Endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) has a lower 30-day mortality rate than open abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) surgery in trials, but rates may not be as low in a real-world setting. Researchers who compared findings from a national clinical database against a recent trial believe the difference may be in the patient cohort’s pre-existing health status.

Most cardiologists who participated in an international web survey used angiography results to assess intermediate stenoses over requesting fractional flow reserve (FFR) measurements or other techniques, contrary to guidelines. This was the case even when resources were not an obstacle.

On Oct. 16, 2014, surgeons with Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeons became the first in Texas to implant the Solo Smart Aortic Pericardial Heart Valve. Faraz Kerendi, M.D. and Stephen J. Dewan M.D., cardiothoracic surgeons at Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeons, performed the procedure at Heart Hospital of Austin.

Keck Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) is the first medical center in Southern California, post-Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, to implant a new wireless device for heart failure patients. The device is designed to reduce readmissions to the hospital and empower patients to be involved in their own health information.

Deepak Srivastava, MD, the Director of the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease and Director of the Roddenberry Center for Stem Cell Biology and Medicine, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine (IOM).

Transcatheter mitral valve implantation looks like the next frontier in treatments for patients who are at high risk for surgical valve repair or replacement. In a first-in-man report, physicians demonstrated that a transapical approach is technically feasible and potentially safe.

Northside Hospital Healthcare System continues to lead the Southeast in state-of-the-art surgical services with the introduction of three advanced robotic surgery technologies: The Magellan Robotic System, the da Vinci Xi Surgical System and the MAKOplasty surgical arm.

As part of its commitment to innovation and improving patient outcomes, Boston Scientific Corporation has initiated the PLATINUM Diversity trial to evaluate the clinical performance of the Promus PREMIER Everolimus-Eluting Platinum Chromium Coronary Stent System in underserved patient populations, including women and people of color. The Promus PREMIER Stent System is the company's latest durable polymer drug-eluting stent (DES) and is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat coronary artery disease. Wayne Batchelor, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I., and co-principal investigator, enrolled the first patient in the PLATINUM Diversity trial at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, in Tallahassee, Florida.