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.

The radiotracer 18F-sodium fluoride (18F-NaF) serves as a biomarker of calcification activity in patients with aortic stenosis and may predict disease progression, according to a study published in the March issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging.

Fragmented care may increase the likelihood of Medicare beneficiaries receiving four or more CT head scans within a year of an ischemic stroke, according to a study that found regional and racial variability in high-intensity CT use.

Citing echocardiograms and nuclear cardiology as examples of distorted incentives, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPac) recommends aligning outpatient prospective payment rates to physician office rates. The change could trim $264 off hospital payments for certain echo procedures.

Few asymptomatic patients with acute coronary syndrome who undergo PCI followed by stress imaging may actually need revascularization, raising questions about the benefits of stress imaging, a study published online March 31 in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging found. 

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.