Spouses of ICU patients at risk of cardiac events
First study of its kind suggests that having a husband or wife in intensive care could be a cardiac risk factor
The admission of a spouse into intensive care could put the healthy partner at greater risk of a cardiac-related episode within just a few weeks .
After combing data on married patients who had been admitted to the ICU over 13 years from 2005 , researchers in Tokyo found that their spouses had higher odds of having a cardiovascular event , such as chest pain , heart attack , stroke , irregular heart rhythm , heart failure , or pulmonary embolism within a month . They were also more likely to be hospitalised for a heart-related issue .
“ Spouses of ICU patients should pay attention to their own physical health , especially in terms of cardiovascular disease ,” the study ’ s senior author , Dr Hiroyuki Ohbe , said in a press release .
“ The ICU can be a stressful environment with significant caregiving burdens , and spouses may face tough decisions about continuing or ending life-sustaining treatment ,” he said .
Previous research has shown that between a quarter and a half of a critically ill patient ’ s family members experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder , anxiety , and depression . In addition , bereavement studies have looked at a condition known as “ broken heart syndrome cardiovascular disease ” in the early weeks and months after a loved one has died .
The current American College of Critical Care Medicine guidelines on care focus mostly on the mental health of ICU patients ’ family members but not physical conditions caused by stress .
The Japanese authors say more research is needed to confirm their new study ’ s findings and to explore if behaviour adjustments during this stressful time are risk factors .
Electronic arteries show promise
Replacement blood vessels can also be linked to control systems to aid in treatment delivery
Scientists have developed electronic blood vessels that can be tuned to address subtle changes to the body after implantation for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases .
Made of a metal-polymer conductor membrane that is flexible and biodegradable , these vessels can mimic those in the body and were found to effectively replace key arteries in rabbits .
“ We take the natural blood vessel-mimicking structure and go beyond it by integrating more comprehensive electrical functions that are able to provide further treatments , such as gene therapy and electrical stimulation ,” lead author Xingyu Jiang , a researcher at the National Center for NanoScience and Technology in China , explained to the media on release of the study .
The research could overcome the limitations of conventional tissue engineered blood vessels ( TEBVs ) by coordinating with other electronic devices to deliver genetic material , enable controlled drug release , and encourage the formation of new blood vessel tissue .
TEBVs often cause inflammation in response to blood flow and have yet to be successfully used to treat cardiovascular diseases .
In in-vitro trials , the researchers tested the new device as a replacement for the carotid arteries in rabbits . They monitored the implants over three months , finding that the device allowed for sufficient blood flow for the duration .
Imaging tests revealed the artificial arteries appeared to function just as well as the natural ones , with no sign of narrowing . They also found no evidence that the devices had produced an inflammatory response .
“ In the future , optimisations need to be done by integrating it with devices such as minimised batteries and built-in control systems , to make all the functional parts fully implantable and even fully biodegradable in the body ,” added Dr Jiang .
24 NOVEMBER 2020 GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com