Global Scans · Heart · Weekly Summary

• [New] Women taking HRT could have a slightly higher risk of many health issues, including heart disease, strokes, breast cancer, and dementia. Business Insider
• [New] Some CMS crackdowns are threatening to reshape the Medicare Advantage landscape with Elevance, cyberattacks have exposed vulnerabilities at the heart of surgical innovation, and an AI revolution is quietly transforming how doctors practice medicine. The Healthcare Economy
• [New] 25% of adults in the U.S. have high levels of low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, or LDL, which increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes. NPR
• [New] Studies in Asian cohorts have further supported the association of WHtR with long-term CVD risk and its potential utility in heart failure risk stratification. Nature
• Long-term use of melatonin, a widely used sleep supplement, was linked to a higher risk of heart failure, hospitalization for heart failure, and death from any cause among people with chronic insomnia. ScienceDaily
• Taking a common cholesterol-lowering medication can reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke for people aged over 70, with a low risk of serious side effects, a world-first clinical trial led by Australian researchers has found. The Guardian
• Ozempic, which is approved to treat diabetes, and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, approved to treat overweight and obesity, are both approved to lower the risk of heart disease risk by 20%. Time
• Greater use of SMBP programs could reduce heart attacks by 4.9% and strokes by 3.8%, and save about USD7,794 in healthcare costs per person over 20 years. / USA Coherent Market Insights
• People who have underlying conditions such as asthma and heart disease or who are pregnant, as well as children, are at an increased risk and should be extra cautious. Scientific American
• The centralizing forces, especially in an increasingly less physical world, threaten to overrun the unique pockets that are at the true heart of the American mythos. A Patient Cycle
• China's recently published 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) now has placed robotics at the heart of its modern industrial system. IFR International Federation of Robotics
• The AHA 2024 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update projects 184 million US adults will have some form of cardiovascular disease by 2050, up from 127.9 million in 2022. CT Acquisitions
• GLP-1 drugs have been found to reduce inflammation, improve metabolic health and reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes, with weight loss only accounting for one-third of the reduced cardiovascular risk. BBC
• If doctors use the American Heart Association's new PREVENT tool, which considers blood sugar, kidney function and a person's decade-long risk for heart disease as well as blood pressure, some 81 million Americans would be eligible for blood pressure medications. CNN
• Individuals who regularly engage with BP monitoring are able to halt, or even reverse, the increase of systolic blood pressure seen with age, which can give significant health benefits and reduce risk for serious medical events such as heart attack and stroke. Hilo
• Chronically ill patients are expected to remain in the second position in 2026, as diseases such as diabetes, heart failure, COPD, kidney disease, and neurological disorders require continuous monitoring rather than occasional hospital visits. Persistence Market Research
• The American Heart Association's PREVENT risk equations help to identify individuals who could benefit from treatment before a major cardiac event. American Heart Association
• India is preparing to make waist-to-hip ratio screening a routine part of care in government hospitals, moving beyond Body Mass Index to better identify people at risk of diabetes and heart disease. Mint
• Eating fish, particularly fatty fish, at least twice a week is recommended to reduce the risk of heart disease. Market Data Forecast
• Developed by researchers at the University of Hong Kong, CardiOmicScore analyzes thousands of proteins and metabolites to estimate the risk of six major cardiovascular diseases, including heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. ScienceDaily

Last updated: 13 September 2026