Catheterization News and Research

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Low-dose method of performing CT heart scans developed at Porter Adventist Hospital

As warnings and concern increase over the health risks of commonly used scanning tests involving high doses of radiation, radiologists and scientists are seeking ways to improve the safety of the tools they use in diagnosing disease.

17 Jul 2010

Philadelphia to host 52nd annual meeting of American Association of Physicists in Medicine

Next week the city of Philadelphia will host the 52nd annual meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), the premier organization in medical physics, a broadly-based scientific and professional discipline encompassing physics principles and applications in medicine and biology.

16 Jul 2010

BioSTAR biodegradable implant achieves comparable closure rates to Amplatzer ASO

A novel study by Canadian physicians reported that the BioSTARTM biodegradable implant achieved comparable closure rates to the Amplatzer Septal OccluderTM (ASO) in children with atrial septal defect (ASD). The BioSTAR device displayed successful outcomes, while avoiding issues associated with implants containing substantial amounts of metal.

16 Jul 2010

GE Healthcare Medical Diagnostics reintroduces Optison ultrasound contrast agent for echocardiograms

GE Healthcare Medical Diagnostics today announced the market reintroduction of Optison™ (Perflutren Protein-Type A Microspheres Injectable Suspension, USP), a diagnostic ultrasound contrast agent for use in select echocardiograms. Optison is indicated for use in patients with suboptimal echocardiograms to opacify the left ventricle and to improve the delineation of the left ventricular endocardial borders. The safety and efficacy of Optison with exercise stress or pharmacologic stress testing have not been established.

12 Jul 2010

SIR and 41 international societies issue first global statement defining interventional radiology

The Society of Interventional Radiology, with the support of 41 international societies representing 10,000 interventional radiology doctors, has issued the first global statement defining interventional radiology-one designed to benefit medical treatment for individuals. The statement addresses the evolution, impact and future direction of this minimally invasive specialty, emphasizing the worldwide availability of this specialized medical care.

8 Jul 2010

New Stanford Hospital to include one entire floor of hybrid rooms

Whether it's called a hybrid room or an interventional platform, Room 9 at Stanford Hospital & Clinics is that singular space where a patient can stay in one place to be diagnosed and treated, either with surgery or the latest interventional procedure, in an environment as sterile as an operating room, with all-important imaging devices, microscopes and monitors right at hand.

1 Jul 2010

Tryton announces first three implants of Side Branch Stent System in Israel

Tryton Medical, Inc., the leading developer of stents designed to definitively treat bifurcation lesions, announced that the company's TRYTON Side Branch Stent™ System has been used in three cases in Israel for the first time.

24 Jun 2010

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia first in region to implant transcatheter pulmonary heart valves

Signaling a new frontier in the treatment of congenital heart disease (CHD), The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is the first hospital in our region to implant transcatheter pulmonary heart valves in children with heart defects. This minimally invasive procedure gives patients a non-surgical option in their ongoing treatment.

18 Jun 2010

InfraReDx to demonstrate LipiScan coronary imaging system during CCC Symposium

InfraReDx, Inc., an innovative medical device company focused on developing novel diagnostic imaging technologies to accurately identify and characterize diseased tissues, today announced that its LipiScan Coronary Imaging System will be featured at the 13th Annual Live Symposium of Complex Coronary & Vascular Cases being held at The Mount Sinai Medical Center of New York, from June 16-19, 2010.

16 Jun 2010

Transcatheter valve-in-valve implantation provides option for high-risk elderly patients

Doctors at the University Heart Center in Hamburg, Germany successfully used transcatheter valve-in-valve implantation in elderly patients with degenerated bioprostheses in aortic and mitral position. This minimally invasive procedure was used as an alternative treatment option for patients who were at high surgical risk.

16 Jun 2010

Lantheus Medical Imaging reports new Phase 4 data from DEFINITY study

Lantheus Medical Imaging, Inc., a worldwide leader in diagnostic medical imaging, today announced new data from a Phase 4, open-label safety study evaluating the effect of DEFINITY® Vial For (Perflutren Lipid Microsphere) Injectable Suspension, an echocardiography contrast agent, on pulmonary and systemic artery hemodynamics in patients with either normal or increased baseline pulmonary artery pressure.

14 Jun 2010

Medicare, uninsured, elderly and critically ill patients use ambulances for transport to ER: Study

Patients with Medicare or Medicaid, the uninsured, the elderly and the critically ill are the heaviest users of ambulances for transport to the emergency department, making them most vulnerable during periods of ambulance diversion. The results of a study of more than 30,000 patients taken to emergency departments by ambulance were published online Friday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ("At-Risk Populations and the Critically Ill Rely Disproportionately on Ambulance Transport to Emergency Departments").

14 Jun 2010

PulmoBind product candidate has potential for early diagnosis of PH in pediatric population

Pulmo BioTech Inc. has announced that early indications are that its PulmoBind product candidate has the potential for early diagnosis of Pulmonary Hypertension in the pediatric population. PH is a potentially life threatening and crippling disease; it is also very hard to diagnose.

9 Jun 2010

SERCA2a gene therapy proves effective in people with advanced heart failure: Researchers

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have developed a new gene therapy that is safe and effective in reversing advanced heart failure. SERCA2a (produced as MYDICAR-) is a gene therapy designed to stimulate production of an enzyme that enables the failing heart to pump more effectively.

4 Jun 2010

Advanced CT scanner allows rapid organ imaging, reduces radiation exposure

UT Southwestern Medical Center is the first site in North Texas to launch the next generation in CT scanners, which allow doctors to image an entire organ in less than a second or track blood flow through the brain or to a tumor - all with less radiation exposure to patients.

3 Jun 2010

NAFC strives to support and educate nation's injured veterans

The National Association For Continence, with targeted donations from the public, will support and educate our nation's injured veterans, about management and treatment options, through its educational materials about intermittent self-catheterization and continence care following spinal cord injuries.

28 May 2010

Spectrum Health to deploy Wolters Kluwer Health's ProVation MD software

Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced today that Spectrum Health will deploy its ProVation MD software for cardiology procedure documentation and coding in the cardiac catheterization labs at Blodgett Hospital and Butterworth Hospital.

27 May 2010

Boston Scientific collaborates with Philips, Siemens to offer integrated imaging systems

Boston Scientific Corporation today announced collaborations with Philips Healthcare and Siemens Medical Solutions to enable the use of its iLab® Ultrasound Imaging System with the Philips Allura™ Xper and the Siemens AXIOM™ Artis and Artis™ zee interventional X-ray systems. Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) technology is designed to provide physicians a 360-degree view inside the heart and coronary vessels to assist with diagnosis and to generate a more accurate image of the diseased vessels than is possible with angiography alone.

From Philips Healthcare 25 May 2010

PrimeWire PRESTIGE Pressure Guide Wire receives 510(k) clearance, CE Mark approval

Volcano Corporation announced today it received both 510(k) clearance and CE Mark approval for its PrimeWire PRESTIGE Pressure Guide Wire for use with patients who have both single-vessel and multi-vessel disease. This next generation pressure wire is compatible with Volcano's full suite of integrated multi-modality consoles and stand-alone physiology systems as well as various hemodynamic monitoring systems.

19 May 2010

ICU-acquired infection rates are not indication of patients' mortality risk: Researchers

ICU-acquired infection rates are not an indication of patients' mortality risk, according to researchers the University of Pennsylvania, undermining a central tenet of many pay-for-performance initiatives.

18 May 2010