Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Dysfunction in blood vessels plays a role in Alzheimer's disease development

A dysfunction in the lining of blood vessels that is linked to cardiovascular illness also appears to play a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study published in Circulation Research: Journal of the American Heart Association.

3 Dec 2010

AHA: Incidence of hospitalization for heart valve diseases rises in New York

The incidence of hospitalization and treatment for heart valve diseases in New York State has constantly and progressively risen since the early 1980s, according to research presented at the recent meeting of the American Heart Association (AHA) by SUNY Downstate Medical Center. The study results were published in a supplement to the AHA journal, Circulation.

3 Dec 2010

Doctors still prescribe higher-dose menopausal hormone therapy pills

Doctors across the country are still prescribing higher-dose menopausal hormone therapy pills, despite clinical evidence that low doses and skin patches work just as well and carry fewer health risks. That's what researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine found in a study that will be published online Dec. 2 in Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society.

3 Dec 2010

Alcohol drinking pattern impacts coronary heart disease

A fascinating study published in the BMJ shows that although the French drink more than the Northern Irish each week, as they drink daily, rather than more on less occasions, the French suffered from considerably less coronary heart disease than the Northern Irish.

3 Dec 2010

AtriCure initiates enrollment in DEEP AF feasibility trial

AtriCure, Inc., a medical device company and a leader in cardiac surgical ablation systems and systems for the exclusion of the left atrial appendage, announced initial patient enrollment in its DEEP AF feasibility trial. The first procedure was performed in a new, state-of-the-art hybrid room at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia by Jonathan Philpott, M.D., Director of the Sentara Atrial Fibrillation Surgery Program, Ian Woollett, M.D., and John Onufer, M.D., Medical Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology.

3 Dec 2010

BMEYE signs licensing agreement with PULSION Medical Systems

BMEYE's Breakthrough Totally Noninvasive Blood Pressure and Cardiac Output Technology Will be Incorporated Into PULSION's Next Generation Patient Monitors

3 Dec 2010

New study offers hope for children with MPS I genetic disorder

A new study offers hope for children born with a rare genetic disease, according to a paper published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

3 Dec 2010

Geron commences enrollment in imetelstat Phase 2 clinical trial for metastatic breast cancer

Geron Corporation today announced enrollment of the first patient in a randomized Phase 2 clinical trial of its telomerase inhibitor drug, imetelstat (GRN163L), in combination with paclitaxel (with or without bevacizumab) in patients with locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer.

3 Dec 2010

Arteriocyte launches Stem Cell Expansion System for research use

Arteriocyte, Inc., a leading clinical stage biotechnology company with offices in Cleveland, Ohio, and Hopkinton, Massachusetts, that develops proprietary stem cell and tissue engineering based therapies announced today the launch of its first commercially available Stem Cell Expansion System for research use.

2 Dec 2010

FDA approves IDE application to initiate Tryton Side Branch Stent System for coronary artery disease

Tryton Medical, Inc., the leading developer of stents designed to definitively treat bifurcation lesions, today announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conditional approval for an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) application to initiate the pivotal trial to evaluate the Tryton Side Branch Stent System for the treatment of coronary artery disease.

2 Dec 2010

FDA approves Abiomed to begin MINI-AMI trial to evaluate Impella 2.5

Abiomed, Inc., a leading provider of breakthrough heart support technologies, today announced it has received conditional approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin MINI-AMI, a prospective, randomized, controlled multi-site trial to assess the potential role of the Impella 2.5 in reducing infarct size in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

2 Dec 2010

Physician-led models of care benefit patients, health system

To best meet the goals of optimized, coordinated patient care and also help curb health care costs, physicians should be the heart of accountable care organizations (ACOs), an evolving model of patient care. The American Medical Association today outlined recommendations to make this a reality in comments provided to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

2 Dec 2010

Type 2 diabetics who consume alcohol at increased risk for blurry vision

A new study published in the journal Diabetic Medicine reveals that among patients with type 2 diabetes, alcohol consumption was associated with an increased risk of deterioration of visual acuity.

2 Dec 2010

Denmark grants marketing authorization for SUMAVEL DosePro Needle-Free Delivery System

Zogenix, Inc. and Desitin Pharmaceuticals GmbH today announced that the Danish Medicines Agency of Denmark has approved the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for SUMAVEL® DosePro™ (sumatriptan injection) Needle-Free Delivery System. Denmark is the first country in Europe to grant marketing authorization for SUMAVEL DosePro for the acute treatment of migraine attacks, with or without aura, and the acute treatment of cluster headache.

2 Dec 2010

European Commission approves Pfizer's SUTENT for pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors

Pfizer Inc. announced today that the European Commission has approved SUTENT (sunitinib malate) for the treatment of unresectable or metastatic, well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (NET) with disease progression in adults.

2 Dec 2010

Advent of HAART leads to decrease in mortality among people living with HIV/AIDS

During the decade since the advent of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), or 1996-2006, mortality among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) sharply decreased in the United States. So, too, did the percentages of PLWHA deaths attributable to AIDS-defining illnesses, just as there was a marked increase in the percentage of deaths attributable to heart, kidney, and liver disease.

2 Dec 2010

New pilot program to honor registered organ donors

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and the New York Organ Donation Network today announced the launch of a new pilot program to honor the wishes of registered organ donors and help save lives.

2 Dec 2010

New analysis of stenting vs. endarterectomy for carotid occlusive disease

Doctors have long known that patients with carotid artery stenosis, narrowed blood vessels in the neck, are at significant risk for a stroke. The condition has severe implications. Annually, in the United States, 795,000 patients have strokes that often result in long-term disability or death. For years, however, researchers in North America and Europe have tried to determine the most effective method to treat narrowed or partially blocked carotid vessels.

2 Dec 2010

Aspirin decreases plaque formations that cause heart attacks and strokes

Charles H. Hennekens, M.D., DrPH, the first Sir Richard Doll Research Professor in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University, has published the results of A Randomized Trial of Aspirin at Clinically Relevant Doses and Nitric Oxide Formation in Humans in the current issue of the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

2 Dec 2010

Study reveals role of VSV in killing cancer cells through turning off major survival signal

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have identified a mechanism by which specific viruses acting as oncolytic agents can enter and kill cancer cells. This finding, which is currently featured in an online edition of the Journal of Virology, could help lead to the development of more targeted treatments against many types of cancer.

2 Dec 2010