Cost-Effectiveness of Hypertension Treatment According to 2017 American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association Guidelines.

Background: Compared with the 2003 Seventh Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC7) guideline, the 2017 American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association guideline (ACC/AHA 2017) expanded hypertension diagnostic criteria to blood pressure (BP) ≥130/80 mm Hg and intensified treatment goals to <130/80 mm Hg. The cost-effectiveness of ACC/AHA 2017 guideline treatment has not been quantified.

Methods: We used the Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Policy Model to simulate hypertension treatment according to ACC/AHA 2017 compared with JNC7 in untreated US adults aged 35 to 79 years.

Experiences of People Diagnosed with High Levels of LDL Cholesterol and Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease: Results from a Multinational Qualitative Study.

Background: Elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels are a leading risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), a major global cause of illness and death. Patients' qualitative insights about experiences, priorities, and needs are essential for creating more targeted, patient-centered quality improvement interventions.

Objectives: To document the experiences of people with high levels of low-density LDL-C in three countries.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists and risk of venous thromboembolism: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Obesity is an established risk factor for venous thromboembolism (VTE). Observational data suggest that glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) may reduce the risk of VTE. However, the effects of GLP-1RAs on VTE have not been tested in randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

Heart Disease Mortality in the United States, 1970 to 2022.

Background: Studying trends in mortality is essential to advance understanding of population health. Further evaluation of long-term heart disease mortality trends and subtypes in the United States is needed to guide public health and clinical interventions.

Methods: This study used the National Vital Statistics System Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research data for adults aged 25 years and older in the United States from 1970 to 2022.

Validation of Medicare Advantage Claims for Long-Term Outcome Assessment in Low-Risk Aortic Valve Replacement.

Background: Although Medicare Advantage (MA) plans provide coverage to >50% of Medicare beneficiaries, it is unclear whether MA claims can be used similarly to Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) claims for clinical outcomes assessment. In this study, we evaluate the accuracy of claims algorithms previously validated in FFS to assess comorbidities and outcomes in MA patients after aortic valve replacement.

Methods: We compared the concordance of 11 claims-based covariates (diabetes, hypertension, atrial flutter/fibrillation, myocardial infarction) and outcomes (stroke, disabling stroke, transient ischemic attack, major vascular complication, bleeding, permanent pacemaker implantation, death) among FFS and MA patients with the covariates and adjudicated outcomes in the multinational Evolut Low-Risk Trial (2016-2018).

Social Vulnerability and Long-Term Cardiovascular Outcomes After COVID-19 Hospitalization: An Analysis of the American Heart Association COVID-19 Registry Linked With Medicare Claims Data.

Background: Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 from socioeconomically vulnerable communities are at risk for in-hospital cardiovascular events. However, the association of socioeconomic vulnerability and outcomes after hospitalization is uncertain.

Methods And Results: American Heart Association COVID-19 Cardiovascular Disease Registry hospitalizations between March 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022, linked with Medicare fee-for-service claims, were analyzed.

Delivering guideline-directed medical therapy for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction as an over-encapsulated polypill: rationale and protocol for the COMBO-HF-X pilot crossover randomised clinical trial.

Introduction: A four-drug regimen of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) is underused, in part due to prescriber inertia and low patient adherence. Although fixed-dose combination pills ('polypills') have improved adherence and clinical outcomes for other conditions, there are no polypills available that combine multiple classes of GDMT for HFrEF. Pharmacy-level over-encapsulation, in which several tablets are combined into one capsule, offers an opportunity to create customised HFrEF polypills with the goal of improving delivery of HFrEF therapies.

Direct-to-Physician Marketing and Uptake of Optimal Medical Therapy for Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction.

Background: Guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction remains underused. The role of direct-to-physician marketing in accelerating uptake of GDMT is unknown.

Objectives: The authors investigated the association between industry marketing meals and GDMT prescribing rates under Medicare Part D.

Cardiac Rehabilitation Among Veterans: A Narrative Review.

Purpose: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a valuable secondary preventive intervention for Veterans given their increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Adults cared for in the Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system are a unique population that receives healthcare from the largest integrated care network in the United States. Yet, this group faces distinct challenges in utilizing CR.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists and venous thromboembolism in type 2 diabetes: a target trial emulation.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP1-RA) are antidiabetic agents recently approved for weight loss. Obesity is an established risk factor for venous thromboembolism (VTE). Moreover, preclinical studies have shown that GLP1-RA may attenuate thromboxane-induced platelet activation.

2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics: A Report of US and Global Data From the American Heart Association.

Background: The American Heart Association (AHA), in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health, annually reports the most up-to-date statistics related to heart disease, stroke, and cardiovascular risk factors, including core health behaviors (smoking, physical activity, nutrition, sleep, and obesity) and health factors (cholesterol, blood pressure, glucose control, and metabolic syndrome) that contribute to cardiovascular health. The AHA Heart Disease and Stroke Statistical Update presents the latest data on a range of major clinical heart and circulatory disease conditions (including stroke, brain health, complications of pregnancy, kidney disease, congenital heart disease, rhythm disorders, sudden cardiac arrest, subclinical atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, cardiomyopathy, heart failure, valvular disease, venous thromboembolism, and peripheral artery disease) and the associated outcomes (including quality of care, procedures, and economic costs).

Methods: The AHA, through its Epidemiology and Prevention Statistics Committee, continuously monitors and evaluates sources of data on heart disease and stroke in the United States and globally to provide the most current information available in the annual Statistical Update with review of published literature through the year before writing.

Cost-Effectiveness of a Polypill for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in an Underserved Population.

Importance: The Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS) Polypill Trial showed that a cardiovascular polypill (a single pill containing a statin and 3 half-standard dose antihypertensive medications) effectively controls cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in a majority Black race and low-income population. The cost-effectiveness of polypill treatment in this population has not been previously studied.

Objective: To determine the cost-effectiveness of the cardiovascular polypill.

Days at Home After Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair Versus Medical Therapy Alone in Heart Failure.

Background: Transcatheter edge-to-edge repair of the mitral valve (mTEER) reduced a hierarchical end point that included death and heart failure hospitalization in COAPT (Cardiovascular Outcomes Assessment of the MitraClip Percutaneous Therapy for Heart Failure Patients With Functional Mitral Regurgitation Trial). However, the magnitude to which mTEER increases the number of days a patient spends at home (DAH) in the first few years after treatment, a patient-centered end point not captured routinely in clinical trials, has not been evaluated. We compared 1- and 2-year DAH among patients with functional mitral regurgitation and heart failure randomized to mTEER plus medical therapy versus medical therapy alone (control) by linking the COAPT trial to comprehensive health care claims data.