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Microplastics Impact CVD, J&J’s Injunction, and Novo Quits H&H
June 26, 2025
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Together with
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“We’re realizing that there’s more that we don’t know than we do know in terms of environmental impact on health.”
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Sadeer Al-Kindi, MD
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We’ve all cut down on plastic straws to save the sea turtles, but what about ourselves? A recent AHA study suggests there could be a link between ocean microplastic levels and cardiovascular disease in U.S. coastal counties, adding to a concerning trend of microplastics and CV risk.
- Microplastics are particles smaller than 5mm stemming from the breakdown of larger plastic debris.
- They contaminate marine environments, food chains, and human tissues, contributing to adverse health effects.
- Estimates vary for just how much microplastic we ingest, but some research suggests people may consume tens of thousands of particles annually.
Researchers analyzed counties near waters with high and low microplastic concentrations, and found that populations living near microplastic dense coastlines faced significantly higher rates of…
- Type 2 diabetes (+18%).
- Coronary artery disease (+7%).
- and stroke (+9%).
Zooming in to the regions researchers tested, there were clear differences in microplastic concentrations when comparing America’s Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
- For starters, the average ocean microplastic concentration was significantly higher along the Atlantic coast compared to the Pacific coast (122 pieces/m3 vs. 0.003 pieces/m3).
- As a result, the mean prevalence of T2D, CAD, and stroke was higher in the counties located along the Atlantic Coast (T2D: 11.88%, CAD: 7.31%, and stroke: 3.54%) compared to the Pacific Coast (T2D: 10.62%, CAD: 6.87%, and stroke: 3.23%).
- The worst coastal region was the Gulf Coast, which saw the most concerning health outcomes compared to both (T2D: 12.89%, CAD: 8.83%, and stroke: 4.15%).
These unfortunate results build on a 2024 NEJM study that revealed many patients with carotid artery disease have microplastics embedded in their carotid plaque.
- Patients with microplastics in their plaque faced a massive 4.5-fold greater risk of heart attack, stroke, or death within three years.
The Takeaway
Whether you’re a climate activist or an oil tycoon, it’s most likely you have a heart, and filling it with microplastics probably isn’t going to help you live longer. This study reaffirms that the health of our environment directly impacts our health, and no amount of pharmaceuticals or interventional devices will replace a healthy planet.
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Plaque Analysis Now Covered by Medicare
HeartFlow’s Plaque Analysis is now reimbursable thanks to Medicare’s new coverage for AI-enabled plaque analysis of eligible patients with coronary artery disease.
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A Better Way to Coordinate Post-Stroke Care
Think your EHR messaging system might be holding back your post-stroke care? See how UC San Diego Medical Center streamlined its neuro and EP teams’ post-stroke workflow with Viz Connect, and the impact it had on cardiac monitor placements in inpatient and outpatient settings.
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- EnCompass’ First F2 Patient: According to a JACC case report, EnCompass’ F2 device demonstrated safety in its first-in-human TAVR procedures. The study showed zero complications and no stroke events at 30 days in a 70-year-old patient, while protecting three cerebral vessels simultaneously through single transfemoral access. The F2 device is nitinol-framed and aims to improve upon existing cerebral protection technologies, while potentially expanding treatment eligibility to complex vascular patients.
- J&J Anti-Trust Plot Thickens: A California court previously ordered Johnson & Johnson MedTech to pay $442M for restricting clinical support to healthcare providers using reprocessed cardiac catheters. Now following the favorable decision, Innovative Health is seeking a 10-year permanent injunction preventing service restrictions based on device reprocessing status, which is backed by the Association of Medical Device Reprocessors who say the evidence proves J&J “stifled competition” and “forced hospitals to spend more money.”
- RSNA & Cardio Community Team Up for CT: A new multi-society consensus document from RSNA and six cardiovascular organizations established cardiac CT as a valuable complement to echocardiography for prosthetic heart valve evaluation. Published across three major journals, the guidance addresses mechanical and biologic valves from TAVR, surgical replacement, and mitral procedures. The consensus document also standardizes imaging protocols, radiation exposure, and diagnostic criteria while addressing the limited data on cardiac CT’s role in prosthetic valve assessment.
- PanEcho Analyzes Multiple Echo Views: A freshly published JAMA study suggests PanEcho’s AI algorithm for echocardiography is effective at classifying several heart diagnoses. Researchers tested PanEcho on 24.4k echo exams, finding that it performed 18 diagnostic classification tasks with a median AUC of 0.91 and estimated 21 echo parameters with a median normalized mean absolute error of 0.13. PanEcho performs tasks such as estimating LVEF, while detecting severe AS and ventricular systolic dysfunction.
- TAVR and TR: Keeping an eye on tricuspid regurgitation might be a good idea during TAVR, especially since the condition could impact TAVR outcomes. Researchers examined 2,000 TAVR patients and found that those who had TR going into TAVR faced significantly worse outcomes, with lower five-year survival rates (43.1% vs. 59.1%) and more heart failure readmissions. Interestingly, 62.1% of patients with baseline moderate/greater TR improved after TAVR, while 8.1% of those with mild TR developed new TR post-procedure.
- ACC Petitions for ABCVM: The ACC is continuing its efforts to create an independent American Board of Cardiovascular Medicine, separate from the American Board of Internal Medicine. Following the American Board of Medical Specialties’ denial of their 2024 request, the ACC successfully passed a resolution at the 2025 AMA House of Delegates meeting for the AMA to review the current board-certifying principles. The independent board effort has now gained additional support from cardiac imaging societies, strengthening their case for cardiology as a standalone specialty.
- WINREVAIR Keeps Winning: Merck’s WINREVAIR hit another home run in its Phase 3 HYPERION study, significantly reducing clinical worsening in newly diagnosed pulmonary arterial hypertension patients. When added to background therapy (mostly double therapy), WINREVAIR significantly cut the risk of death, hospitalization, and disease progression compared to placebo. This marks WINREVAIR’s third Phase 3 victory, following earlier wins in the STELLAR and ZENITH studies.
- Novo Quits Hims & Hers: Novo Nordisk dumped Hims & Hers after just one month of partnership, accusing the telehealth company of peddling “knockoff” Wegovy made with questionable Chinese ingredients. Despite the FDA declaring the Wegovy shortage over in April, Hims & Hers allegedly continued pushing compounded semaglutide under the guise of “personalization.” Novo now claims these foreign-made ingredients haven’t been FDA-approved and put patients at risk, further justifying its choice to say goodbye to Hims & Hers.
- Salt in the Water: Researchers in Kenya have uncovered strong links between drinking water salinity and cardiovascular health. Among 327 Kenyan adults examined, each 100 mg/L increase in salt consumption was associated with significantly higher blood pressure (4.5/3.3 mmHg increase), tripled odds of hypertension, and doubled odds of kidney damage. Despite this population’s minimal lifestyle risk factors, 40% had hypertension and 42% showed kidney damage, demonstrating the dangers of salty drinking water.
- Bioresorbable vs. Metallic Stents: The five year MAGSTEMI trial follow-up suggests magnesium-based bioresorbable scaffolds have comparable safety to permanent metallic stents in STEMI patients. While early scaffold collapse caused higher 1-year revascularization rates, no additional events occurred beyond year one, with no late scaffold thrombosis. Overall device-oriented endpoints were also statistically similar between groups (17.6% vs. 9.2%).
- Tirzepatide Benefits Parallel to Weight Loss: Confirming what many suspect, a post-hoc analysis of Eli Lilly’s SURMOUNT-1 found that tirzepatide’s cardiometabolic benefits were greater as patients lost more weight. Specifically, patients who lost ≥35% body weight showed dramatic improvements like: 14.2 mmHg SBP reduction, 9.2 mmHg diastolic drop, 32.4 cm waist shrinkage, and 59.7% insulin resistance decrease. Meanwhile, insulin resistance and A1c benefits appeared even in patients who lost only a modest amount of weight.
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Vista AI Reduces Patient Backlog
Cardiac MRI is infamous for its complexity and backlogs, but it doesn’t need to be that way. See how Vista Cardiac delivered a 50% reduction in scan time variability, enabling shorter scheduling blocks and eliminating a one-month backlog.
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Explore Vitrea Advanced Visualization
Discover Canon Medical Healthcare IT’s suite of advanced imaging workflows designed to increase efficiency in cardiovascular imaging, and facilitate the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. These cutting-edge tools support the delivery of faster, more accurate care while integrating seamlessly into clinical workflow
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Redefining Percutaneous Coronary Intervention
Learn about the AGENT™ Drug-Coated Balloon from Boston Scientific and how this technology is expanding the treatment options for patients with in-stent restenosis in the U.S. Rx only. (Sponsored by Boston Scientific)
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- Revolutionize Your Cardiac CT Workflow — See It LIVE at SCCT 2025! Be among the first to experience next-gen CV imaging at Booth #315 during SCCT 2025. Sign up now to find out how Circle CVI’s software enables lightning-fast LAAC, TAVR, and TMVR workflows while providing more accurate heart function insights, and clinician-controlled plaque quantification.
- The Monebo Difference in Comprehensive Cardiac Mapping: Monitoring the heart 24/7 means being in tune with the body’s natural cycles. Read about how Monebo’s approach to cardiac monitoring provides visual representations of a patient’s heart rate, cardiac muscle relaxation, and electrical excitation throughout the day.
- Cloud-Based Enterprise Imaging Empowerment: Do your cardiology imaging workflows follow cloud best practices? Read Optum and Frost & Sullivan’s enterprise imaging whitepaper to help you ensure your team is optimally housing, accessing, analyzing, and leveraging imaging data as the industry shifts to value-based care.
- Heartbeats and EP Insights — How GE HealthCare Streamlines Cardiac Care: Are you stuck behind EP reporting backlogs? Take a break and join GE HealthCare for a 15-minute conversation with Dr. Nicholas Skipitaris of Northwell Health on how to simplify reporting, reduce delays, and standardize workflows to scale best practices.
- Merge and Duly Health Streamline Cardiology Reporting: Over the last 10 years, Dr. Sujith Kalathiveetil of Duly Health and Care has seen a significant evolution in cardiovascular imaging and experienced a similar evolution with Merge’s cardiology solutions. See how Merge Cardio has helped make cardiology reporting more consistent, accurate, and easier to obtain.
- Relieving the Burden of Post-Processing: With the advent of advanced imaging technologies like CCTA come added burdens to technologists and diagnostic imaging centers. See how PIA can relieve the burden of post-processing, saving you time while helping your bottom line.
- Identify and Treat Cardiovascular Disease: Complex care pathways make getting patients to the next step a challenge. See how Tempus Next, an AI-enabled care pathway platform, helps providers identify and reduce undertreatment in cardiovascular disease by adding an intelligent layer onto their routinely generated EHR data.
- AI Analysis of ATTR-CM: ATTR-CM is a progressive and fatal cardiomyopathy with a rising number of diagnoses and a highly variable clinical course. See how Us2.ai’s fully automated machine learning algorithm analyzes echocardiographic DICOM images without human interaction to improve tracking ATTR-CM progression and treatment responses.
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