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Cardiovascular

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Featured articles

View Cardiovascular Articles

Here you will find:

More than 500 articles especially written by colleagues to support your care of patients with the cardiovascular diseases commonly seen in primary care.

Articles on the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cardiovascular conditions such as:

…and more.

Simple and informative infographics which will answer questions such as “How do these drugs work?”, “What causes this heart condition?” and much more.

Editorial

It is hard to believe that time goes so quickly. The spring lambs in the fields are now all fat, while they were small and wobbly not two minutes ago. Summer is on its way – fingers crossed for some balmy days! I have the relief of some respite from travelling round the country delivering training sessions during the summer, as everyone is taking a well-earned break. Reflecting while on the train, I recognised again that I always learn more than the students whenever I teach. I would like to share some of these gems of wisdom so you can think about them over this summer period.

Optimising your patients’ recovery after stroke

Around 150,000 people in the UK have a stroke every year, according to the Stroke Association. Most people affected are over 65, but younger people can have a stroke. Stroke is the third most common cause of death in the UK and is also an important cause of disability, with more than 250,000 people left disabled following a stroke. The recent National Stroke Strategy for England set out a quality framework to improve stroke services. In this article, we review what we can do to help optimise outcomes for our patients who have a stroke.

Starting on your GTN tablets or spray

GTN (glyceryl trinitrate) in tablet or spray form is used for the immediate relief of chest pain due to angina. The tablets have a short shelf-life and should be thrown away eight weeks after opening the bottle. The spray lasts longer, but you need to check the expiry date on the bottle. Angina is a […]

Using troponins to assess cardiac damage: Getting to the heart of the matter

Troponins are now measured routinely in patients with acute chest pain in most hospitals in the UK. Studies have confirmed that they represent a marker of risk for subsequent cardiac events in most patients. In this article we explore what troponins are, why they may increase in acute coronary syndromes, how they are measured and how likely they are to be used in the future.

Optimising Management of Supraventricular Arrhythmias

Caring for patients with arrhythmias has evolved over the past decade as a result of technological innovation in both diagnosis and treatment. This article highlights some of the most common arrhythmias and reviews the most appropriate strategies for their medical management. The National Service Framework (NSF) for Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) sets out three quality standards in the chapter on arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death and we look at how to successfully implement these.

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