FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A rare gene mutation in some Black Americans may lead to earlier screening for heart failure.
Dr. Joshua Larned, a heart transplant and heart failure specialist with Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale said the study of 2,000 Black patients uncovered a genetic variant that could increase the risk of a specific form of heart failure called cardiac amyloidosis.
“So now we’re entering a new era of medicine where it’s not just focusing in on an exam with a stethoscope and blood pressure check, now we’re interested in this new era where we can use specific genomics or genetics to help us determine special populations within populations of people who might be at enhanced risk of having a problem,” he said.
If detected early, Larned said cardiac amyloidosis is treatable.
He said the study findings are important in light of the fact that Black Americans, regardless of genetics, are already at high risk for heart disease and cardiovascular events due, potentially, to untreated risk factors, such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Pandemic stress on nurses
Also in today’s health news, the coronavirus pandemic’s heightened stressors, longer hours and short staffing without any clear end in sight has led some experts to suggest that the battle with substances has intensified in the field of nursing.
Of the roughly 4.2 million nurses in the U.S., conservative estimates suggest that 1% to 3% may have a substance use disorder mainly with alcohol and opioids, but also methamphetamine.
A survey by the American Nurses Foundation also found that an estimated 1-in-3 critical care or intensive care nurses have increased their alcohol consumption.
There’s currently no reliable data on the number of nurses whose substance use slid into the realm of a disorder or on how many with an addiction that had been under control relapsed during the pandemic.