St. Jude paid $170 million to acquire a Swiss company that specializes in force-sensing ablation catheters.

Tony Das, MD, the cardiologist who treated George W. Bush on Aug. 6, discusses his reasoning for the former president’s stent procedure in a blog entry posted on the American Heart Association’s site. 

New Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) released by the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and developed in collaboration with 10 other leading professional societies provides detailed criteria to help clinicians optimize the appropriate use of peripheral vascular ultrasound and physiological testing when caring for patients with known or suspected venous disease.

Hospitals across the country are now voluntarily reporting their 30-day all-cause risk-standardized readmission rates following PCI.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized its proposal to eliminate the distinction in coverage criteria between single- and dual-chamber devices.

A cardiovascular research team from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), led by BIDMC Principal Investigator Saumya Das, MD, PhD, has been awarded a $4 million Common Fund grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as part of a newly formed program on Extracellular RNA Communication. The five-year grant will focus on identifying microRNA biomarkers in heart disease.

Using cardiac MRI, researchers found that aortic regurgitation (AR) after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) did not decrease over time. Instead, the incidence and severity of paravalvular AR increased slightly at six-month follow-up.

Bioheart, Inc. (OTCQB: BHRT) announced today that Mike Tomas, the company's President/CEO, has been appointed to serve on Workforce Florida's Board of Directors for a four year term by Florida Governor Rick Scott. Tomas is one of 15 Floridians appointed to the Board of Directors. Workforce Florida is charged with overseeing the state's workforce system and developing strategies that will improve the state's business environment while supporting its economy (www.EmployFlorida.com).