Progress in cardiovascular diseases
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Prog Cardiovasc Dis · Mar 2010
ReviewReducing population salt intake worldwide: from evidence to implementation.
Raised blood pressure is a major cause of cardiovascular disease, responsible for 62% of stroke and 49% of coronary heart disease. There is overwhelming evidence that dietary salt is the major cause of raised blood pressure and that a reduction in salt intake lowers blood pressure, thereby, reducing blood pressure-related diseases. Several lines of evidence including ecological, population, and prospective cohort studies, as well as outcome trials, demonstrate that a reduction in salt intake is related to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. ⋯ Several countries have already reduced salt intake. The challenge now is to spread this out to all other countries. A modest reduction in population salt intake worldwide will result in a major improvement in public health.
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Massive pulmonary embolism carries a high mortality rate as a result of right ventricular failure. In addition to anticoagulation, systemic thrombolysis is the standard first line of therapy for patients with life-threatening massive pulmonary embolism. ⋯ Surgical embolectomy is not without inherent risk and limitations. Although there is a paucity of large clinical trials, available data suggests catheter-based treatment of massive pulmonary embolism restores hemodynamic stability and thus is an alternative to surgical therapy.