As the incidence of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) rises, endovascular interventions continue to gain wider acceptance. Yet, questions remain regarding which patients benefit most from atherectomy devices.

Interventionalists Perspective Dr. Hall Administrators Perspective Mr. Stewart

The chance of surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest at work or in the home has not improved since the 1950s, according to a report published online Nov. 10 in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

For the treatment of acute venous thromboembolism (VTE), a fixed dose of the new anticoagulant dabigatran (Pradaxa; Boehringer Ingelheim) is as effective as warfarin, has a safety profile that is similar to that of warfarin and does not require laboratory monitoring, based on the findings of the RE-COVER trial published online Dec. 6 in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Cardiovascular Systems, a developer of interventional treatment systems for vascular disease, has reported financial results for its fiscal first quarter of 2010, which ended Sept. 30.

Cook Medical is introducing five new products, which seek to treat peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and other diseases of the circulatory system.

In the United States, 200,000 people die from a pulmonary embolism (PE) each year. Most PEs originate from deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Interventionalists are using many therapies and devices to help reduce the harm caused by DVT.Pharmacomechanical thrombectomy is one such approach that involves using a combination of a lysing agent and a mechanical action to dissolve and collect the thrombus.

Covidien, known for its peripheral guidewires, entered the pharmacomechanical thrombectomy market about six months ago by acquiring Bacchus Vascular, makers of the Trellis-8 Peripheral Infusion System.