Press Releases

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have set-up a new 'cluster' on pharmacovigilance (medicine safety) topics. Clusters are regular collaborative meetings between the EMA and regulators outside of the European Union, which focus on specific topic areas that have been identified as requiring an intensified exchange of information and collaboration. Building on the experience of previous regular videoconferences between the FDA and the EMA in this area and on the recent creation of the EMA’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee, this cluster will provide a forum for a more systematic and focused exchange of information on the safety of medicines.

Christiana Care Health System is one of 15 hospitals selected out of 132 eligible hospitals nationwide by the American College of Cardiology to participate in a new program designed to keep patients healthy at home after discharge from the hospital.

Corindus Vascular Robotics, a leading developer of precision vascular robotics, today announced that in addition to a talk focusing on robotics in the future of the cath lab, cases submitted by users of its CorPath Vascular Robotics System have been accepted for presentation at the Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT) conference on February 22 – 25, 2014 in Washington, D.C.

Fourteen-year-old Monroeville, Ala., teenager Christian Quarles is the first state resident to receive the Boston Scientific S-ICD® System, the world’s first and only commercially available subcutaneous implantable defibrillator for the treatment of patients at risk for sudden cardiac arrest.

The Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute (TCAI) at St. David’s Medical Center will host EP Live—a two-day, intensive educational meeting targeting practicing electrophysiologists from across the globe, electrophysiology (EP) fellows in training, general cardiologists, cardiac surgeons with an interest in treating complex arrhythmias and primary care physicians. The meeting consists of four sections: atrial fibrillation ablation, ventricular tachycardia ablation, devices and new technologies. 

Partners HealthCare At Home has selected Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) to support its growing telemonitoring services, providing improved clinical oversight for newly discharged patients and those with chronic conditions, such as congestive heart failure. With this enhanced care, Partners HealthCare At Home nursing staff can remotely monitor a patient's health by tracking vital signs and intervening earlier with medical attention, successfully reducing the rate of costly hospital readmissions.

A team of interventional cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) and Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute-Texas Medical Center performed Texas’ first transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) under conscious sedation using the Edwards Sapien valve.

Aligned with its commitment to provide innovative medical technology for the interventional treatment of peripheral artery disease, Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) has initiated the European launch of the TOTAL across crossing catheter, which recently received the CE (Conformité Européene) mark as a tool for improving blood flow through narrowed or occluded lower-extremity arteries, including those in the especially challenging below-the-knee (BTK) vessel bed.

Advocate Sherman Hospital has been selected as one of only 10 hospitals in the country to participate in the American College of Cardiology Patient Navigator Program. Developed by the American College of Cardiology and supported by founding sponsor, AstraZeneca, the Patient Navigator program allows Sherman to provide personalized services to heart disease patients and help them avoid a quick return to the hospital.

Aegerion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:AEGR), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for patients with debilitating rare diseases, today announced that Health Canada has granted a Notice of Compliance (NOC) approving JUXTAPID as an adjunct to a low-fat diet and other lipid-lowering drugs, with or without LDL apheresis, to reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in adult patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HoFH).

Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) has announced the U.S. launch and first use of the OffRoad™ Re-Entry Catheter System, an important addition to the company's portfolio of tools to treat complete arterial blockages in the major arteries of the legs.  These blockages, called chronic total occlusions (CTOs), are associated with advanced peripheral artery disease (PAD).  The first use of the OffRoad System was performed by J.A. Mustapha, M.D., director of Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, director of Endovascular Interventions, and director of Cardiovascular Research at Metro Health Hospital in Wyoming, Mich.

The Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT) is now accepting applications for the 8th Annual Toshiba Young Investigator Awards (YIA). Underwritten by Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc., the YIA supports the professional and clinical development of top radiology residents and cardiology fellows within five years of completing a training program.

eCardio Diagnostics, a leader in remote arrhythmia monitoring services, today announced the opening of its second Independent Diagnostic Testing Facility (IDTF) in San Francisco, California.

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation’s Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM program today announced a grant of $197,634 to Saint Agnes Hospital Foundation to support its Heart-to-Heart initiative. This is the second consecutive year in which the Saint Agnes Hospital Foundation has received a grant from the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation, totaling $442,089.

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation’s Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM program today announced a grant of $213,094 to Christiana Care Health System to support its No Heart Left Behind program. This is the third consecutive year in which Christiana Care has received a grant from the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation, totaling $561,557.

To better address the needs of physicians who treat patients with valvular heart disease, Esaote North America is establishing a new sales force to bring industry-leading 3mensio Structural HeartTM software directly to leading Cardiologists and Radiologists for state-of-the art cardiovascular planning solutions.

This February during American Heart Month, Vivek Reddy, MD, of Mount Sinai Heart at The Mount Sinai Hospital implanted the United States' first miniature-sized, leadless cardiac pacemaker directly inside a patient's heart without surgery.

Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW), the global leader in the science of heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring, today announced it has received CE Mark in Europe for valve-in-valve procedures using the SAPIEN XT transcatheter heart valve, providing a minimally invasive treatment option for patients whose surgical mitral or aortic valves require replacement, and who are at extreme risk for surgery. Edwards is the only company to receive a valve-in-valve indication for the mitral position, which addresses an unmet need within the clinical community to provide an alternative to a high-risk surgery.

Merge Healthcare Incorporated (Nasdaq:MRGE), a leading provider of clinical systems and innovations that seek to transform healthcare, today announced that Merge Cardio(TM) has been named Best in KLAS for the cardiology software category within the "2013 Best in KLAS: Software & Services" report. In addition, Merge Hemo(TM) has been named the Category Leader in Cardiology Hemodynamics for the third successive year.

Neovasc Inc. (TSXV: NVC) today announced that a first-in-human implantation of its Tiara™ transcatheter mitral valve was successfully performed on January 30th  by physicians at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, BC. The transapical procedure resulted in the elimination of mitral regurgitation (MR) and significantly improved heart function in the patient, without the need for cardiac bypass support and with no procedural complications.

Continuing to expand the role of endovascular aortic repair, Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Valiant Captivia Thoracic Stent Graft System to be used in the treatment of type B aortic dissections, a serious cardiovascular condition associated with high morbidity and mortality in which the upper segment of the body's main artery has become torn along the innermost layer of the vessel wall.