Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI), today announced the completion of patient enrollment in the CHILL-MI clinical study designed to further evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the company’s InnerCool RTx endovascular cooling system in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).  

Four research centers will develop high-impact culturally tailored interventions aimed at lowering stroke risk among racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Together the centers are expected to receive $40 million in funding over five years, contingent on the availability of funds from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Today, the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) announces the appointment of Peng-Sheng Chen, MD, FHRS, as the new editor-in-chief of HeartRhythm, the official journal of HRS. Effective January 2014, Dr. Chen will replace Douglas Zipes, MD, FHRS, who will have served as editor-in-chief for ten years after founding the Journal in 2004.

As we approach the summer season of doomsday movies in all their cinematic gore-y, it may be no surprise that nuclear catastrophe enters into a few imaginations. But at the FDA, it is science and not science fiction that is under discussion as the agency reviews an animal study on Amgen’s leukocyte growth factors as a nuclear countermeasure. The FDA will discuss whether a human study is warranted on May 3. The Bloomberg article includes a link to the FDA backgrounder.

The Heart Failure Congress 2013 promises more science than ever this year, with a record number of abstracts submitted. The congress takes place 25-28 May at the Centro de Congressos de Lisboa in Lisbon, Portugal.

Vascular Solutions, Inc. (Nasdaq:VASC) today announced that it has re-launched the Venture catheter, a deflectable-tip catheter used to provide guidewire directional control in challenging coronary and peripheral interventional procedures. The device is available immediately in the United States and expected to become available in select international markets over the next few months.

CVRx, Inc., a private medical device company, received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigational device exemption (IDE) approval, allowing the company to proceed with its hypertension study.

Anne M. Gillis, MD, president of the Heart Rhythm Society and a professor at the University of Calgary, will co-chair a joint session on clinical registries on May 9 at Heart Rhythm 2013 in Denver. In a Q&A with Cardiovascular Business, she discussed the evolution of joint sessions and other program details.