Heart attack patients who develop serious arrhythmia in connection with procedures to open blocked arteries face a significantly higher risk of death for several months after the procedure, when compared with similar patients who do not develop such complications, according to research published in the May 6 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Medtronic has laid off about 240 workers from a cardiovascular division plant in Santa Rosa, Calif., in a plan to shift the work to a lower-cost facility in Galway, Ireland.

SynCardia Systems, manufacturer of the SynCardia temporary CardioWest Total Artificial Heart, introduced its 12-lb Freedom discharge driver at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) meeting in Paris this week.

Teleflex Medical and the FDA notified healthcare professionals of the Class 1 recall for Arrow International 30cc, 40cc and 50cc intra-aortic balloon pump catheters, a component of the intra-aortic pump system designed to provide cardiac assist therapy to increase blood flow to the heart.

Abbott has launched MOBILITY, a clinical trial studying the safety and efficacy of the Absolute Pro peripheral self-expanding stent system to treat iliac artery disease.

With eight basic medical facts in hand, doctors can now estimate the risk of bleeding for a patient having a heart attack and help lessen the chances of occurrence, according to a study published in the April 14 issue of Circulation.

Eli Lilly and Daiichi Sankyo have launched their new heart drug prasugrel (Efient) in the U.K., following its authorization by the European Medicines Agency (EMEA).

Invatec, a provider of interventional products, has entered into a distribution agreement with interventional vascular disease treatment system developer Cardiovascular Systems, which recently merged with the biotech firm Replidyne.