Attorney Daily - Your source for the most important legal news

Open heart surgery is not for the faint of heart. Even among surgeons, it is a field reserved for only some of the most skilled doctors. The only choices available at present are either to stop the heart completely during surgery or to operate on it while it is beating.

If the heart is stopped during surgery, as is the case in the majority of cases, a mechanical pump takes over the job of keeping the blood circulating until the heart is restarted. This can be an extremely traumatic experience for any patient and especially for those who already have serious cardiovascular problems. (more…)

Although it is often difficult to measure the actual effect of TV ads on consumers, a recent survey suggests that anti-smoking commercials played a significant role in helping successful former smokers quit the potentially deadly habit.

The findings, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, show that a group of former smokers from Massachusetts said television advertisements helped them significantly in making it past the first 6 months of their struggle. (more…)

While there are many health-related dangers associated with smoking, it appears that many smokers are not getting the message when it comes to the increased risk of developing or aggravating cardiovascular problems.

Whether ignorance of the risk or denial of the consequences is responsible, the study published in BMC Public Health found 52% of people with a history of one or more cardiovascular disorders (heart attack, stroke, heart failure, or PVD [peripheral vascular disease]) continued to smoke. (more…)