Heart News and Research

RSS

Prompt diagnosis and treatment for otitis media benefits organ transplant recipients

Organ transplant recipients benefit significantly when they are monitored and receive prompt diagnosis and treatment for otitis media, a common inner ear infection.

5 Oct 2009

Hansen Medical to exhibit its Lynx Robotic Ablation Catheter at the workshop on Cardiac Arrhythmias

Hansen Medical, Inc. will showcase its new Lynx Robotic Ablation Catheter for the first time at Venice Arrhythmias 2009, the 11th International Workshop on Cardiac Arrhythmias, Oct. 4-7, in Venice, Italy. The Lynx catheter is a small, flexible irrigated ablation catheter for customers in Europe to offer stability during the treatment of Atrial Fibrillation (AF).

5 Oct 2009

Myocardial and neurological effects of Tβ4 presented

REGENERX BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, INC. today reported on the results of several important research programs with Thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4) presented at the Second International Symposium on Thymosins in Health and Disease, in Catania, Italy.

5 Oct 2009

Tools to educate employees about disability threats

The Council for Disability Awareness (CDA) is alerting all employers that disabling illnesses have become one of the fastest growing threats to employees' income. In fact, they now account for 55 percent of workplace absences.

5 Oct 2009

The Lewin Group issues recommendations to overcome barriers obstructing the lupus drug development

Today, The Lewin Group, a national health care consulting firm, issued recommendations on ways to overcome the barriers that have obstructed lupus drug development resulting in no new drug approval for this disease in more than 50 years - since the Eisenhower Administration.

From CSL Ltd 5 Oct 2009

Researchers engineer antidotes for blood-thinner aptamers

Imagine a surgical patient on a blood-thinning drug who starts bleeding more than expected, and an antidote that works immediately - because the blood thinner and antidote were designed to work together. Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have engineered a way to do this for an entire, versatile class of drugs called aptamers and published their findings in Nature Medicine.

4 Oct 2009

HCRI commences patient enrollment in dual antiplatelet therapy study

The Harvard Clinical Research Institute (HCRI) announced today that the first patients have been enrolled in the DAPT Study, marking the official initiation of the four-year clinical trial to investigate the duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT, the combination of aspirin and a thienopyridine/antiplatelet medication to reduce the risk of blood clots) following drug-eluting stent implantations.

3 Oct 2009

Study finds that visual impairment in T1D patients may be decreasing

People diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D) in recent years are less likely to develop diabetes-related vision loss than those diagnosed in earlier years, says a new study funded by the National Eye Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health. Forecasts of visual impairment prevalence in T1D patients may need to be amended, the researchers suggest, since current predictions assume that the earlier incidence rates will continue.

3 Oct 2009

Bradycardia more likely in patients taking cholinesterase inhibitors

People taking one of several drugs commonly prescribed to treat Alzheimer's disease are more likely to be hospitalized for a potentially serious condition called bradycardia than patients not taking these medications.

3 Oct 2009

Rewarding healthy behavior with incentives helps lower healthcare costs

On September 30, the U.S. Senate voted to adopt a measure aimed at rewarding healthy behavior as part of the Obama Administration's overall healthcare reform legislation. The Senate Finance Committee voted for a bi-partisan amendment that would allow health plans to provide financial incentives for people to quit smoking, exercise more and engage in other healthy activities.

3 Oct 2009

Electronic medical records: A valuable asset to healthcare industry

Hundreds of billions of gigabytes of health information are now being collected in electronic medical records, and three-quarters (76%) of more than 700 healthcare executives recently surveyed by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP agree that the secondary use of this information will be their organization's greatest asset over the next five years.

3 Oct 2009

Study finds an independent link between self-perceived psychological stress and stroke

Many patients urgently admitted to hospital with cerebral infarction state that they were under great stress over a prolonged period prior to suffering their stroke, is shown in a unique patient study conducted in cooperation between the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden.

3 Oct 2009

University of Florida to study whether exercise can prevent disability in older people

The University of Florida will receive $29.5 million in federal stimulus funds over the next two years from the National Institute on Aging to begin a six-year study on whether a program of structured physical activity can prevent or delay major movement disability in older adults.

3 Oct 2009

CardioComm launches GEMS Air wireless ECG management system

CardioComm Solutions, Inc. announced today the addition of their wireless ECG management system to their suite of GEMS (Global ECG Management System) products. GEMS Air builds on the GEMS platform and incorporates software capable of continuously receiving and managing recordings of the heart’s activity (ECGs) over a wireless network instead of a land-line telephone network.

3 Oct 2009

70% of Americans underestimate the seriousness of SCA

More than 250,000 deaths occur each year as a result of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). In fact, SCA claims one life every two minutes, taking more lives each year than breast cancer, lung cancer or AIDS. Yet, according to a recent survey issued by the Heart Rhythm Society, more than 70 percent of Americans not only underestimate the seriousness of SCA, but also believe SCA is a type of heart attack.

3 Oct 2009

Clinical study data of Thymosin beta 4 presented

REGENERX BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, INC. today reported on several clinical studies with Thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4) presented the Second International Symposium on Thymosins in Health and Disease, in Catania, Italy.

3 Oct 2009

High-risk surgery patients have shorter hospital stays when their care was co-managed by hospitalists

A Loyola University Health System study has found that high-risk surgery patients experienced significantly shorter hospital stays when they were seen by general internists trained in managing medical complications in surgical patients.

3 Oct 2009

USPTO grants Micardia's patent concerning reshaping the anatomy of the heart

MiCardia® today announced that The United States Patent Office granted patent number US7,594,887 B2, "Shape Memory Devices and Methods for Reshaping Heart Anatomy," on September 29th, 2009.

3 Oct 2009

Teens with chronic disease often have expensive, uncertain coverage

ABC News profiles teens living with chronic diseases, and examines their insurance coverage and the cost of such care. The article notes: "Chronic diseases affect 1 in 10 Americans and are the leading cause of disability, accounting for 70 percent of all deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They are also expensive."

3 Oct 2009

IRSF awards $2M for research into a cure for Rett syndrome

The International Rett Syndrome Foundation (IRSF) announced today that it is awarding grants totaling $2 million to support 18 innovative research projects in 2009. Each project will explore bold new ideas that have the potential to drive the field forward and speed the translation of research into treatments and a cure for Rett syndrome.

3 Oct 2009