Lipoprotein (a), also known as Lp(a), has been long suspected to be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Some studies have estimated that 20% of the Caucasian U.S. population may have increased CVD risk due to elevated plasma Lp(a) levels. However, until recently, a lack of robust assays to measure Lp(a) levels has prevented scientific consensus on the nature of Lp(a)-associated risk.
Findings from REPRISE III (The Repositionable Percutaneous Replacement of Stenotic Aortic Valve through Implantation of Lotus Valve System—Randomized Clinical Evaluation), as published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, present new insights around incidence and proposed predictors of pacemaker implantation and pacemaker dependency after TAVR.
The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic associated with the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus has required an unprecedented mobilization of resources worldwide. One of the cornerstones to pandemic response is rapid initiation of widespread testing. To meet this need, physicians and researchers at Baylor Scott & White Research Institute were quick to establish reliable testing for SARS-CoV-2 virus, and their experience can serve as a guide for the response to future novel infectious diseases.
Baylor University Medical Center, part of Baylor Scott & White Health, in fall 2020 performed its 1,000th heart transplant. Consistently ranked as a national leader in cardiovascular healthcare, Baylor Dallas is the largest heart transplant program in Texas, having performed more heart transplants than any other program in the state, including many multi-organ transplants, such as heart-kidney and heart-liver. Baylor Dallas also has the shortest wait time from listing to transplant in the state.
For years, endomyocardial biopsies have been the gold standard for monitoring potential cardiac rejection. But because rejection can be sporadic or patchy in its presentation, the biopsy can sometimes miss it, or pathologists can overdiagnose it or underdiagnose it.
