A new study reveals the importance of vitamin D on heart health

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Vitamin D status may help assess cardiovascular risk. Cyndi Monaghan/Getty Images
  • Vitamin D, also known as the “sunshine” vitamin, is a fat-soluble vitamin that exists in two main forms: D-2 and D-3.
  • As an essential micronutrient and one that is primarily derived from sunlight, vitamin D is important for the development of bones and teeth and the regular functioning of the immune system.
  • Beyond these functions, previous studies suggest an association between low vitamin D levels and a higher likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease.
  • In a new study, researchers have established that it is worthwhile to check vitamin D levels when assessing a person’s cardiovascular risk.

Worldwide, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are one of the leading causes of death. Every year, an estimated 17.9 million people around the world die as a result of complications from heart diseases. For context, this means that CVDs are responsible for 32% of all deaths globally.

Prior studies show that various factors — such as several health conditions, age, family history, diet, and lifestyle — combine to influence the risk of developing CVD.

Using a novel analytical approach, researchers in Australia have discovered an additional factor that may increase a person’s likelihood of CVD.

Lead author Prof. Elina Hyppönen, director of the Australian Centre for Precision Health at the University of South Australia Cancer Research Institute, outlined the results of the study for Medical News Today,

“We found evidence that vitamin D deficiency can increase blood pressure and the risk of CVD.”

“However,” she added, “increasing vitamin D concentrations will only be helpful for those participants who ‘need it,’ and further benefits from elevating concentrations beyond the nutritional requirement are going to be modest, if they exist.”

The results from the study appear in the European Heart Journal.

In the recent study, the researchers set out to investigate whether there is a relationship between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, or 25(OH)D, and the risk of developing CVD.

Serum 25(OH)D levels are an established marker for vitamin D status.

To test their hypothesis, the researchers employed a specific analytical method to analyze data from UK Biobank — a large prospective cohort study of the United Kingdom’s population aged 37–73 years.

The participants were recruited from 22 assessment centers across the U.K. between March 13, 2006, and October 1, 2009. They filled out questionnaires providing broad information on health and lifestyle at baseline and provided blood samples for biomarker and genetic assays.

For the study, the research team limited data analyses to unrelated individuals who were identified as white British based on self-report and genetic profiling. Additionally, the team excluded participants with mismatched information between self-reported and genetic sex.

After filtering, the research team conducted genetic assays among individuals with complete information on 25(OH)D concentrations. As a safety measure, they also collected variables — including age, sex, and time of sample collection — that could affect serum 25(OH)D measurements.

The scientists collected this information from up to 295,788 participants.

The researchers compared the

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Investigation reveals nearly 3 million reports of problems with dental implants | CBS 5 Investigates

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — The confines of her tiny apartment are both her refuge and her prison. Wisps of essential oils mist up from a glass diffuser. Crystals hanging in the single living room window reflect small rainbows, creating a hippy chic and soothing vibe. The efforts to create a comfortable environment are clear, but the harsh reality is, Ginger Peters feels she’s spent the last 11 years of her life dying a slow death.

Describing the 58-year-old as frail is an understatement. The slightest physical exertion, even showering, leaves her exhausted. Her current physical condition is a stark change from the once athletic woman who surfed and skied. At her lowest weight, the 5’9″ blond dropped to just 85 pounds, her flesh stretched across her protruding bones.

Peters says her life fell apart after a dentist convinced her to pull 22 teeth and replace them with dental implants. She says he told her it would help her recover from Valley fever. (Note: Health care professionals contacted during this investigation said they had not heard of pulling teeth to treat Valley fever.)

Dental implants consist of three parts. The base, considered the “implant,” is a screw-like piece that is drilled into the jawbone. The implant acts as “the root” of the artificial tooth. An abutment is a middle piece that attaches the implant base to the artificial tooth or teeth.






drawing of dental implant

A drawing of what a dental implant looks like.







example of dental implant

Dr. Terry Work shows components of dental implants.




Peters says her new sets of teeth, both upper and lower, never fit correctly. Instead of locking into place, Peters’ artificial teeth fall out and move around in her mouth, leaving her unable to chew food.

A stack of medical records provided by Peters shows at least one of her doctors has linked a wide range of health and digestive problems to her implants and her inability to eat. However, no one has pinpointed why Peters has ongoing pain, infections, rashes on her face and neck and sores and inflammation in her mouth. Peters’ case is extreme but problems with dental implants are not uncommon.

Nearly 3 million reports of problems

A surge of reports of problems with dental implants may have remained almost impossible to find if it wasn’t for a former FDA data analyst. After leaving the FDA, Madris Kinard started Device Events. Her company specializes in searching through data in the FDA’s MAUDE database, which contains reports of the problems with medical devices reported to the FDA. MAUDE stands for Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience.






Madris Kinard

After leaving the FDA, Madris Kinard started Device Events.




MAUDE can be cumbersome and difficult to search, producing only 500 reports at a time. Kinard’s software sorts through millions of reports in seconds, allowing her to compile data that may take other researchers weeks to gather. Searching MAUDE, Kinard discovered dental implants have nearly 3 million reports of problems, more than any other medical device.

Kinard says

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Study reveals ‘extensive network’ of industry ties with healthcare

healthcare
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

The medical product industry maintains an extensive network of financial and non-financial ties with all major healthcare parties and activities, reveals a study published by The BMJ today.

This network seems to be mostly unregulated and opaque, and the researchers call for enhanced oversight and transparency “to shield patient care from commercial influence and to preserve public trust in healthcare.”

Although the medical product industry is a critical partner in advancing healthcare, particularly in developing new tests and treatments, their main objective is to ensure financial returns to shareholders.

In an influential 2009 report, the Institute of Medicine described a multifaceted healthcare ecosystem rife with industry influence.

Yet most studies of conflict of interests related to pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotechnology companies have focused on a single party (eg. healthcare professionals, hospitals, or journals) or a single activity (eg. research, education, or clinical care). The full extent of industry ties across the healthcare ecosystem is therefore still uncertain.

To address this gap, a team of US researchers set out to identify all known ties between the medical product industry and the healthcare ecosystem.

They searched the medical literature for evidence of ties between pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotechnology companies and parties (including hospitals, prescribers and professional societies) and activities (including research, health professional education and guideline development) in the healthcare ecosystem.

Data in 538 articles from 37 countries, along with expert input, was used to create a map depicting these ties. These ties were then verified, cataloged, and characterized to ascertain types of industry ties (financial, non-financial), applicable policies on conflict of interests, and publicly available data sources.

The results show an extensive network of medical product industry ties—often unregulated and non-transparent—to all major activities and parties in the healthcare ecosystem.

Key activities include research, healthcare education, guideline development, formulary selection (prescription drugs that are covered by a health plan or stocked by a healthcare facility), and clinical care.

Parties include non-profit entities (eg. foundations and advocacy groups), the healthcare profession, the market supply chain (eg. payers, purchasing and distribution agents), and government.

For example, the researchers describe how opioid manufacturers provided funding and other assets to prescribers, patients, public officials, advocacy organizations, and other healthcare parties, who, in turn, pressured regulators and public health agencies to quash or undermine opioid related guidelines and regulations.

And they warn that many other examples of harm from industry promoted products remain unexplored.

The results show that all party types have financial ties to medical product companies, with only payers and distribution agents lacking additional, non-financial ties.

They also show that policies for conflict of interests exist for some financial and a few non-financial ties, but publicly available data sources seldom describe or quantify these ties.

The researchers acknowledge that their findings are limited to known or documented industry ties, and that some data might have been missed. However, they say their strategy of systematic, duplicative searching and feedback from an international panel of experts is unlikely to have

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