{"title":"Novel Digital Technologies for Blood Pressure Monitoring and Hypertension Management.","authors":"Allison J Hare, Neel Chokshi, Srinath Adusumalli","doi":"10.1007/s12170-021-00672-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-021-00672-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>Hypertension is common, impacting an estimated 108 million US adults, and deadly, responsible for the deaths of one in six adults annually. Optimal management includes frequent blood pressure monitoring and antihypertensive medication titration, but in the traditional office-based care delivery model, patients have their blood pressure measured only intermittently and in a way that is subject to misdiagnosis with white coat or masked hypertension. There is a growing opportunity to leverage our expanding repository of digital technology to reimagine hypertension care delivery. This paper reviews existing and emerging digital tools available for hypertension management, as well as behavioral economic insights that could supercharge their impact.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>Digitally connected blood pressure monitors offer an alternative to office-based blood pressure monitoring. A number of cuffless blood pressure monitors are in development but require further validation before they can be deployed for widespread clinical use. Patient-facing hubs and applications offer a means to transmit blood pressure data to clinicians. Though artificial intelligence could allow for curation of this data, its clinical use for hypertension remains limited to assessing risk factors at this time. Finally, text-based and telemedicine platforms are increasingly being employed to translate hypertension data into clinical outcomes with promising results.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>The digital management of hypertension shows potential as an avenue for increasing patient engagement and improving clinical efficiency and outcomes. It is important for clinicians to understand the benefits, limitations, and future directions of digital health to optimize management of hypertension.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-021-00672-w","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10651630","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"\"Can you see my screen?\" Addressing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Telehealth.","authors":"Norrisa Haynes, Agnes Ezekwesili, Kathryn Nunes, Edvard Gumbs, Monique Haynes, JaBaris Swain","doi":"10.1007/s12170-021-00685-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-021-00685-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>Telehealth is an innovative approach with great potential to bridge the healthcare delivery gap, especially for underserved communities. While minority populations represent a target audience that could benefit significantly from this modern solution, little of the existing literature speaks to its acceptability, accessibility, and overall effectiveness in underserved populations. Here, we review the various challenges and achievements of contemporary telehealth and explore its impact on care delivery as an alternative or adjunct to traditional healthcare delivery systems.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>Given the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a rapid acceleration in telemedicine adoption. Recent studies of telemedicine utilization during the pandemic reveal stark disparities in telemedicine modality use based on race, socioeconomic status, geography, and age.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>While telehealth has great potential to overcome healthcare obstacles, the <i>digital divide</i> stands as a challenge to equitable telehealth and telemedicine adoption. Achieving health equity in telehealth will require the mobilization of resources, financial incentives, and political will among hospital systems, insurance companies, and government officials.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8647517/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39720974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Melissa K Thomas, Lori J Lammert, Elizabeth A Beverly
{"title":"Food Insecurity and its Impact on Body Weight, Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease, and Mental Health.","authors":"Melissa K Thomas, Lori J Lammert, Elizabeth A Beverly","doi":"10.1007/s12170-021-00679-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-021-00679-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>Food insecurity (FI) is a serious public health issue affecting 2 billion people worldwide. FI is associated with increased risk for multiple chronic diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and mental health. We selected these four chronic diseases given their global prevalence and comorbid associations with each other. We evaluated the most recent literature published over the past 5 years and offer strategies for the screening of FI.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>Recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses report an association between FI and obesity in adult women as well as adult men and women living in low- and middle-income countries. Gender differences also were observed between FI and type 2 diabetes, such that adult women showed an increased risk for type 2 diabetes. This association was influenced by social determinants of health. Very low food security (i.e., high FI) was associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease and a higher risk for cardiovascular disease mortality. Finally, several studies showed an association between FI and adverse mental health outcomes, including increased risk for stress, depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, and suicidal ideation.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>FI and its negative association with body weight, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and mental health provide a compelling rationale for identification of FI in clinical settings. Brief, well-validated screening measures are available in multiple languages. Despite the need for FI screening, many guidelines do not address its implementation. For this reason, more research and targeted interventions are needed to increase FI screening rates and close the loop in the coordination of resources.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-021-00679-3","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39174553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jennalyn D Mayeux, Irene Z Pan, John Dechand, Joshua A Jacobs, Tara L Jones, Stephen H McKellar, Emily Beck, Nathan D Hatton, John J Ryan
{"title":"Management of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.","authors":"Jennalyn D Mayeux, Irene Z Pan, John Dechand, Joshua A Jacobs, Tara L Jones, Stephen H McKellar, Emily Beck, Nathan D Hatton, John J Ryan","doi":"10.1007/s12170-020-00663-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-020-00663-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>This review focuses on the therapeutic management and individualized approach to Group 1 pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), utilizing Food and Drug Administration-approved PAH-specific therapies and various interventional and surgical options for PAH.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>The paradigm for the optimal management of PAH has shifted in recent years. Upfront combination therapy with an endothelin receptor antagonist and a phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor is now widely accepted as standard of care. In addition, there is increasing emphasis on starting prostanoids early in order to delay time to clinical worsening. However, less is known regarding which prostanoid agent to initiate and the optimum time to do so. In order to facilitate shared decision-making, there is an increasing need for decision tools based on guidelines and collective clinical experiences to navigate between pharmacologic and interventional treatments, as well as explore innovative, therapeutic pathways for PAH.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>The management of PAH has become increasingly complex. With a growing number of PAH-specific therapies, intimate knowledge of the therapeutics and the potential barriers to adherence are integral to providing optimal care for this high-risk patient population. While current PAH-specific therapies largely mediate their effects through pulmonary vasodilation, ongoing research efforts are focused on ways to disrupt the mechanisms leading to pulmonary vascular remodeling. By targeting aberrations identified in the metabolism and proliferative state of pulmonary vascular cells, novel PAH treatment pathways may be just on the horizon.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-020-00663-3","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38631485","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Review of Telemedicine Interventions for Weight Loss.","authors":"Kelsey Ufholz, Daksh Bhargava","doi":"10.1007/s12170-021-00680-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-021-00680-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>Telemedicine has become popular as an alternative for in-person weight loss treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. This review focuses on weight loss interventions utilizing real-time telemedicine.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>Telemedicine interventions are usually run as a weekly counseling and educational session or as a complement to a primarily Web-based intervention. A wide variety of healthcare professionals may provide the intervention. Common content includes portion control, increased physical activity, and relapse prevention. Self-monitoring is associated with intervention success. Modalities considered include online chats, text messages, phone calls, and videoconferences. Videoconferencing may be especially useful in capturing the interpersonal connection associated with in-person care but is understudied compared to other modalities. While many interventions show improvements in weight and weight-related outcomes, small sample sizes limit generalizability. Technology access and digital literacy are both necessary.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>Telemedicine interventions can successfully help patients with obesity lose weight. Telemedicine interventions provide a safe, remote alternative and may expand treatment access to hard-to-reach populations. Further research is needed on telemedicine weight loss treatments for seniors, men, and ethnic minorities, as well as on the impact of long-term interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8280385/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39224437","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pishoy Gouda, Elie Ganni, Peter Chung, Varinder Kaur Randhawa, Guillaume Marquis-Gravel, Robert Avram, Justin A Ezekowitz, Abhinav Sharma
{"title":"Feasibility of Incorporating Voice Technology and Virtual Assistants in Cardiovascular Care and Clinical Trials.","authors":"Pishoy Gouda, Elie Ganni, Peter Chung, Varinder Kaur Randhawa, Guillaume Marquis-Gravel, Robert Avram, Justin A Ezekowitz, Abhinav Sharma","doi":"10.1007/s12170-021-00673-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s12170-021-00673-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose of review: </strong>With the rising cost of cardiovascular clinical trials, there is interest in determining whether new technologies can increase cost effectiveness. This review focuses on current and potential uses of voice-based technologies, including virtual assistants, in cardiovascular clinical trials.</p><p><strong>Recent findings: </strong>Numerous potential uses for voice-based technologies have begun to emerge within cardiovascular medicine. Voice biomarkers, subtle changes in speech parameters, have emerged as a potential tool to diagnose and monitor many cardiovascular conditions, including heart failure, coronary artery disease, and pulmonary hypertension. With the increasing use of virtual assistants, numerous pilot studies have examined whether these devices can supplement initiatives to promote transitional care, physical activity, smoking cessation, and medication adherence with promising initial results. Additionally, these devices have demonstrated the ability to streamline data collection by administering questionnaires accurately and reliably. With the use of these technologies, there are several challenges that must be addressed before wider implementation including respecting patient privacy, maintaining regulatory standards, acceptance by patients and healthcare providers, determining the validity of voice-based biomarkers and endpoints, and increased accessibility.</p><p><strong>Summary: </strong>Voice technology represents a novel and promising tool for cardiovascular clinical trials; however, research is still required to understand how it can be best harnessed.</p>","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8214838/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9206386","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jennalyn D. Mayeux, Irene Z. Pan, John Dechand, J. A. Jacobs, Tara L Jones, S. McKellar, E. Beck, Nathan D. Hatton, J. Ryan
{"title":"Correction to: Management of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension","authors":"Jennalyn D. Mayeux, Irene Z. Pan, John Dechand, J. A. Jacobs, Tara L Jones, S. McKellar, E. Beck, Nathan D. Hatton, J. Ryan","doi":"10.1007/s12170-020-00665-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-020-00665-1","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2020-11-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-020-00665-1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42629692","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Daniel H. Chen, S. Tyebally, M. Mallouppas, Arjun K. Ghosh
{"title":"CAR T Cell and BiTE Therapy—New Therapies, New Risks?","authors":"Daniel H. Chen, S. Tyebally, M. Mallouppas, Arjun K. Ghosh","doi":"10.1007/s12170-020-00661-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-020-00661-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2020-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-020-00661-5","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48776084","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, and Body Weight: a Complex Relationship","authors":"J. Hue, J. Winter","doi":"10.1007/s12170-020-00660-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-020-00660-6","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2020-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-020-00660-6","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48399355","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Overview of Binge Eating Disorder","authors":"H. Davis, Andrea K. Graham, J. Wildes","doi":"10.1007/s12170-020-00664-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s12170-020-00664-2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46144,"journal":{"name":"Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2020-11-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s12170-020-00664-2","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46186539","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}