Cardiology News and Research

Latest Cardiology News and Research

Penn State researchers to test education program on patients with high blood pressure

When it comes to chronic diseases, knowledge is power, according to Penn State researchers who will test an education program on patients with high blood pressure to help them manage their disease.

22 Apr 2010

Mandatory cuts for salt content in processed foods on the horizon

This Tuesday The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has urged the US Food and Drug Administration to start regulating the amount of salt in processed foods. This measure according to them can do what years of advising people to cut down on salt have failed to do.

22 Apr 2010

Framingham risk assessment tool fails to predict patients with suspected CAD: Study

If patients with suspected coronary artery disease are excluded from further screening because of a low Framingham score, many patients with substantial atherosclerosis (a build-up of plaque inside the arteries) will be missed, according to a study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

22 Apr 2010

SpectraCell Laboratories introduces apolipoprotein E genotyping

Effective immediately, SpectraCell Laboratories now offers apolipoprotein E genotyping. This test determines a person's genetic risk for heart disease associated with the commonly studied gene called apoE, which is involved in the metabolism of cholesterol and triglycerides (fats in the blood).

22 Apr 2010

Study analyzes effects of untimely and sudden parental death on childhood development

Losing a parent to suicide makes children more likely to die by suicide themselves and increases their risk of developing a range of major psychiatric disorders, according to a study led by Johns Hopkins Children's Center that is believed to be the largest one to date on the subject.

22 Apr 2010

NO-naproxen blocks molecular changes leading to colorectal cancer development

Past randomized clinical trials have shown that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including naproxen, can reduce the risk of colon cancer and precancerous polyps in humans. Now, researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center have found that an investigational form of naproxen, called nitric oxide-donating naproxen (NO-naproxen), can block one of the earliest molecular changes that lead to colorectal cancer development while also reducing gastrointestinal toxicity, a relatively common side effect associated with NSAIDs.

22 Apr 2010

Women and men experience different outcomes at U.S. hospitals: HealthGrades

Women and men experience different outcomes at U.S. hospitals for the same procedures and treatments, according to a new study released today by HealthGrades, the leading independent healthcare ratings organization.

22 Apr 2010

Cook Medical enrolls first patient in Formula PTX Balloon Expandable Renal Stent trial

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced Cook Medical, a license holder of Angiotech's paclitaxel technology, has enrolled the first patient in its landmark Formula PTX clinical trial. The trial is the first of its kind to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a paclitaxel-eluting stent to treat renal artery disease, the narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to the kidneys.

22 Apr 2010

Legal case asks who to blame for medical device failure

The New York Times: A legal case now pending asks a question increasingly faced by the medical world -- "who should be held accountable when a company sells a flawed product that can injure or kill patients? Is it the company or the people who run it?"

22 Apr 2010

Medtronic acquires Invatec

Moving to expand its product offering, Medtronic, Inc., announced today that it has completed the acquisition of Invatec, a developer of innovative medical technologies for the interventional treatment of cardiovascular disease.

22 Apr 2010

Red wine consumption may protect brain from stroke damage, say Johns Hopkins researchers

Researchers at Johns Hopkins say they have discovered the way in which red wine consumption may protect the brain from damage following a stroke.

22 Apr 2010

FDA approves Medtronic's Complete SE Vascular Stent System for PAD

Broadening the scope of innovation for cardiovascular interventions beyond the heart, Medtronic, Inc., announced today that it has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Complete® SE Vascular Stent System to be used for the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in the iliac arteries, major blood vessels within the pelvis that supply blood to the lower extremities.

21 Apr 2010

CDI's iCell Cardiomyocytes named to MIT Technology Review's Annual 10 Emerging Technologies List

Cellular Dynamics International (CDI) today announced that CDI's development and commercialization of human cardiomyocytes for drug discovery and toxicity testing, based on the work of CDI co-founder and chief scientific officer, James A. Thomson, Ph.D., on induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSCs) technology, have been named to the MIT Technology Review's Annual 10 Emerging Technologies List.

21 Apr 2010

Merck to market and distribute MBL's Td vaccine in the U.S.

MassBiologics of the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Merck & Co., Inc. announced today that they have entered into an agreement that provides Merck with exclusive rights to market and distribute MBL's tetanus and diphtheria toxoids adsorbed (Td) vaccine in the United States, with the exception of Massachusetts, where MBL will continue distributing the vaccine.

21 Apr 2010