St. Jude Medical has launched its MediGuide Technology, a 3D navigation system intended for the evaluation of vascular and cardiac anatomy on a recorded fluoroscopic image instead of live fluoroscopy (a series of x-ray images).

Patients with a body mass index of 40 kg/m2 or greater should be scheduled for myocardial perfusion imagingon a conventional SPECT camera, as it is difficult to obtain diagnostic image quality on a cadmium-zinc-telluride camera, according to a study in the September issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

The use of CT angiography (CTA) to help guide preventive surgical strategies for patients undergoing redo CABG appears to be justified, based on recently published results.

Despite recommendations to the contrary, screening for carotid artery stenosis remains prevalent. Check out the pros and cons.

Overnight imaging subspecialty coverageas opposed to a more traditional model of on-call preliminary interpretations by a residentresulted in an increase in CT utilization in community emergency departments (EDs), according to a study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

A 320-detector CT scanner can accurately identify which people with chest pain need, or dont need, an invasive procedure such as cardiac angioplasty or bypass surgery to restore blood flow to the heart, according to the results of the CORE 320 study presented Aug. 28 at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Munich.

DeFACTO, a study designed to assess the performance of a noninvasive method for gauging the physiologic significance of coronary artery disease (CAD), failed to meet its prespecified primary endpoint, researchers reported Aug. 26 at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Munich. But that may be the result of the studys high standards, according to the author of an editorial that accompanied the studys simultaneous publication online in the Journal of the American Medical Association, who agreed with the researchers that the approach holds promise.

Coronary artery calcium (CAC) provided superior discrimination and risk reclassification compared with other risk markersankle-brachial index, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and family historyall of which are independent predictors of incident coronary heart disease/cardiovascular disease in intermediate-risk individuals, according to a study in the Aug. 22/29 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.