We've known for decades that smoking during pregnancy is potentially damaging for the baby, and has been linked to various birth defects, premature birth, underdeveloped lungs, low birthweight and many other problems.

Patients with coronary heart disease are often diagnosed following a battery of tests, some of which are invasive or require radiation. A better option allows patients to skip riskier or more invasive testing.

Cholesterol-lowering statin drugs may have an added benefit. They also appear to break down plaque in arteries, a major contributor to blood vessel blockages that can lead to a heart attack or stroke. Now, doctors know why.

Bile acids in the gut may be more important than for just processing dietary fat. They may also be a key to treating heart disease by exerting an anti-inflammatory effect.

A protein embedded in blood vessel walls may be key to preventing second or third heart attacks. Researchers suspect that stopping dangerous cell growth after a vascular injury may be the key to prevention.

Treating clogged arteries often requires a procedure to open the blockage following by placement of a permanent stent to prop it open. New technology has prompted development of a stent capable of slowly disappearing.

Race may play a role in determining which patients are more likely to need repeated procedures to widen narrowed arteries caused by coronary artery disease.

Over time, bare metal stents implanted to prop open clogged arteries can narrow as scar tissue forms prompting concerns about reduced blood flow. A novel treatment appears to aid patients by improving blood flow.

Large doses of common cholesterol-lowering medications appear to reverse coronary artery disease by reducing the amount of plaque in clogged arteries.

As long as patients seek elective angioplasty and stent placement to open clogged arteries at an experienced hospital, it may not matter whether the medical facility maintains onsite heart surgeons.