Heart Health Archive

Task force offers recommendations for women and guidance on dosage.

Aspirin was once used mainly to relieve pain, ease fever, and get rid of hangovers. Today it's best known for its ability to protect hearts. This hundred-year-old drug is a mainstay for treating heart attacks, and it also helps ward off heart attacks and the most common kind of stroke. But limited evidence on aspirin's preventive effects has made it difficult for experts to give encompassing recommendations about who benefits from daily aspirin and how much to take. One consequence of this uncertainty is public confusion about aspirin. Some of the 50 million Americans who take aspirin for their hearts' sake shouldn't be taking it; others who need aspirin aren't taking it.

A study by Boston researchers found that hormone therapy may increase risk of death from heart disease, especially among patients who have had prostate surgery.

Q. I had an electrocardiogram in preparation for minor surgery. My doctor told me it showed that I have right bundle branch block. Neither he nor my cardiologist are worried about it, but I am. Is this serious?

A. Much of the time, bundle branch block is not serious. If your doctors are telling you it's okay, I would trust them.

Angioplasty via the radial artery in the arm is a good alternative to the approach via the groin.

Artery-opening angioplasty uses the body's circulatory system as a highway to the heart. The traditional on-ramp has been the femoral artery in the groin. An alternative is the radial artery in the wrist. Two studies suggest that the radial artery may be a touch safer than the femoral artery. And people having angioplasty often prefer the wrist approach.

There are wrong ways and right ways to measure your blood pressure. Watch Harvard Heart Letter Editor Patrick Skerrett demonstrate both.

Buy a monitor that meets the test

There are dozens of home blood pressure monitors on the market. You can buy a good one at your local pharmacy or a big-box store for anywhere between $60 and $100.

Q. My blood pressure is high when I first get up in the morning, generally around 160/80, but always drops back to normal (around 120/75) by 11 a.m. and stays that way throughout the day. I take two different blood pressure pills in the morning. What might cause this? Should I make any changes?

A. Blood pressure normally comes down during sleep. It then returns to your usual level just before you wake up.