Electrophysiology

The cardiac subspecialty of electrophysiology (EP) diagnoses and treats arrhythmias. This includes use of pacemakers to treat bradycardia, implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) for tachycardia, heart failure and patients at risk of sudden cardiac arrest, and cardiac ablation treatments to treat heart rhythm disorders.

Cardiologist compensation still rising, especially in invasive and interventional cardiology
Updated compensation data includes good news for multiple subspecialties. The new report also examines private equity's impact on employment models and how much male cardiologists earn compared to females.
AHA issues a scientific statement on COVID-19 cardiac arrhythmias
The objective of the AHA scientific statement is to review the available evidence on for better management of cardiac arrhythmias from COVID causes that are still encountered on a regular basis.
Cardiologists perform world’s first substernal lead extraction
The 49-year-old patient was not in pain or suffering any complications, but he wished to have his extravascular ICD removed once his symptoms improved. The care team agreed to extract it after a long discussion, and they said it was "easier than expected."
Medtronic’s OmniaSecure, the smallest ICD lead of its kind, linked to long-term durability
Reliability modeling suggests the small-diameter defibrillation lead, already linked to positive early outcomes, should last patients for at least 10 years—and likely longer.
Rising heart failure, AFib rates a ‘wake-up call’ for US cardiologists
Today's heart teams already face a number of challenges on a day-to-day basis. New data suggest they could soon be treating more patients than ever before.

Patricia Blake named new CEO of Heart Rhythm Society

Patricia V. Blake will take over as CEO of the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) next March, HRS leadership announced Oct. 26.

October 26, 2018

Study Shows Improved Quality of Life and Reduced Symptoms In Patients Treated with Medtronic Cryoballoon

DUBLIN and MUNICH — August 28, 2018 — Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) today announced new findings from the CRYO4PERSISTENT AF clinical trial demonstrating improved quality of life, reduced symptoms from abnormal heart rhythms, and low incidence of reinterventions and repeat ablation procedures.

August 28, 2018

New Study Demonstrates Feasibility of Novel Mechanical Sensor in Medtronic Micra Transcatheter Pacing System to Detect Atrial Contractions and Restore AV Synchrony

DUBLIN and BOSTON — May 11, 2018 — Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) today announced new clinical study results demonstrating that an investigational algorithm, utilizing the accelerometer signal in the Micra(TM) Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) may restore AV synchrony, improving cardiac function in patients with sinus rhythm and atrioventricular (AV) block.

May 14, 2018

AFib ablation outperforms drugs in CABANA trial

Catheter ablation was found to be superior to optimal drug therapy for the primary treatment of atrial fibrillation (AFib) in the randomized CABANA trial presented May 10 at the Heart Rhythm Society’s annual scientific sessions in Boston. However, there was a caveat.

May 11, 2018

Study Shows Positive Results with Medtronic Cryoballoon for Patients with Persistent Atrial Fibrillation

DUBLIN and BARCELONA, Spain - MARCH 19, 2018 - Medtronic plc (NYSE: MDT) today announced one-year results from the CRYO4PERSISTENT AF study of ablation with the Arctic Front Advance(TM) Cryoballoon to isolate the pulmonary veins in patients with symptomatic persistent atrial fibrillation (AF).

March 19, 2018

Electrophysiology pioneer Arthur J. Moss dies at 86

Arthur J. Moss, MD, known in the cardiology field for his extensive research in diagnosing and treating long QT syndrome (LQTS), died of cancer Feb. 14 at his home in Brighton, New York. He was 86.

March 1, 2018

HRS2017: Wearable defibrillators are safe, effective for pediatric patients

A new study from Cincinnati’s Children’s Hospital has found that the use of a wearable cardioverter defibrillator (WCD) is safe and effective for treating ventricular arrhythmias in pediatric patients at risk from sudden cardiac death.

May 15, 2017

HRS2017: AI-enabled Apple Watch detects AFib in UCSF study

Apple devices just keep getting smarter. New research presented at this year’s Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) conference in Chicago showed that when paired with an artificial intelligence-based algorithm, the watch can detect atrial fibrillation (AFib).

May 15, 2017

Around the web

Health Imaging

Use of AI opportunistic screening in CT for cardiovascular disease

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.

Health Imaging

New imaging protocols proposed to curb rise of cardiovascular infections

Eleven medical societies have signed on to a consensus statement aimed at standardizing imaging for suspected cardiovascular infections.

Electrophysiology

Cardiologist compensation still rising, especially in invasive and interventional cardiology

AHA issues a scientific statement on COVID-19 cardiac arrhythmias

Cardiologists perform world’s first substernal lead extraction

Medtronic’s OmniaSecure, the smallest ICD lead of its kind, linked to long-term durability

Rising heart failure, AFib rates a ‘wake-up call’ for US cardiologists

Around the web