LIVE-HCM: Lifestyle and Exercise

There is finally more clarity about exercise for HCM patients. Some doctors say, “Don’t do anything physical,” and others say, “Do whatever you want.” We can likely agree on one thing – they’re both wrong, and the best advice is somewhere in the middle. A recent study of the exercise habits of over 1500 HCM…

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HCMA travels to policy conference

Last week, I had the privilege to moderate a panel, “Novel Nursing: Helping Patients Adapt to Medical Innovation,” on the challenges and opportunities created by Myosin Inhibitors in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy at the PACH Cardiovascular Health Policy Summit in Washington DC. I was joined by Sue Philpott, RN, BSN – Corewell Health in Grand Rapids, MI, and Amy Beatty…

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Problems with generic metoprolol

All generic drugs are not equal.

Many HCM patients have issues with metoprolol, the beta-blocker most widely prescribed for HCM. There may be multiple reasons for this, but a key one has been known for some time: many generic formulations of metoprolol succinate have time-release mechanisms that do not work in a similar fashion to the brand-name Toprol XL.

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Can HCM Patients Use Alcohol, Chocolate, & Coffee?

We hear many different claims about what HCM patients (or heart patients in general) should or shouldn’t eat and drink. This is a big topic, and for much of it, the science doesn’t have simple answers – at least not yet. But it turns out that there are some answers for three things that many people like (and many people won’t touch): wine, chocolate, and coffee.

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