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.

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Turco becomes CMO at Covidien

Mark A. Turco, MD, former director of cardiac and vascular research at Washington Adventist Hospital in Takoma Park, Md., has accepted the position of chief medical officer (CMO) at Covidien within its vascular therapies unit.

FDA expands carotid stenting indications

The FDA has expanded indications for the RX Acculink carotid stent to include patients at risk for stroke due to clogged neck arteries. This decision is a major breakthrough in the debate surrounding carotid artery stenting (CAS) and carotid endarterectomy (CEA) for stroke prevention.

SCAI: Community-based protocols, education can reduce MI size

BALTIMORE--The implementation of several protocols, as well as outreach community education programs, resulted in a significant reduction in overall ischemic time in STEMI which correlated with a reduction in overall infarct size, according to a scientific poster presented May 4 at the 2011 Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) scientific sessions.

SCAI: Long distance helicopter travel doesnt improve D2B times

BALTIMOREHelicopter transport does not substantially improve treatment times for patients in more distant hospitals, according to a scientific poster, evaluating the statewide North Carolina RACE project, presented May 4 at the 2011 Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) scientific sessions.

Using FFR could save Germany EUR 14M

An economic analysis of the FAME study, a trial evaluating the use of fractional flow reserve (FFR), has shown that routine FFR use can improve outcomes and save Germany an estimated 14 million EUR ($20.7 million U.S.) in 2011 and 2012. The results of the economic analysis of the St. Jude Medical PressureWire technology was presented at Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Kardiologie in Mannheim, Germany.

AIM: DES stent use racks up $1.57B bill

Drug-eluting stents (DES) were introduced to the market in 2003, and since then usage has added $1.57 billion in annual Medicare expenditures among beneficiaries age 66 to 85, according to an editorial published online April 25 in Archives of Internal Medicine.

JACC: Two studies added to platelet function testing mix

Two studies this week in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Interventions explored both the use of prasugrel (Effient) and higher doses of clopidogrel to evaluate genetic responses, adding to the extensive database of research surrounding patients responses to clopidogrel (Plavix).

Circ: Sending interventionalists to STEMI patients can improve outcomes

In Shanghai, China, a highly-populated and traffic-congested city, STEMI patients saw better long-term results and received faster treatment when an interventionalist-transfer strategy was used, according to the results of the REVERSE-STEMI study published in the April 26 issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

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