Interruption of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) using newer-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) may not lead to a stent thrombosis, according to data presented Oct. 31 at the 2013 Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference in San Francisco.

Women who underwent radial PCI had a lower rate of bleeding and vascular complications compared with women treated femorally, according to results of a late-breaking clinical trial presented Oct. 29 at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics Conference in San Francisco. But the overall procedural failure rate was three times higher in the radial group. 

The use of the STENTYS Self-Apposing® Stent, a paclitaxel-eluting stent (Taxol, Bristol-Myers Squibb), in certain patients with coronary bifurcation lesions has been safe and effective six months into a clinical trial, according to data presented Oct. 28 at the 2013 Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) Conference in San Francisco. If longer-term follow-up confirms their findings, using this drug-eluting stent (DES) may also be less clinically complex than current DES.

Aggressive medical management maintained its advantage over intracranial stenting in a long-term analysis of SAMMPRIS trial data. The absolute risk reduction from medical treatment was 9 percent at three years, according to results published online Oct. 26 in The Lancet.

Gregg W. Stone, MD, co-director of the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference in San Francisco, discussed the history of the 25-year-old event and its clinical trials with Cardiovascular Business in a two-part Q&A.

Marvin Woodall, former president of Johnson & Johnson Interventional Systems and a member of the board of directors at the Cardiovascular Research Foundation, has attended every Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference since its debut in 1988.

The drive to immunize people against flu received a shot in the arm with a meta-analysis published in the Oct. 23/30 issue of JAMA that found vaccine use was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular complications.

Corindus Vascular Robotics<http://www.corindus.com/>, the leader in precision vascular robotics, will showcase its FDA-approved CorPath System at the upcoming Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) 2013 annual meeting, Oct. 27 - Nov. 1 in San Francisco, CA. The CorPath is the first medical device to bring robotic precision and accuracy to coronary angioplasty to help optimize clinical outcomes. Experts from renowned hospitals and healthcare organizations across the country will deliver onsite presentations and answer questions about their clinical experience with robotic-assisted angioplasty and the significant advantages in stent precision and clinical outcomes utilizing the CorPath System.