EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CARDIOVASCULAR NURSING, 2025

Key Takeaways:

- Only 13 articles have been published (7 qualitative and 6 observational) on caregiving in the context of atrial fibrillation.

- Caregiving for a loved one with atrial fibrillation produces several psychosocial and family-level outcomes that vary based on caregivers’ characteristics and the context of care.

- Informational support for caregivers appears to be lacking but would help caregivers better adapt to the changes and consequences of atrial fibrillation.

FIRST AUTHOR: Dr. Karen Bouchard

SENIOR AUTHOR: Dr. Heather Tulloch

JOURNAL OF CARDIOPULMONARY REHABILITATION AND PREVENTION, 2025

Key Takeaways:

- Tailored exercise, vocational, and family rehabilitation programming may be particularly beneficial for women under the age of 50 years.

- Future research on SCAD should include age-based comparisons

LEAD AUTHORS: Dr. Kathleen Lalande, Dr. Karen Bouchard

SENIOR AUTHOR: Dr. Heather Tulloch

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION, 2024

Key Takeaways:

- Awareness and detection of SCAD was low among patients

- Improvements in communication of SCAD and its prognosis from health care providers was desired

- Anxiety is pervasive, particularly in the early‐discharge period and among younger patients with unremarkable medical histories

- Conventional cardiac rehabilitation and other secondary prevention programming, including informational and psychosocial interventions, are recommended but are not currently meeting the perceived unique needs of patients with SCAD

LEAD AUTHOR: Dr. Karen Bouchard

SENIOR AUTHOR: Dr. Heather Tulloch

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PREVENTIVE CARDIOLOGY, 2024

Key Takeaways:

- Women are more likely to experience anxiety symptoms in the aftermath of an acute cardiac event in comparison to men

- BUT, we don’t know the true prevalence and clinical importance of anxiety among women with cardiovascular disease because there is limited screening for anxiety, an underrepresentation of women in research, and an underassessment of anxiety in important cardiovascular sub-groups

LEAD AUTHOR: Dr. Karen Bouchard

SENIOR AUTHOR: Dr. Heather Tulloch

EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL - DIGITAL HEALTH, 2024

Key Takeaways:

- The adoption of social robots may be a viable option to assist in the care of patients with heart failure, albeit in a restricted capacity and only one robust evidence of their value and safety has been accumulated

- Seeking users’ perspectives is required to optimize social robot efficiencies, increase their uptake, while protecting patients’ and providers’ best interest.

LEAD AUTHOR: Dr. Karen Bouchard

SENIOR AUTHOR: Dr. Heather Tulloch