages 65 and older who have a choice, three vaccines (Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent, Flublock Quadrivalent recombinant, and Fluad Quadrivalent adjuvanted) may offer slightly better protection than the regular-dose shot and are the preferred choice.
What is a bubble study?
A bubble study is a test done in conjunction with an echocardiogram to check for the presence of a tiny opening between the heart's upper chambers called a patent foramen ovale. Such an opening could explain how an unexpected stroke happened.
The case of the bad placebo
A trial from 2019 showed a medication dramatically reduced triglyceride levels in participants, but subsequent analysis found that the placebo used in the trial may have negatively affected those assigned to take it.
Long periods of sitting tied to higher risk of stroke
Sitting too much can boost stroke risk. But adding more movement—even low-effort activity such as doing household chores—may help lower that risk.
Putting potassium in perspective
Too much or too little potassium can harm the heart. Diet, medications, and kidney function can affect the body's potassium level. Dietary potassium helps keep blood pressure in a normal range, but most Americans don't consume enough of this mineral. However, people taking medications that raise potassium levels—which includes certain drugs to treat high blood pressure and heart failure—should avoid salt substitutes made with potassium chloride.
How good is your cardiometabolic health — and what is that, anyway?
An analysis shows less than 7% of adults in the US meet the criteria for optimal cardiometabolic health. Taking small steps to help control and improve key risk factors can reduce the odds of a heart attack or stroke.
Women more likely than men to show atypical stroke symptoms
A 2022 study found that women are more likely than men to have "generalized" stroke symptoms such as weakness and confusion, in addition to classic signs such as speech or movement problems.
More benefits of a Mediterranean diet
A randomized trial published May 14, 2022, in The Lancet found that people with heart disease who ate a Mediterranean diet for seven years had a 26% lower risk of having a heart attack or stroke, compared with people who ate a low-fat diet.
What is the ideal blood pressure number?
Recent guidelines suggest a blood pressure reading of less than 120/80 mm Hg as normal. But the ideal number for individuals depends on their individual goals and whether they also have a chronic condition, such as heart disease or kidney disease.
Stroke risk rises in people who develop depression after a heart attack
A 2022 study found that people who have depression after a heart attack are nearly 50% more likely to suffer a stroke compared with heart attack survivors who don't develop depression.
Recent Blog Articles
Wildfires: How to cope when smoke affects air quality and health
PTSD: How is treatment changing?
Virtual mental health care visits: Making them work for you
How healthy is sugar alcohol?
A bird flu primer: What to know and do
New urine test may help some men with elevated PSA avoid biopsy
Dupuytren's contracture of the hand
Why play? Early games build bonds and brain
Moving from couch to 5K
How — and why — to fit more fiber and fermented food into your meals
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