The ESC today announced that Jeroen Bax, a Dutch cardiologist, will serve as the groups President Elect for the next two years before becoming President starting in 2016. Bax is a professor of cardiology at Leiden University Medical Center. Bax is also known for his very close collaboration with Don Poldermans, the disgraced Dutch researcher who has been accused of significant and multiple examples of scientific misconduct. The Poldermans case has led to the retraction of several important papers and the expectation that many more will ultimately be retracted. The case created an additional sensation when it was found that ESC guidelines on perioperative use of beta blockers relied heavily on trials authored by Poldermans and Bax leading to controversy, recriminations, and a complete revision of the guideline. In addition, Bax and Poldermans were both co-authors of the guideline. Further, Poldermans was the chair of the writing committee and Bax was the chair of the entire ESC Cardiology Practice Guidelines Committee. The case is still far from settled, since a new round of accusations was launched just last week in TheBMJ(additional coverage on TheHeart.Org). The new charges also bring a new focus on flaws and inconsistencies in the seminal 1999New … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 1-Sep-2014 Contact: Rachel Cagan rcagan@acc.org 202-375-6395 American College of Cardiology WASHINGTON (Sept. 1, 2014) People with fat around their abdominal area are at greater risk of developing hypertension when compared to those with similar body mass index but fat concentrations elsewhere on the body, according to a study published today in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Obesity is a known risk factor for hypertension, or high blood pressure, and it is widely reported that the location of fat on a person's body can lead to increased risk of other health issues like heart disease and cancer. However, the relationship between hypertension and overall obesity versus site-specific fat accumulation is unclear. For this study, 903 patients enrolled in the Dallas Heart Study were followed for an average of seven years to track development of hypertension. Hypertension was classified as a systolic blood pressure of greater or equal to 140, diastolic blood pressure of greater or equal to 90, or initiation of blood pressure medications. Patients also received imaging of visceral fat, or fat located deep in the abdominal cavity between the organs; subcutaneous fat, or visible fat located all over the body; and lower-body fat. … Continue reading →