Dr Kacie Dickinson and co-author Savannah Maxwell (BND Class of 2017) were awarded the Paul Dudley White International Award for their poster on diet and cardiovascular disease risk factors at the AHA EPI Lifestyle Sessions in New Orleans.

 

Dr Kacie Dickinson represented Flinders at the American Heart Association Epidemiology, Lifestyle and Prevention meeting in New Orleans from 21-23 March 2018. This international meeting attracts epidemiologists, scientists and clinicians to discuss the latest research in cardiovascular disease prevention and management.

Professor Paul Whelton presented the recently updated 2017 Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines published by the American Heart Association. Notably, the guidelines outline changes to the way blood pressure is evaluated (lower threshold for HT diagnosis) and managed (greater focus on earlier treatment with lifestyle changes). So this is a huge opportunity for dietitians to be involved more in lifestyle modifications as part of prevention and management of high blood pressure. It was pleasing to also see the importance of social determinants of health in CVD prevention and management highlighted in a plenary session calling  attention to addressing these to  stem the burden of cardiovascular disease  globally.

Kacie also presented research carried out by 2017 BND graduate Savannah Maxwell on culinary herbs and spices on modifying cardiovascular disease risk in adults. The work was recognised with a Paul Dudley White International Scholar Award for the highest ranking abstract submitted from Australia. Overall, an excellent meeting combining great science, early career professional development and networking with international colleagues in cardiovascular disease research.

External links:

2017 Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines