CLEVELAND — Cardiovascular disease, which includes heart disease and stroke, is the leading cause of death for women. It claims more than 400,000 lives in the U.S. each year, more than breast cancer, lung cancer and chronic lung disease combined. Yet only about 4 in 10 women recognize it as their greatest health threat.
To change that, the American Heart Association, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine released a coordinated framework called "Female Life Stages." It explains how periods, pregnancy, perimenopause and menopause shape heart health. It also offers age-specific advice for prevention, detection and care.
The guidance highlights early clues. Heavy or irregular periods can point to conditions that raise heart risk, such as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS, formerly known as PCOS). A first period before age 10 links to higher heart risk later in life. Experts stress that this is a reason for closer attention to healthy habits, not alarm.
Pregnancy works like a "stress test" for the heart. High blood pressure during pregnancy, called preeclampsia, and gestational diabetes can signal higher risk down the road. In perimenopause, falling estrogen can push up cholesterol, weight and blood pressure. Women who reach menopause before age 45 face a significantly higher risk of coronary heart disease.
The authors say care often gets split across different specialists. The framework aims to connect those pieces so doctors can spot risk earlier and women can take steps at every stage. As one Northwestern pediatrics expert put it, "it's much easier to keep good heart health than to get it back."
Next-gen drug outpaces Ozempic in head-to-head trial
Eli Lilly's experimental drug retatrutide beat Novo Nordisk's Ozempic on blood sugar control and weight loss in a late-stage trial of adults with type 2 diabetes. The company reported the results.
The trial compared 9 mg and 12 mg doses of retatrutide with a 2 mg dose of Ozempic, its highest approved dose. After 80 weeks, both retatrutide doses lowered A1C, a measure of blood sugar over time, by an average of 2.2%, compared with 1.8% for Ozempic. Patients on retatrutide lost an average of 44.3 pounds on the lower dose and 47.4 pounds on the higher dose, compared with 20.9 pounds on Ozempic. Retatrutide also improved certain cardiovascular risk factors more than Ozempic.
The once-weekly shot activates three hormone receptors: GLP-1, GIP and glucagon. That earned it the nickname "triple-G." Drugs in this class combine appetite control, blood sugar control and increased calorie burning. Retatrutide is not yet approved.
New study takes a closer look at profound autism
A study in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry offers new data on profound autism. It's a proposed subcategory for people who can't meet basic daily needs and require 24-hour care.
Researchers reviewed records for 7,084 eight-year-olds with autism across 13 U.S. sites in 2022. Under the updated definition, a child qualifies with an IQ below 50 or minimal or no speech, plus everyday living skills well below age level. About 16.5% of children with autism met that definition, and another 32.1% met one part but not both.
Profound autism appeared in about 5 of every 1,000 children. Nonprofound autism appeared in about 27 of every 1,000. But many children never received the full testing needed to know: only about 54% of records held enough information to decide. The count also shifted sharply depending on the definition. It ran about 34% higher under the older 2021 definition and about 71% higher with a higher IQ cutoff. It ran about 33% lower when IQ was left out.
The researchers say both community evaluations and the definition itself can evolve to better understand and meet the needs of people with autism.
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