Bayer Medical Care has appointed Samuel M. Liang as incoming president and CEO of Medrad, a cardiovascular device company, upon the retirement of John Friel later this year. Liang will succeed Friel as of July 1.

When treatment for STEMI patients meets guideline-suggested timeframes, patients fare substantially better, whether that treatment is primary PCI or fibrinolysis, Laura Lambert, PhD, of the Quebec Healthcare Assessment Agency in Montreal, told Cardiovascular Business News.

Covidien has signed a definitive merger agreement to acquire all of the outstanding shares of ev3 for $22.50 per share in cash, for a total of $2.6 billion to expand its vascular and endovascular platforms.

For coronary artery disease (CAD) patients undergoing PCI with drug-eluting stents, routine measurement of fractional flow reserve reduces rates of MI and death compared with standard angiography-guided PCI, according to a study published online May 26 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

GE Healthcare will expand the use of its Mac-Lab XT and XTi hemodynamic recording systems to be compatible with fractional flow reserve (FFR) systems.

Since the clinical benefits of fractional flow reserve (FFR) were confirmed with the release of the FAME study in January 2009, the technology has gained wider adoption. To assess its impact on contemporary cath labs, five interventionalists came together from across the U.S. to discuss the economic considerations.

With the positive initial results of the CREST trial released in February, more facilities will begin exploring the idea of implementing a carotid artery stenting (CAS) program and weigh the challengesincluding turf battlesand  benefits, such as multidisciplinary cooperation.

Biosensors International has appointed Jeffrey B. Jump as its president and CEO, after its current president, R. Michael Kleine resigned.