Structural Heart Disease

Structural heart diseases include any issues preventing normal cardiovascular function due to damage or alteration to the anatomical components of the heart. This is caused by aging, advanced atherosclerosis, calcification, tissue degeneration, congenital heart defects and heart failure. The most commonly treated areas are the heart valves, in particular the mitral and aortic valves. These can be replaced through open heart surgery or using cath lab-based transcatheter valves or repairs to eliminate regurgitation due to faulty valve leaflets. This includes transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Other common procedures include left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion and closing congenital holes in the heart, such as PFO and ASD. A growing area includes transcatheter mitral repair or replacement and transcatheter tricuspid valve repair and replacement.

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Senators petition for controlled substance e-prescribing

A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators asked Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General Eric Holder to quickly put federal regulations in place that would allow e-prescribing for controlled substances.

CMS deals setback to warfarin gene testing

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has decided that current evidence does not demonstrate that pharmacogenomic testing to predict warfarin responsiveness improves health outcomes in Medicare beneficiaries, and has suggested that coverage with evidence development (CED) is appropriate.

Bristol-Myers scores strong Q1

Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) has released its 2009 fiscal first quarter results, which show strong financial performance and the execution of two key strategic initiatives.

Eli Lilly, Amylin ink $216M diabetes deal, begin new trial

Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly have entered, in principle, into a joint supply agreement for an exenatide once weekly pen device. The companies also have initiated a phase 1/2 clinical study to examine a new exenatide once weekly suspension formulation.

Circulation: More CPR compressions, less interruption lead to increased survival

Survival rates from out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest almost doubled when professional rescuers using cardiopulmonary resuscitation gave better chest compressions and minimized interruptions to them, according to research reported May 4 in Circulation.

NEJM: JUPITER sub-study finds Crestor cuts VTE risk 43%

Rosuvastatin (Crestor from AstraZeneca) significantly reduced the occurrence of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) in the atria of apparently healthy persons, according to a sub-study of the JUPITER trial published in the April 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

AIM: High co-pays keep chronically ill from starting meds

Patients newly diagnosed with hypertension, diabetes or high cholesterol are significantly more likely to delay initiating recommended drug treatment if they face higher co-payments for medications, according to a study published in the April 27 edition of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Report: Global pharma market not recession-proof

The value of the global pharmaceutical market is expected to grow 2.5 to 3.5 percent on a constant-dollar basis in 2009--two percentage points lower than indicated in October 2008, as deterioration in the global economic environment continues to affect market demand, according to a report from IMS Health.

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