The risk of sudden cardiac death following a heart attack has declined significantly in the past 30 years, although patients appear to be at elevated risk for sudden cardiac death for the first month after having a heart attack, after which time their risk decreases unless they develop heart failure, according to new study.

While debate continues over the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder, a new study indicates traumatic events and PTSD symptoms may be followed in some cases by a size reduction in a part of the brain called the hippocampus.

Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators reduce the risk of death from sudden cardiac arrest among patients with heart failure, and they do so without significantly altering a person's quality of life, say researchers from Duke University Medical Center.

Cortisol helps our bodies cope with stress, but what about its effects on the brain?

Coronary heart disease symptoms presented in the context of a stressful life event were identified as psychogenic in origin when presented by women and organic in origin when presented by men. The study could help explain why there is often a delay in the assessment of women with heart disease.

The use of the most commonly prescribed once-a-day treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for longer than one month increases the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack or stroke by more than 50 percent, according to new research.

Policing is dangerous work, and the danger lurks not on the streets alone. The pressures of law enforcement put officers at risk for high blood pressure, insomnia, increased levels of destructive stress hormones, heart problems, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide, researchers have found through a decade of studies of police officers.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects as many as one in five of all Americans who survive a harrowing experience like rape, assault, war or terrorism. It has emotionally paralyzed survivors of 9/11 and broken up survivors’ families. There is no broadly accepted treatment that can lower the chance of developing the disorder, but thanks to new research, a medical means of preventing PTSD may be just around the corner.

A new study aims to improve the heart's pumping action and help to manage congestive heart failure symptoms. The US PARACHUTE trial tests the effectiveness of placing a small device in the left ventricle, or main pumping chamber of the heart. Physicians recently implanted the sixth person in the United States with the device.

Science has found many links between depression and other serious medical illnesses, such as cancer, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease. For example, people who develop depression following a heart attack (myocardial infarction) or chest pain (angina) have an elevated risk of cardiac death or hospital readmission over the following year.