Positive psychological aspects of well-being—including positive emotions, optimism, and life satisfaction—are increasingly considered to have protective roles for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and longevity. A rapidly-growing body of literature has linked positive well-being with better cardiovascular health, lower incidence of CVD in healthy populations, and reduced risk of adverse outcomes in patients with existing CVD. This […]

Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia and symptoms overlap with physiological sensations of anxiety. Patients with atrial fibrillation can demonstrate anxiety sensitivity even in the absence of actual atrial fibrillation symptoms. Interoceptive exposure is effective in treating anxiety sensitivity, and recently, mindfulness has been proposed as an enhancement strategy to facilitating inhibitory learning […]

Dr Aseem Malhotra is an Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at Lister Hospital in Stevenage, UK and visiting Professor of Evidence Based Medicine, Bahiana School of Medicine and Public Health, Salvador, Brazil. He is a founding member of Action on Sugar and has led work highlighting the harm caused by excess sugar consumption in the United Kingdom, particularly its role […]

What is Dilated Cardiomyopathy? Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) is the most common type of Cardiomyopathy, affecting both the lower and the upper chambers of the heart. It is often a genetic condition, meaning that it is caused by a mutation in one or more genes that can be passed throughout families. How is living with Dilated […]

Article by Health Innovation Network. Gone are the days when clinicians rejected the idea that patients would use technology. Gone are the days when they believed technology could not improve outcomes. And gone are the days when clinicians worried about their job being taken by a robot. Now instead, clinicians are asking when they will get […]

Author: Dr Alberto Pertusa. Consultant Psychiatrist. Harley Stree. London. Website: https://psychiatristlondon.co.uk People who come to see me in order to seek help for their anxiety often ask whether medication is necessary to alleviate the anxiety that does not seem to have responded to basic interventions such as talking therapy or other interventions like mindfulness or exercise. When […]

Yoga has finally been proven by scientific research to improve clinical outcomes after myocardial infarction, to decrease symptoms in heart failure and improve quality of life. The following abstract was presented in the last European Society of Cardiology Congress, August 2019, and was chosen the ‘Abstract of the day’!   ESC Congress News 2019 – […]

Clear and convincing clinical evidence has established that living with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) saves patients’ lives. In a 1999 landmark trial comparing the ICD to anti-arrhythmic drugs, the “ICD remains superior in prolonging survival after life-threatening arrhythmia.” Concomitantly, psychosocial research on the ICD has shown that living with the device as a treatment for […]

Varying levels of stress is pretty well an unavoidable part of modern life. We all suffer from mild anxiety from time to time, but when stress becomes chronic, it has tremendous side-effects on our health and immune system. The impact of constantly draining energy resources (such as the adrenal glands) and keeping the body in a constant state of […]

Every second of our life, our heart and brain are in constant communication. This is one of the most important conversations we will ever find ourselves engaged in. It is long been known that emotions have a physiological impact on our bodies; Research conducted by HeartMath shows that the electromagnetic current of the heart is […]