Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans is further improving patient safety and comfort in interventional cardiology by adding new equipment from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. Ochsner installed a new hybrid OR suite and an InfinixTM DP-i cardiovascular X-ray system to conduct transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and other coronary and peripheral procedures.

ACE is proud to be referenced as a pioneer of accreditation standards in the new health policy statement from the American College of Cardiology, American Heart Association, and Society for Cardiovascular Angiography (ACC/AHA/SCAI). The policy statement defines new standards for structured reporting of clinical and operational data in the cardiac catheterization laboratory. With the new policy statement, ACC/AHA/SCAI notes the “increasing importance of accreditation of cardiac catheterization laboratories.”

Preregistration attendance for Heart Rhythm Society 2014 has increased significantly compared with last year in all demographic categories, said John D. Day, MD, chair of the scientific session program committee, with notable bumps in international physicians and allied professionals.

Stamford, Conn., March 27, 2014 - FUJIFILM Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. will highlight an integrated Synapse portfolio that allows cardiologists  and clinical professionals to enhance patient care through optimized productivity at the 63rd Annual Scientific Session & Expo of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) on March 29 - 31 in Washington, DC.

Minneapolis Heart Institute Chief Cardiology Fellow Ankur Kalra, MD has been named as a finalist for the 2014 ACCF Young Investigators Awards. Kalra's research, funded by the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation (MHIF), supports the ongoing quest to better identify, with noninvasive tools, which heart attack survivors are at greatest risk for sudden cardiac death, and therefore may benefit from ICD (implantable cardioverter defibrillator) therapy. Kalra will present his research at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) meeting in Washington, DC on March 31, 2014.

An article by Bloomberg News claims that the cath lab at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City has sent patients with previously scheduled appointments through its emergency department (ED), a practice that may allow for uninsured patients’ costs to be covered. The hospital has not been accused of any wrong-doing and hospital officials said they are reviewing issues related to the allegations.

A subcommittee of the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) published a list of five treatments and procedures electrophysiologists should avoid in patients with arrhythmias. The five “don’ts” are available on the HRS website.