A trio of studies bolsters evidence of their benefits and long-term safety.

Cholesterol-lowering statins have been around for a quarter-century, with a generally strong record of benefits outweighing risks. Indisputably, these drugs substantially reduce the number of heart attacks in people with or at risk for heart disease.

One new feather in the statin cap came from a study investigating whether two years of treatment with the highest recommended doses of rosuvastatin (Crestor, 40 mg) or atorvastatin (Lipitor, 80 mg) would reduce the amount of plaque in clogged coronary arteries.

Using a catheter-guided ultrasound device, researchers measured before-and-after plaque volume ...

New guidelines clarify the ifs and thens, but the choice is yours.

The release of new clinical guidelines usually gets more attention from doctors than from the people they treat. But anyone with clogged heart arteries or at risk of developing them should know about the updated guidelines on using bypass surgery and angioplasty to deal with such blockages (Circulation, Dec. 6, 2011).

The guidelines deem angioplasty to be a "reasonable alternative" to bypass surgery for people with a blockage in the left main coronary artery (see illustration) — if their artery anatomy is conducive to angioplasty and if they ...

Video game workouts work pretty well, but the initial cost can be substantial.

Doctors often say that the best form of physical activity is the one that you'll do consistently. If you're still searching for an effective routine that's actually fun, or want a high-tech take on fitness, consider active-play video games, also called exergames. No longer just for youngsters, exergames such as Nintendo's Wii Fitness and Xbox's Kinect Sports are catching on with middle-aged and older adults as an enjoyable way to get moving.

Although not as ubiquitous as just-sit-there video games, exergames offer diverse activities and benefits ...

Raising HDL with niacin takes a back seat to lowering LDL with statins.

Doctors often encourage people with heart disease or at risk for it to attain high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels above 40 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). Levels lower than that, the thinking goes, diminish this "good" cholesterol's power to protect the heart and arteries. But the importance of raising HDL may be declining, especially for people with rock-bottom levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.

How HDL does a body good is less well understood than how LDL performs its mischief. We do know that HDL is a ...

Stem cell type and timing of treatment seem to matter most.

Results from the first-ever trial using stem cells that normally reside in the heart had the scientific community using adjectives like "astounding" and "compelling." But as encouraging as the findings were, keep in mind that stem cell research is still in its infancy and has a long way to go before yielding effective treatments for heart disease.

Stem cells are "raw material" cells that can develop into other types of cells. Some stem cells, like embryonic stem cells, can become a heart muscle cell, a liver cell, or virtually ...

Treating atrial fibrillation with ablation may improve kidney function as well.

Blood thinners keep clots at bay, but a different medication delivered by catheter directly to the site of a leg vein clot could eradicate it altogether.

Medicare recipients are eligible for counseling programs designed to help people prevent heart disease or deal with obesity.

Many people with resistant hypertension are not receiving the most effective combination of medications for the condition.

If heart attack victims have to wait to be transferred to another hospital for emergency angioplasty, the delay is life threatening.

Can eggs be part of a balanced, heart-healthy diet?

I'm a fit 61-year-old who had bypass surgery 15 years ago. Recently, I've been having rapid heartbeats (what my doctor calls supraventricular tachycardia) during or just after vigorous exercise. Should I tone down my exercise?