The high comorbidity between psychiatric disorders and cardiovascular disease has received increasing attention, yet little is known about the processes linking the two. One plausible contributing mechanism is the tendency of those with psychiatric disorders to ruminate on stressful events. This phenomenon, sometimes called perseverative cognition, can extend the psychological and physiological...

Routine exercise is widely recognized as cardioprotective. Exercise induces a variety of effects within the cardiovasculature, including decreased mitochondrial damage and improved aerobic capacity. It has been generally thought that the transient increase in oxidative stress associated with exercise initiates cardioprotective processes. Somewhat paradoxically, increased oxidative stress associ...

Epidemiological studies have shown that vegetable consumption is inversely related to the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, research has indicated that many vegetables like potatoes, soybeans, sesame, tomatoes, dioscorea, onions, celery, broccoli, lettuce and asparagus showed great potential in preventing and treating cardiovascular diseases, and vitamins, essential elements, dietary f...

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is more accurate than clinic and home monitoring in diagnosing hypertension. A diagnostic strategy for hypertension using ABPM following an initial raised clinic reading would reduce misdiagnosis and NHS costs. If the first and second measurements taken during a consultation are both > or = 140/90 mmHg, 24-hour ABPM should be used to confirm the diagn...

INTRODUCTION Properly preserved renal perfusion is the basic determinant of oxygenation, vitality, nutrition, and organ function and its structure. Perfusion disorders are functional changes and are ahead of the appearance of biochemical markers of organ damage. The aim of this study was to evaluate a relationship between the renal cortex perfusion and markers of cardiovascular organ damage in ...

BACKGROUND A non-dipper blood pressure (BP) pattern is very common in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and affects the progression and development of cardiovascular disease. However, data on the reversed dipper BP pattern on target-organ damage in Chinese CKD patients are lacking. METHODS A total of 540 CKD patients were enrolled. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), clinical BP,...

BACKGROUND Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is an endogenous nitric oxide inhibitor and a new independent risk factor for endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVE To investigate the relationship between plasma ADMA levels and cardiovascular events (CVEs) and disease characteristics in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS Demographic and clinical d...

BACKGROUND Masked hypertension (MHT), defined as normal office blood pressure (BP) but high ambulatory BP, has been associated with increased cardiovascular risk. Although MHT has been associated with obesity, there is limited knowledge on the prevalence and covariates of MHT in obese cohorts. METHODS Office and ambulatory BP recordings and other cardiovascular risk factors were assessed in 3...

OBJECTIVE Cardiovascular risk is increased among HIV-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy due to the development of hypertension and metabolic abnormalities. In this study, we investigated the effects of long-term treatment with zidovudine (AZT) and vitamin C, alone and in combination, on blood pressure and on the chain of events linking oxidative stress to cardiac damage in the r...

Background: Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is an endogenous nitric oxide inhibitor and a new independent risk factor for endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular disease. Objective: To investigate the relationship between plasma ADMA levels and cardiovascular events (CVEs) and disease characteristics in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods: Demographic and clinical da...