Heart Surgery News and Research

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Heart surgery is done to correct problems with the heart. More than half a million heart surgeries are done each year in the United States for a variety of heart problems. Heart surgery is used to correct heart problems in children and adults. This article discusses heart surgeries for adults. For more information about heart surgeries for children, see the Diseases and Conditions Index articles on congenital heart defects, holes in the heart, and tetralogy of Fallot.

The most common type of heart surgery for adults is coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). During CABG, surgeons use healthy arteries or veins taken from another part of the body to bypass (that is, go around) blocked arteries. CABG relieves chest pain and reduces the risk of heart attack.

Landmark clinical trial examines effective treatment options for childhood epilepsy

One of the oldest available anti-seizure medications, ethosuximide, is the most effective treatment for childhood absence epilepsy, according to initial outcomes published in this week's New England Journal of Medicine.

15 Mar 2010

Medtronic commences clinical evaluation of CoreValve transcatheter aortic valve system

Moving to expand the evidence base for the future of structural heart disease therapy, Medtronic, Inc., today announced the start of the first of several new initiatives in a robust international clinical program for its CoreValve transcatheter aortic valve system, a minimally-invasive alternative to open-heart surgery for aortic valve replacement.

15 Mar 2010

New hydrosurgery system may help manage excessive bleeding during surgery

Carnegie Mellon University's Matt Oberdier is developing a new hydrosurgery system to help physicians better manage excessive bleeding during surgery.

15 Mar 2010

HealthTrust Purchasing Group signs 3-year vascular graft procurement contract with MAQUET Cardiovascular

MAQUET Cardiovascular, LLC, a leading provider of cardiovascular technologies, announced today that it has signed a three year contract with HealthTrust Purchasing Group, LP to provide woven and knitted textile vascular grafts to the HealthTrust membership. The contract includes the HEMASHIELD product line and other vascular grafts, which are used to surgically repair or replace damaged blood vessels, including the aorta.

18 Feb 2010

Some heart care costs stay outside insurance coverage, Lowe's does national comparison shopping for employees' heart surgery

MarketWatch reports that though many tout prevention in relation to heart disease, "chances are your insurance won't cover a trip to a dietician, a gym membership or other services that could help you reduce your risk factors."

18 Feb 2010

ICAP Ocean Tomo offers Medcanica's patent portfolio for sale

ICAP Ocean Tomo, the intellectual property brokerage division of ICAP plc (IAP.L), is offering for sale a patent portfolio relating to a cardiothoracic surgery system owned by Medcanica, LLC. The portfolio consists of 14 U.S. issued patents, 4 non-U.S. patents, and 1 U.S. patent application.

17 Feb 2010

Two families having premature baby visit White House to share their inspiring stories with President Obama

Two families who know all too well the trauma of having a baby born prematurely visited the White House today to share their inspiring stories with President Obama. The Hall family from Leesburg, Va., and the Hoffman family from Weston, Fla., are ambassadors for the March of Dimes, a nonprofit foundation that works to prevent premature birth, birth defects, and infant mortality.

15 Feb 2010

Patients receiving female-donor plasma did better than patients receiving male-donor plasma: Study

Three years after the U.S. blood banking industry issued recommendations that discourage transfusing plasma from female donors because of a potential antibody reaction, Duke University Medical Center researchers discovered that female plasma actually may have advantages.

12 Feb 2010

Proving value a challenge for comparative effectiveness and pharmaceutical technologies

The Wall Street Journal reports that "an examination of one of the best-known examples of a comparative-effectiveness analysis shows how complicated such a seemingly straightforward idea can get" as officials look for savings in the health care system." One study, called Courage, "found that the most common heart surgery -- a $15,000 procedure that unclogs arteries using a small scaffold or stent -- usually yields no additional benefit when used with a cocktail of generic drugs in patients suffering from chronic chest pain."

12 Feb 2010

Edwards Lifesciences’ German Andersen patent not infringed by Medtronic's CoreValve transcatheter aortic valve system

Medtronic, Inc., announced today that an appeals court in Germany has found that the CoreValve® transcatheter aortic valve system does not infringe Edwards Lifesciences’ German Andersen patent, which is set to expire in May 2011. The appellate court’s decision upholds a lower court’s ruling and enables uninterrupted access to the leading transcatheter heart valve in Germany.

11 Feb 2010

SMT Research and Development completes first two clinical cases using Shimon Embolic Filter

SMT Research and Development, Ltd., a privately held company, announced that it has completed its first two clinical cases using the Shimon Embolic Filter [SHEF] (TM). SMT R&D developed a novel technology for brain protection (Neuroprotection) from stroke complication hazards arising from invasive cardiology procedures and heart surgery.

10 Feb 2010

HealthSpring nurse practitioner identifies impending heart attack

Olive Branch, Miss. resident Glenn Lusk has a special perspective on the value of his Medicare Advantage plan. It was a HealthSpring-contracted nurse practitioner who discovered during a home visit in November that Lusk was experiencing serious heart trouble.

6 Feb 2010

Penrose-St. Francis Health Systems selects CardiacAssist's TandemHeart System

CardiacAssist Inc. announced today that Penrose-St. Francis Health Systems, Colorado Springs, Colo., has adopted the company’s TandemHeart® System.

4 Feb 2010

New technique may reduce recovery time in arrhythmia patients

A surgeon and an electrophysiologist in the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center last week worked together to perform a novel, minimally-invasive procedure to treat a common but dangerous arrhythmia in a 61-year-old lawyer from east Texas who has suffered from the condition for months.

4 Feb 2010

Regular exercise associated with greater longevity and reduced risk of age-related conditions

Physical activity appears to be associated with a reduced risk or slower progression of several age-related conditions as well as improvements in overall health in older age, according to a commentary and four articles published in the January 25 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

27 Jan 2010

MAQUET Cardiovascular initiates study evaluating EVH in CABG compared to open vein harvesting

MAQUET Cardiovascular LLC, a leading provider of cardiovascular technologies, today announced the initiation of the OPTION (Optimal Improvement of Vein Graft Patency Long Term by the Implementation Of Novel Endoscopic Harvesting Techniques) study. This clinical trial is designed to evaluate the equivalence of Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting (EVH) in Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery compared with historical data for open vein harvesting. David Moore, M.D., of THE HEART HOSPITAL Baylor Plano is the principal investigator for the OPTION trial.

27 Jan 2010

Medtronic' Melody Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve receives FDA approval under HDE

In a significant development for congenital heart disease patients, Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), announced today that its Melody® Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval under a Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE).

27 Jan 2010

FDA approves first heart valve conduit that can delay need for open-heart surgery

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the Medtronic Melody Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve and Ensemble Delivery System, the first heart valve to be implanted through a catheter, or tube, in a leg vein and guided up to the heart. This new approach to the treatment of adults and children with previously implanted, poorly functioning pulmonary valve conduits can delay the need for open-heart surgery.

27 Jan 2010

Researchers set on grand challenge to accomplish targeted drug delivery for heart disease

Virginia Tech researcher Pavlos Vlachos and his students in the College of Engineering have a tall order to tackle: Stem the grim progression of heart disease, which kills hundreds of thousands of people each year in the United States alone.

23 Jan 2010

MAQUET Cardiovascular to host educational symposium to optimize cardiovascular care

MAQUET Cardiovascular LLC, a leading provider of cardiovascular technologies, announced today that it will a host an educational symposium featuring leading cardiovascular surgeons who will discuss the critical issues in caring for today's cardiovascular surgery patients.

22 Jan 2010

Heart Surgery News and Research

Landmark clinical trial examines effective treatment options for childhood epilepsy

Medtronic commences clinical evaluation of CoreValve transcatheter aortic valve system

New hydrosurgery system may help manage excessive bleeding during surgery

HealthTrust Purchasing Group signs 3-year vascular graft procurement contract with MAQUET Cardiovascular

Some heart care costs stay outside insurance coverage, Lowe's does national comparison shopping for employees' heart surgery

ICAP Ocean Tomo offers Medcanica's patent portfolio for sale

Two families having premature baby visit White House to share their inspiring stories with President Obama

Patients receiving female-donor plasma did better than patients receiving male-donor plasma: Study

Proving value a challenge for comparative effectiveness and pharmaceutical technologies

Edwards Lifesciences’ German Andersen patent not infringed by Medtronic's CoreValve transcatheter aortic valve system

SMT Research and Development completes first two clinical cases using Shimon Embolic Filter

HealthSpring nurse practitioner identifies impending heart attack

Penrose-St. Francis Health Systems selects CardiacAssist's TandemHeart System

New technique may reduce recovery time in arrhythmia patients

Regular exercise associated with greater longevity and reduced risk of age-related conditions

MAQUET Cardiovascular initiates study evaluating EVH in CABG compared to open vein harvesting

Medtronic' Melody Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve receives FDA approval under HDE

FDA approves first heart valve conduit that can delay need for open-heart surgery

Researchers set on grand challenge to accomplish targeted drug delivery for heart disease

MAQUET Cardiovascular to host educational symposium to optimize cardiovascular care

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