Guest: Sharonne N. Hayes, M.D.

Heart Health Edition: Heart Disease in Women

February 4, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

We tend to think of heart disease as a health problem for men, yet it’s the leading cause of death for women in the United States and is responsible for over 1/3 of all deaths in women each year, more than all malignancies combined. Women tend to have more atypical symptoms and often delay seeking help when they have symptoms. As clinicians, we need to realize that we commonly underdiagnose heart disease in women. How do the symptoms of heart disease differ in women compared to men? Do women have different cardiovascular disease risk factors than men? And as health care clinicians, what do we need to do to be more aware of heart disease in our female patients? I’ll be asking these questions of my guest for this podcast as we discuss “Heart Disease in Women”. My guest is Sharonne N. Hayes, M.D., a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic.

Guest: Sandra J. Taler, M.D.

Heart Health Edition: Lowering Blood Pressure

February 6, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

Hypertension is an extremely common health problem, affecting at least half of all adults in the United States. Since it’s typically asymptomatic, a significant number of individuals are unaware that they have the condition. In those who are aware of the diagnosis, the majority have blood pressures that are not adequately controlled. Once we’ve established that a patient has hypertension and needs treatment, how should we start? What are effective lifestyle changes? When is pharmacologic therapy indicated and what are the recommended medications for the initial management of hypertension? We’ll be discussing these topics and more as we review the topic “Lowering Blood Pressure”. My guest for this podcast is nephrologist and hypertension specialist Sandra J. Taler, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic.

Guest: Francisco Lopez-Jimenez, M.D., M.S.

Heart Health Edition: Cardiac Rehabilitation

February 11, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States as well as globally. It’s estimated that over 700,000 individuals in the U.S. die annually from some form of cardiac conditions, most often coronary heart disease.  Cardiac rehabilitation is often recommended to our patients who have a variety of cardiac health problems, and it’s intended to improve this mortality rate. But what exactly is cardiac rehabilitation? Who’s a candidate for it? Who’s qualified to supervise a cardiac rehab program and has it been proven to reduce mortality? I’ll be getting answers to these questions as we discuss “Cardiac Rehabilitation”. My guest for this podcast is Francisco Lopez-Jimenez, M.D., M.S., a preventive cardiologist from the Department of Cardiovascular Diseases at the Mayo Clinic.

Guest: Jeffrey B. Geske, M.D.

Heart Health Edition: Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)

February 13, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy affects 1 in 500 adults or about 600,000 individuals in the U.S. and represents the most common inherited cardiomyopathy.  It often goes undetected, and it’s estimated that about 85% of those with the condition remain undiagnosed. HCM can produce a variety of symptoms, the most serious being sudden death. The topic for this podcast is Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.  What are the clues that might make us suspect a patient has HCM and how should we confirm the diagnosis? Are we able to prevent sudden death in patients with the condition and finally, what is the most effective treatment? I’ll asking these questions of my guest, Jeffrey B. Geske, M.D., from the Department of Cardiovascular Diseases at Mayo Clinic.

Guest: Thomas C. Gerber, M.D., Ph.D.

Heart Health Edition: Primary Prevention - How to Keep Your Heart Healthy

February 18, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

The heart is an amazing organ. At rest, the average heart beats approximately 4500 times per hour, slightly over 100,000 times per day. It’s quite a reliable organ and unlike our kidneys, lungs and eyes, we only have one heart. We expect a lot from it, if it stops working for even a minute, everything else in our body shuts down. Like an automobile engine, it runs longer and better if it’s well cared for. What can we recommend to our patients and what can we do for ourselves to keep the heart healthy? My guest for today’s podcast is Thomas C. Gerber, M.D., Ph.D., a preventive cardiologist from the Department of Cardiovascular Diseases at the Mayo Clinic and we’re going to discuss preventive strategies to maintain a healthy heart.

Guest: Thomas C. Gerber, M.D., Ph.D.

Heart Health Edition: Pharmacologic Options to Maintain a Healthy Heart

February 20, 2025

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D.

Like an automobile engine, our heart runs longer and better when it’s well cared for. In our last podcast, we reviewed the various lifestyle changes our patients can make which benefit the heart and keep it healthy. We’re going to continue that discussion in this podcast and concentrate on the pharmacologic options we have available. Which statin should we use? How do we manage the statin intolerant patient? Does Co-Q10 give benefit? These are questions I’ll be asking my guest, Thomas C. Gerber, M.D., Ph.D., a preventive cardiologist from the Department of Cardiovascular Diseases at the Mayo Clinic as discuss “Pharmacologic Options to Maintain a Healthy Heart.”