The placebo effect may actually work, according to a study published in the September issue of the American Heart Journal. German researchers who verbally signaled to cardiology patients that they would receive a drug (actually a placebo) to improve symptoms saw improvements in coronary blood flow and vasoconstriction, which made chest pain perception decrease.

Novant Health's two largest hospitals, Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, N.C., and Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., will be affiliated with the Cleveland Clinic to deliver cardiovascular services across the Carolinas.

Administering selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in combination with antiplatelet therapy increases bleeding risk in patients post-acute MI, according to a study published Sept. 26 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ). The authors warned that physicians should exhibit caution when administering SSRIs for depression after MI.

Fractional flow reserve, intravascular ultrasound and optical coherence tomography wont eliminate what cardiologists term the gray zoneambiguous cases that fall between appropriate and notbut they may provide evidence to help clinicians use good judgment.

Savvy cath lab managers have learned a number of ways to cut down on costs without compromising care. Trimming waste, expanding buying power, building partnerships and automating processes help achieve these goals.

ClearStream Technologies of County Wexford, Ireland, has agreed to be acquired by C.R. Bard of Murray Hill, N.J., for approximately $68.5 million in cash.

In patients with STEMI, shorter delay to primary PCI (PPCI) is associated with lower risk for readmissions or outpatient contacts due to congestive heart failure (CHF) during follow-up, according to a study published Sept. 20 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Among patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) undergoing a procedure such as angioplasty, those who received platelet function tests before receiving anti-thrombotic therapy to determine appropriate clopidogrel dosing and who had high residual platelet reactivity were at an increased risk of an ischemic event at short- and long-term follow-up of up to two years, according to the results of the RECLOSE 2-ACS study in the Sept. 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. However, the editorialist suggested that platelet testing should not be used routinely in clinical practice.