Trending News Today: Many Patients with Heart Disease Delay, Cut Back on Treatment Due to Cost

A new study found that 1 in 8 adults with heart disease delays filling prescriptions, takes less than prescribed, or skips medications altogether due to high out-of-pocket costs, Reuters reported. According to the article, the report, published in Circulation, provided an analysis of data collected by the National Health Interview Survey for 14,279 adults with a self-reported history of cardiovascular disease. Overall, 12.6% of patients had cut back on their medications due to cost and younger patients were 3 times more likely than those over age 65 to report cutting back on medications to save money, the article reported.

Exercise interventions appeared to be safe and feasible in older patients newly diagnosed with multiple myeloma, The American Journal of Managed Care reported. According to the article, the study assessed patients with a median age of 69 years, 67% of whom had bone disease, who used a 10-week exercise intervention program and participated in a post intervention follow up. Overall, 86% of patients were able to take part in the entire exercise intervention program, and 92% attended all supervised sessions, with an overall adherence rate of 99%, the article reported.

New research suggests that some brain-boosting supplement brands for sale in the United States contain various amounts of piracetam, a drug that is currently not approved by the FDA, STAT reported. According to the article, piracetam is approved in Europe for cognitive impairment in dementia, but a Cochrane Review has previously indicated that evidence for using piracetam to improve cognition was “inadequate.” Overall, the study found that piracetam was listed as an ingredient on the labels of 5 supplements for sale online, the article reported.