December 2015 Heart Health

Although smoking is a well-known risk factor for lung cancer, the results of a recent study indicate that smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) face a significantly higher risk of developing lung cancer than smokers without the respiratory condition.

A guideline recently released by the American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society has clarified that antiepileptic medication should be administered immediately after a patient's first seizure in order to reduce the risk of having another seizure within 2 years.

Patients who live in low-income of rural areas of the United States may face a greater risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to recent study results presented at the 2015 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

The American Heart Association, the American College of Cardiology, and the American Society of Hypertension recently issued new recommendations for treating hypertension in patients who have been diagnosed with coronary heart disease, stroke, or other forms of heart disease.

The FDA has approved Symplmed's Prestalia (perindopril arginine and amlodipine besylate) tablets for the treatment of hypertension to lower blood pressure in patients who are not adequately controlled with monotherapy or as initial therapy in patients likely to need multiple medications to achieve their blood pressure (BP) goals.1 An estimated 1 in 3 Americans have hypertension, about half of whom have it controlled.