Interventional Cardiology

This cardiac subspecialty uses minimally invasive, catheter-based technologies in a cath lab to diagnose and treat coronary artery disease (CAD). The main focus in on percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) to revascularize patients with CAD that is causing blockages resulting in ischemia or myocardial infarction. PCI mainly consists of angioplasty and implanting stents. Interventional cardiology has greatly expanded in scope over recent years to include a number of transcatheter structural heart interventions.

ACC: TAVR results maintain for high-risk surgical candidates at two years

CHICAGOAt two years, in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (AS) who were high-risk candidates for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR), transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) remained equivalent to surgical AVR with similar rates of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality; and symptom improvement was similar in both groups and maintained through two years, based on the longer term PARTNER A results, presented March 26 at the 61st annual American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

ACC: Off-pump and on-pump CABG equally good at 30 days

CHICAGOPatients who underwent either on-pump or off-pump CABG surgery had similar outcomes at 30 days, according to a late breaking clinical trial presented March 26 at the American College of Cardiologys 61st scientific session. But with either procedure, operator experience was critical to success, and the results didnt rule out potential differences in long-term outcomes, said Andre Lamy, MD, of the Population Health Research Institute at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.

ACC: Policymakers can rest assured about safety of PCI without surgical backup

CHICAGOOutcomes for patients who received elective PCI at hospitals with no onsite cardiac surgery were similar to their counterparts treated at hospitals with on-site cardiac surgery, according to a study released March 25 at the American College of Cardiologys  (ACC) 61st annual scientific session. The results may help inform policymakers as they weigh issues such as access to PCI and resources, said lead investigator Thomas Aversano, MD, of Johns Hopkins Cardiology at Greater Baltimore Medical Center in Baltimore.

ACC: New data may RESET thinking on DAPT duration

CHICAGOThe zotarolimus eluting coronary stent (Endeavor, Medtronic) plus three months of dual-antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) could be safe and beneficial for selected patients with coronary artery disease who may need to stop DAPT soon after drug-eluting stent implantation, according to study results of RESET presented March 24 at the 61st annual American College of Cardiologys (ACC) scientific session.

ACC: Patient selection will be key if vorapaxar gets approved

Adding vorapaxar to aspirin in atherosclerosis patients could help reduce the patients risk of cardiovascular (CV) events; however, stroke patients may not be able to reap the benefits, according to a late-breaking clinical trial presented this morning at the 61st annual American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session. However, some questioned the drug's safety due to the risk of bleeding found, suggesting that proper patient selection will be imperative.

ACCA: Same-day discharge possible post-PCI

CHICAGOAttempting to get patients in an out of the hospital quicker after PCI is feasible and should be a goal for hospitals, especially for those looking for an avenue to cut costs, said L. Van-Thomas Crisco, MD, medical group of St. JosephsCardiology in Atlanta, during a presentation March 23 at the American College of Cardiovascular Administrators (ACCA) annual meeting.

Circ: Blacks treated with fibrinolysis or PPCI at higher risk of bleeding

Black STEMI patients treated with either fibrinolysis or primary PCI (PPCI) had higher rates of bleeding compared with their white counterparts, according to a study published online March 14 in Circulation. In both groups, bleeding was associated with a higher risk of death. But an accompanying editorial cautioned that the researchers may have overextended their data.

St. Jude settles vascular closure differences with Kensey Nash for $39M

Kensey Nash and St. Jude Medical have entered a settlement agreement to resolve claims pertaining to Angio-Seal vascular closure device licenses.

Around the web

Several key trends were evident at the Radiological Society of North America 2024 meeting, including new CT and MR technology and evolving adoption of artificial intelligence.

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