Cardiology News and Research

Latest Cardiology News and Research

NIH awards St. Jude $8.6M to focus on anticancer agent research in children

With its new expansion of the Pharmacogenomics Research Network (PGRN), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded St. Jude Children's Research Hospital a prestigious grant to focus on anticancer agent research in children.

8 Sep 2010

BMJ investigation raises concern on rosiglitazone diabetes drug safety

A BMJ investigation into the top-selling diabetes drug rosiglitazone (Avandia) raises concerns about its safety and the whole system by which drugs are evaluated, regulated, and promoted around the world.

8 Sep 2010

Obesity directly accelerates progression of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

The first study to demonstrate that obesity can directly accelerate the progression of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has been conducted at The Saban Research Institute of Childrens Hospital Los Angeles and will be published in Cancer Prevention Research, on October 5, 2010. Obesity has been associated with an increased incidence of many cancers, including leukemia, but it has been unknown whether the increase in incidence was a direct effect of obesity or associated with genetic, lifestyle, health, or socio-economic factors.

8 Sep 2010

Interventions targeting social cognition most effective in mitigating loneliness

Changing how a person perceives and thinks about others was the most effective intervention for loneliness, a sweeping analysis of previous research has determined. The findings may help physicians and psychologists develop better treatments for loneliness, a known risk factor for heart disease and other health problems.

8 Sep 2010

Studies examine health care use, quality

The New York Times: A new study finds "that more than half of the 354 million doctor visits made each year for acute medical care, like for fevers, stomachaches and coughs, are not with a patient's primary physician, and that more than a quarter take place in hospital emergency rooms. The authors of the study, which was published Tuesday in the journal Health Affairs, said it highlighted a significant question about the new federal health care law: can access to primary care be maintained.

8 Sep 2010

BioAlliance Pharma receives European patent for acyclovir Lauriad tablets for recurrent herpes labialis

BioAlliance Pharma SA, a company dedicated to the supportive care and treatment of cancer patients, today announced the grant of a European patent protecting its product acyclovir Lauriad.

8 Sep 2010

UCSF scientists to receive two grants for personalized medicine research

UCSF scientists will receive two grants totaling $15.1 million over the next five years to expand their research into how genes affect an individual's response to medication and to strengthen a global network of researchers involved in these efforts.

7 Sep 2010

Bligh explains plans for asset sales

According to Queensland Premier Anna Bligh, new developments are on the horizon only if her Government continues with the sell off of $15 billion of public assets. She revealed this in her annual State of the State address at the mid point of her term in Government yesterday while reviewing the past 18 months and forecasting the next stage of the state's development.

7 Sep 2010

Short sleep duration associated with elevated risk of diabetes, heart disease and stroke

People who sleep less than six hours a night may be three times more likely to develop a condition which leads to diabetes and heart disease, according to researchers at the University of Warwick.

7 Sep 2010

Medtronic launches CoreValve delivery system with AccuTrak Stability Layer for TAVI

Medtronic, Inc. today announced CE Mark approval and the first global use and launch of the Medtronic CoreValve® delivery system with AccuTrak™ Stability Layer for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). AccuTrak's proprietary technology allows physicians to achieve enhanced control and accuracy in the deployment of the CoreValve device.

7 Sep 2010

AtheroMed initiates enrollment in Phoenix Atherectomy catheter trial for PAD

AtheroMed, Inc. announced today the start of enrollment in the EASE study to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Phoenix Atherectomy™ catheter, a minimally invasive device for the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in the legs. EASE - Endovascular Atherectomy Safety and Effectiveness - is an FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical trial that will enroll 90 patients at up to 20 clinical sites.

7 Sep 2010

St. Jude Medical to invest $60M in CardioMEMS

St. Jude Medical, Inc., a global medical device company, and privately-held CardioMEMS today announced that they have reached an agreement under which St. Jude Medical will make a $60 million equity investment in CardioMEMS, a medical device company that has developed a wireless sensing and communication technology to assess cardiac performance.

7 Sep 2010

GI Dynamics announces data on EndoBarrier therapy for type 2 diabetes, obesity

GI Dynamics, a leader in non-surgical, endoscopic treatments for type 2 diabetes and obesity, today announced data with the EndoBarrier Gastrointestinal Liner at 12 months showing significant weight loss and cardiovascular and metabolic improvements in obese patients.

7 Sep 2010

NextGen executes agreement with MKMG to deploy EHR solution

NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Systems, Inc. and leading provider of healthcare information systems and connectivity solutions, today announced it has executed an agreement with Mount Kisco Medical Group, PC (MKMG) to deploy NextGen Ambulatory EHR (Electronic Health Record), NextGen Practice Management, and the NextGen Patient portal.

7 Sep 2010

Medtronic announces international launch of Resolute Integrity Stent System

Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), announces the CE (Conformite Europeene) mark and international launch of the Resolute Integrity Stent System for the treatment of coronary artery disease, a leading cause of death and poor quality of life.

7 Sep 2010

Hallucinogen psilocybin safe for administration in patients with advanced-stage cancer and anxiety: Study

A pilot study suggests the hallucinogen psilocybin may be feasible and safe to administer to patients with advanced-stage cancer and anxiety, with promising effects on mood, according to a report published online today that will appear in the January 2011 print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

7 Sep 2010

Physical qualities can influence stem cell differentiation mechanism: Research

A researcher at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, together with Israeli and foreign collaborators, has revealed how physical qualities and not only chemical ones may have an influence in determining how adult stem cells from the bone marrow develop into differentiated ones. This represents an important step in understanding the mechanisms that direct and regulate the specialization of stem cells from their undefined state.

7 Sep 2010

An overview on low-carbohydrate diets

Headlines make news, but don't read too much into current headlines about a recent study titled "Low-Carbohydrate Diets and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality," published in the September 7, 2010, issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. Although the headlines may say the study suggests that long-term adherence to a low-carb diet based heavily on animal protein may reduce lifespan, Dr. Funga, who was the lead author of the study, says that her research "is not representative of popular low-carb eating plans

7 Sep 2010

Researchers to develop new treatment strategy for cancer

Cancer is a difficult disease to treat because it's a personal disease. Each case is unique and based on a combination of environmental and genetic factors. Conventional chemotherapy employs treatment with one or more drugs, assuming that these medicines are able to both "diagnose" and "treat" the affected cells. Many of the side effects experienced by chemotherapy patients are due to the fact that the drugs they are taking aren't selective enough.

7 Sep 2010

RWJF unites civil rights organizations to reverse childhood obesity

A $2 million initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is bringing together five civil rights organizations with the prominence and strength to help reverse childhood obesity, especially in African-American and Latino communities where the epidemic continues to hit hardest.

7 Sep 2010