Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) do not appear to be associated with a reduced risk of death in women with advanced heart failure, according to a meta-analysis in Mondays issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

The impending shortage of cardiologists some 16,000 by 2050 not only calls for more medical students to enter cardiology. It also calls for those currently in practice to work smarter. One of the best ways to work smarter is through the proper use of information technology.Of course, not many cardiologists or staff will be actively involved in IT. And thats where the chief information officers (CIOs) come in. A report from the IBM Institute for Business Value found that CIOs wisely spend much of their time developing innovations for their organizations.

The impending shortage of cardiologists some 16,000 by 2050 not only calls for more medical students to enter cardiology. It also calls for those currently in practice to work smarter. One of the best ways to work smarter is through the proper use of information technology.Of course, not many cardiologists or staff will be actively involved in IT. And thats where the chief information officers (CIOs) come in. A report from the IBM Institute for Business Value found that CIOs wisely spend much of their time developing innovations for their organizations.

The National ICD Registry, a repository of implantable cardioverter device (ICD) data developed through a partnership of the Heart Rhythm Society and the American College of Cardiology Foundation, has released the National ICD Registry Annual Report 2008. This is the third annual review of the Registry and is published in the September edition of HeartRhythm.

Volumetric oblique coronal reformations are a useful noninvasive method to provide diagnostic information about periampullary abnormalities as well as show secondary features important for local staging and management of the ampulla of Vater, according to research published this month in the American Journal of Roentgenology.

CT arthrography may offer comparable sensitivity and specificity as MR arthrography for the detection of repeat superior labral anterior-to-posterior (SLAP) tears, according to a retrospective analysis published this month in Radiology.

Endosense, a medical technology company focused on catheter ablation to treat cardiac arrhythmias, has received $36 million in series B financing.

Warfarin therapy for patients with atrial fibrillation appears to be most beneficial for the oldest patients, those who have had a prior stroke and for patients with multiple risk factors for stroke, according to a comparative effectiveness research study in the Sept. 1 issue in the Annals of Internal Medicine.