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Researchers find connection between eye disease and arginase

Elevated levels of the enzyme arginase contribute to vascular eye damage and Medical College of Georgia researchers say therapies to normalize its levels could halt progression of potentially blinding diseases such as diabetic retinopathy.

19 Aug 2009

Neovasc reports Q2 2009 financials

"During the second quarter we continued to make significant progress in executing on our strategic initiatives adopted late last year," said Alexei Marko, chief executive officer of Neovasc. "We are especially pleased at the growing traction we are seeing in our tissue business, where our decision to focus on our specialty products and services is beginning to bear fruit, with increases in tissue sales already evident.

19 Aug 2009

Fractal patterns and microchannels to advance tissue engineering

Utilizing fractal patterns similar to those created by lightning strikes, Victor Ugaz, associate professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, has created a network of microchannels that could advance the field of tissue engineering by serving as a three-dimensional vasculature for the support of larger tissue constructs, such as human organs.

18 Aug 2009

Genentech announces Phase III study results for Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with chemo in HER2-negative breast cancer

Genentech, Inc. today announced that a Phase III study (RIBBON 2) of Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with chemotherapy increased the time women with metastatic HER2-negative breast cancer whose initial chemotherapy had stopped working lived without the disease worsening (progression-free survival or PFS), compared to chemotherapy alone.

18 Aug 2009

Tiny magnetic particles guide stem cells to damaged tissue

Microscopic magnetic particles have been used to bring stem cells to sites of cardiovascular injury in a new method designed to increase the capacity of cells to repair damaged tissue, UCL scientists announced today.

18 Aug 2009

Nfocus Neuromedical obtains CE approval for vascular reconstruction device

Nfocus Neuromedical Inc. announced today that its CardioVasc Advantage Vascular Reconstruction Device has been granted CE Mark approval by the European Notified Body, G-Med.

13 Aug 2009

Dimera granted peripheral artery disease patent

The U.S. Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) plans to announce patent award approval on August 11 to Dimera Incorporated for treatment of symptoms of Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD), which is alternatively known as Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD).

12 Aug 2009

New tool for virtual surgery simulates blood flow - helps plan child's delicate heart surgery

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, collaborating with pediatric cardiologists and surgeons at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, have developed a tool for virtual surgery that allows heart surgeons to view the predicted effects of different surgical approaches. By manipulating three-dimensional cardiac magnetic resonance images of a patient's specific anatomy, physicians can compare how alternative approaches affect blood flow and expected outcomes, and can select the best approach for each patient before entering the operating room.

12 Aug 2009

Vertebroplasty expert cites concerns about new study

A new study by Mayo Clinic researchers has given rise to more questions than answers about the effectiveness of vertebroplasty to treat osteoporotic spinal fractures.

11 Aug 2009

Virtual heart surgery helps plan child's surgery

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, collaborating with pediatric cardiologists and surgeons at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, have developed a tool for virtual surgery that allows heart surgeons to view the predicted effects of different surgical approaches.

10 Aug 2009

Ministrokes predict memory problems, strokes predict non-memory problems

Areas of brain damage seen on brain scans and originally thought to be related to stroke may help doctors predict a person’s risk of memory problems in old age, according to research published in the August 11, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Aug 2009

New online tool to help nurses prevent the 10 "Never Events"

Elsevier, a world leader in healthcare and medical publishing and online solutions, today announced the availability of a new online tool within Mosby's Nursing Consult designed to help nurses prevent the 10 "Never Events" identified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in an October 2008 fact sheet.

10 Aug 2009

AHRA and Toshiba partner on putting patients first program

Patient safety and quality care continue to be important issues for hospitals and imaging centers. To help these facilities start new or build upon existing programs, AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management announces the second year of its Putting Patients First grant program.

10 Aug 2009

Noninvasive MRI helps diabetes diagnosis and treatment

Noninvasive imaging (MRI) may aid physicians in the early diagnosis, staging and treatment of diabetes, according to a study performed at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA. This is the first study of its kind to apply noninvasive imaging techniques to diabetes research.

6 Aug 2009

Regional nerve block anesthesia improve recovery, outcomes

When planning for surgery, patients too often don't consider the kind of anesthesia they will receive. In fact, the choice of anesthesia can improve recovery, even outcomes.

4 Aug 2009

Women and minorities under-represented in trials

Enrollment demographics published in many U.S. vascular surgery randomized control trials (RCTs) under-represent women as well as race or ethnic minorities, according to a new study published in the Society for Vascular Surgery’s August 2009 issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery.

4 Aug 2009

Elevated cholesterol levels in midlife raises risk of late-life dementia

Elevated cholesterol levels in midlife - even levels considered only borderline elevated - significantly increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia later in life, according to a new study by researchers at Kaiser Permanente's Division of Research and the University of Kuopio in Finland. The study appears in the journal Dementia & Geriatric Cognitive Disorders.

4 Aug 2009

Long-term brain damage after bypass surgery - more evidence puts blame on heart disease

Brain scientists and cardiac surgeons at Johns Hopkins have evidence from 227 heart bypass surgery patients that long-term memory losses and cognitive problems they experience are due to the underlying coronary artery disease itself and not ill after-effects from having used a heart-lung machine.

3 Aug 2009

FDA approves Avastin plus interferon-alfa for people with metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Genentech, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Avastin (bevacizumab) plus interferon-alfa for people with metastatic renal cell carcinoma, the most common type of kidney cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, kidney cancer is the eighth most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States. In 2009, approximately 13,000 Americans will die from the disease.

3 Aug 2009

Anti-growth factor drugs raise hope and concern for treatment of children's eye diseases

A new class of antibody drugs may provide a powerful new tool for the treatment of eye diseases in children, but specialists need to be alert for the possibility of serious side effects, according to an editorial in the August Journal of AAPOS (American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus), published by Elsevier.

3 Aug 2009