Heart Disease Community

Hi:

It has been reported, that in some individuals, it's possible to halt or reverse atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries to some degree, through lifestyle changes, statin-therapy (**typically high-dose as seen in clinical trials), strict, uniquely-customized or highly-specialized diet (e.g., Ornish), exercise regimen, and stress management.

**Intensive Cholesterol Lowering With Atorvastatin Halts Progression Of Heart Disease, Cleveland Clinic-Led Study Shows

'REVERSAL' Trial

The REVERSAL trial, compared the highest doses available at the time of two popular statin drugs, pravastatin and atorvastatin....

"When we analyzed the results of REVERSAL, we realized that we had found an approach to coronary disease treatment that could literally stop heart disease in its tracks"......

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/03/040309071559.htm


......"and said blockage where bypass surgery was so couldn't put stent in. Dr. put him on medication."

In general-only here, and beyond drug-therapy, if/when common procedures, first time or re-do, such as angioplasty, with or without stents, coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgey, or uncommon procedures, such as coronary atherectomy (grinds up/pulverizes or mechanically extracts the plaque) or percutaneous excimer laser coronary angioplasty (vaporizes the plaque) are not deemed feasible, as applicable to the patient, there may/can be other options that includes non-invasive EECP, laser-based TMR or PMR/PMC, and gene therapy/transfer.

FDA approved non-invasive Enhanced External Counterpulsation (EECP) treatments.

Are You a Candidate for EECP Therapy?

http://www.vasomedical.com/patients.php

Surgical-based transmyocardial revascularization (TMR, FDA approved) and catheter-based percutaneous myocardial revascularization or channeling (PMR/PMC, FDA approval still pending), laser therapy.

Holmium:YAG laser

http://www.cardiogenesis.com

Patient education site

http://www.heartofnewlife.com

CO2 Heart Laser

http://www.plcmed.com/Products-For-Patients.asp

Growing your own so-called "bio-bypass" (collateral vessels) around blockages in the heart, and in the legs

It's known as gene therapy/gene transfer, which has been in experimental phases for quite some time now.
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As reported, over the last 20 years, gene therapy has moved from pre-clinical animal investigations (animal models) to human clinical studies for many diseases ranging from single gene disorders, to much more complex, multi-factorial, multi-conditional diseases such as dreaded cancer and cardiovascular disorders.

Readers Digest Online - February 2008

An experimental treatment is giving desperately ill heart patients a new lease on life.

A process called angiogenesis. The experimental procedure had shown great promise in two German studies, and the FDA had approved the launch of the first American clinical trial.

The technique involves injecting the heart with a protein called fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF-1).

"The protein is like a seed that causes new vessels to sprout, creating a network of capillaries and small arteries."

FGF-1 occurs naturally in the body.

http://www.readersdigest.com.au/heart-hope

Best of luck to your dad down the road of life.

Take care,

Cardiostar*

WebMD member (since 8/99)



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Unfortunately it is unlikely that any intervention will truly "clean out" plaque from a blood vessel, although mild reduction in plaque size has been seen with high dose statin therapy and some physicians claim success with adoption of a vegan diet, although that has not been scientifically validated in large research studies. Exercise can improve quality of life considerably - cardiac rehabilitation for example can reduce mortality and morbidity by 20% in many situations. So while there is not a quick fix, a holistic approach could help you dad have fewer symptoms and a better overall quality of life.

Hello pltlady:

I have severe atherosclerosis, and am also sensitive to the cold.

The key to blockage regression/cleanout is diet and exercise, the two things people least want to alter about their lifestyle.


Exercise will help both lower LDL and raise HDL. Increased HDL can assist in cholesterol efflux, but that is more pronounced when the diet can build greater amounts of paraoxonase. That seems to be accomplished through boosts in reserveratrol in some foods, and pomegranate. The studies I found about 5 years ago indicate that pomegranate boosts paraoxonase which has the three fold effect of boosting effectiveness of HDL for clearing LDL, of actually stimulating cholesterol efflux from blockages, and is a powerful anti-oxidant.

Most people don't know WHY they should add anti-oxidants to their diet. Anti-oxidants prevent oxidation of the LDL cholesterol. If it is not oxidized, it is far less, or possibly not all harmful. Oxidized LDL is what gets drawn into the blockage sites expanding them, and slowly choking off the artery.

So arterial improvement starts with stopping blockage growth. Key is reduction of LDL through diet, reduction of ox-LDL through increase of dietary anti-oxidants. Then start a very gradual exercise program to use up more un-oxidized LDL as an energy source.

Exercise also improves EPCs, as does increasing green tea and pistachios in the diet which boosts production of EPCs and their function. These help prevent new blockage sites forming by repairing new arterial damage to pristine condition.

I have many tips and resources on perhaps three WebMD heart related forums, culled from other research sites. I also suggest a very good book, though a bit late for your Dad, "Longevity Made Simple"

My success story may be highlighted in an upcoming edition of WebMD magazine.