Circadian Variation and Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

A morning increase in the risk of acute cardiovascular disorders — transient myocardial ischemia, myocardial infarction, sudden cardiac death, and stroke —is now well documented and widely accepted by both the medical profession and the public. Over the past five years, several investigators have demonstrated that this apparent curiosity can offer clues to the mechanisms of onset of acute cardiovascular disease. The article by Panza et al. in this issue of the Journal ¹ is an important addition to this emerging field of study.The authors demonstrated convincingly in normal subjects that forearm vascular resistance, as determined by plethysmography, is higher . . .