Lori Mosca, director of preventive cardiology research and education in the University Health System, led the study, titled "The Women's Pooling Project."
The research is a combination of nine studies conducted over 30 years, which included 16,018 white women, 3,655 black women and 1,219 Hispanic women.
In addition to the racial disparity, the researchers found that diabetics were five times more likely to die early from heart disease or stroke. Women who were obese, smoked or had high cholesterol were also twice more likely to die early.
Because death from heart disease before age 60 is uncommon for women, the large group was necessary for the study to get meaningful results.
New research presented at Monday's meeting of the American Heart Association suggests a new surgical procedure may lengthen and improve the lives of people with severe congestive heart failure.
University cardiac surgery Prof. Steven Bolling led the study, which examined the one-year and two-year survival rates of patients who underwent an operation surgically repairing a heart valve.
The surgery could be an alternative for a heart transplant in patients. The one-year survival rate for patients after the surgery was 80 percent, and 70 percent of patients were still living two years after the surgery.
Without the surgery, the one-year survival rate of patients is 20 percent at best. Patients afflicted with congestive heart failure have their mitral valve weakened, leading to improper pumping of the blood.
Brain cancer patients treated with radiation after surgery are less likely to have remissions of the tumor, according to research published in last week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Roy Patchell, of the University of Kentucky, and colleagues studied 95 patients who underwent surgery to remove a single brain tumor. About half of the patients received radiation therapy after the surgery, and the others did not.
Those who received radiotherapy had an 18 percent chance of recurrence of the brain tumor while those who did not had a 70 percent chance.
Patients receiving medication along with diet management for non-insulin-dependent diabetes saw a greater improvement in quality of life and employment productivity than those treated by diet management alone, according to a report in last week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Marcian Testa, of the Harvard School of Public Health, and colleagues examined the 569 patients at 62 different places in the United States.
Those receiving the medication in addition to diet management were more likely to keep their jobs - 97 percent versus 85 percent. They also were more productive - 99 percent versus 87 percent.
- Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter Gerard Cohen-Vrignaud.
11-12-98
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