Topic: Treatments

CCU104

Stroke and dementia are among the leading causes of death and disability in England. Research suggests that COVID-19 may increase the risk of both conditions. However, there is limited understanding of how COVID-19 interacts with vascular risk factors and medications… Read more

CCU096

Obesity has been declared a worldwide epidemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the number of people living with this condition continues to rise worldwide. It is a complex, chronic, and progressive condition, which substantially affects health, quality of… Read more

CCU090

Aortic valve stenosis is a chronic heart condition where there is an abnormal narrowing of the aortic valve. This impacts the heart’s ability to efficiently pump blood to the rest of the body. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) offers treatment… Read more

CCU089

The COVID pandemic halted elective surgery. Over 7.3 million patients are now on the waiting list for elective (planned) operations and some patients have waited over 78 weeks. Delays to treatment can have a major impact on patient health, well-being… Read more

CCU088

Iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) is a condition where a lack of iron in the body leads to a reduction in the number of red blood cells. Iron is used to produce red blood cells, which help store and carry oxygen in… Read more

CCU083

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the way we deliver care for cardiology patients, especially those presenting with heart attacks. While the pandemic is now deemed to be over, its indirect effect in terms of disruption to services persists. Patients with… Read more

CCU077

Cancer patients are at a heightened risk of heart attacks, formally known as acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Whilst the gold standard therapy for ACS is percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), using a stent to open narrowed or blocked arteries, for reduction… Read more

CCU081

People with autoimmune rheumatic diseases, where the immune system attacks its own body, are more likely to have heart attacks and other cardiovascular (CV) diseases than the general population. Idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) is a rare autoimmune disease where both… Read more

CCU058

The NHS has created a talking therapy service called Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) to help people with depression and anxiety. IAPT has recently been offered to people with long-term physical disorders that have depression and anxiety. We do… Read more

CCU075

Patients and healthcare professionals alike are concerned about the side effects* of steroids, especially the increased chance of developing osteoporosis, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases (van der Goes 2009). Yet, patients with vasculitis (a collection of rare conditions of inflamed blood… Read more

CCU071

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and its risk factors remain the leading cause of death and illness in the UK, causing 1 in 4 deaths in England. The Covid-19 pandemic has added to the burden and the urgency in identifying risk factors… Read more

CCU066

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines clearly state how to treat most people hospitalised with a heart attack, particularly people hospitalised for a heart attack involving a complete blockage of one of the heart’s main blood vessels… Read more

CCU056

Aortic stenosis (AS), or narrowing of the aortic valve, is the commonest reason for having heart valve surgery in the west, that causes poor quality of life and death, if untreated. It affects ~1-in-20 adults aged >65, but the exact… Read more

CCU053

The medications called Sodium glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) were developed as a diabetes drug but are now being used in people without diabetes who have heart failure or kidney disease.  In people with diabetes, infection with COVID-19 increases the risk… Read more

CCU038

Despite advances in modern medicine, a significant proportion of those admitted to intensive care will unfortunately not survive. The reasons why certain patients do better or worse are complex and remain poorly understood, but include the interplay between a patient’s… Read more

CCU031

There is still a pressing need to identify drug-based treatments for the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Large-scale immunisation has been successful in stemming the tide of hospital admissions, but infections remain high with the ever-present risk of new variants arising against… Read more

CCU028

Angina is a chronic heart condition that has a substantial impact on our health and social services, and on the population, society and the economy. Treatment with a coronary stent (thin metal tube) is intended to relieve angina, and around… Read more

CCU025

People with multiple blockages in their heart arteries may need open heart surgery and bypass surgery. For the surgery to remain successful, patients need to take certain types of medicines long-term after their operation. Even before Covid-19 we had insufficient… Read more

CCU023

COVID-19 vaccine rollout in the UK has been very successful. However, how long immunity from SARS-Cov-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19 – will last with vaccines is unknown. It is also unknown if new vaccines will need to be… Read more

CCU020

Antithrombotics are blood thinning medications that are used to treat a range of cardiovascular diseases. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one such disease, and is the most common disturbance of heart rhythm and a common cause of stroke. In individuals who… Read more

CCU016

People living with dementia have been amongst the hardest hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. A group of drugs called ‘antipsychotics’ are sometimes used to treat distress and agitation in people living with dementia. However, there is evidence to suggest that… Read more

CCU014

Cardiovascular disease (CVD, including heart attacks and strokes) remains one of the leading causes of death in the UK. There are a number of conditions that commonly increase an individual’s risk of developing CVD. Some of these conditions, such as… Read more

CCU007

Cardiac surgery is a necessary life-extending/saving procedure required by many adults and children every day in the UK. Despite it being prioritised during the COVID-19 pandemic, the true impact of the latter on case volume and outcome are unknown. The… Read more

CCU001

ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers are drugs that are commonly used to lower high blood pressure. These drugs may affect the ability of the coronavirus to enter cells of the body and cause COVID-19. We plan to investigate whether… Read more