When I wrote an article two years ago for Cardiovascular Business (Sept/Oct 2008, page 40), I outlined the potential impact the severe 2008-2010 Medicare cuts would have on non-hospital outpatient cath labs (OPCLs). At that time, three OPCL members of the Cardiovascular Outpatient Center Alliance (COCA), an educational and advocacy association, had decided to either sell to local hospitals or close their doors. I anticipated that many more would likely follow their lead if COCA could not educate CMS to change the reimbursement mechanism for OPCLs.

Better EMS and cath lab collaborations reduce door-to-balloon times and lead to better patient care, particularly in STEMI patients, said Ivan C. Rokos, MD, of University of California, Los Angeles, during a presentation at the 59th annual American College of Cardiology scientific session last week.

Sunday & Monday, March 14-15, 9:15 AM - 4:15 PMTuesday, March 16, 9:15 AM 12:45 PM Interventionalists, cardiac surgeons and general cardiologists will want to explore this multi-modality room, designed to support a variety of integrated surgical and endovascular procedures. This high-tech venue will allow you to get a first-hand lookand feelof the latest technologies.

Saturday, March 13, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM   Usually, when speaking about the cath lab of tomorrow, youd expect to hear about hybrid suites and high-definition 50-foot monitors. Not in this session, which might be better titled: New Practices in Our Cath Lab of Tomorrow.

Saturday, March 13, 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM If you intend to be in town on Saturday, this session is a must. It will outline how you can help your patients better understand their treatment and careand potentially lead to improved compliance.

Even though manual compression dates back to the 1950s, the adoptioan of vascular closure devices (VCDs) is rapidly growing, despite modest comparative research. Nevertheless, the extant researchand anecdotal experienceis helping to define best practices for this evolving field.

GE Healthcare added another notch to its partnership with Steris by receiving 510(k) clearance from the FDA to use its Innova x-ray digital angiography system to perform minimally invasive surgery, according to a company spokesperson at the 21st annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference.

SAN FRANCISCOWhen stent manufacturers send their representatives to the cath lab, their presence can influence the interventionalists choice of stent, according to a study presented at the 21st annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference.