The Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) Center of the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, directed by Dr. Barry J. Maron, will host the fifth international summit on HCM: A Contemporary Treatable Disease on Sept. 27-29 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Minneapolis, Minn.

Emphasizing the importance of establishing routine objective, external reviews of cardiac cath lab (CCL) processes, Ralph G. Brindis, MD, MPH, MACC, FSCAI, Clinical Professor of Medicine, Department of Medicine & the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, Senior Medical Officer, External Affairs, ACC National Cardiovascular Data Registry, Past President, American College of Cardiology, challenged participants during the 2013 Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) Scientific Sessions in Orlando, FL by asking: "How do you know that your CCL practices are okay?"

The new American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) Surgical Risk Calculator is a revolutionary new tool that quickly and easily estimates patient-specific postoperative complication risks for almost all operations, according to research findings appearing online in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. The study will be published in a print edition of the Journal later this year.

The American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) has recently released an online education program for physicians and technologists involved in the practice of nuclear cardiology. This program offers continuing education credits and provides valuable quality control procedures and radiation safety information.

An algorithm capable of diagnosing heart rhythm with just 3 seconds' worth of signal, and the demonstration that it is possible to come up with the diagnosis without stopping cardiac massage, constitute the types of solutions and proposals being developed by researchers in the Signal and Communications Group of the Faculty of Engineering in Bilbao (UPV/EHU-University of the Basque Country).

Foreign-trained immigrant physicians potentially could alleviate the expected shortage in physicians as healthcare reform moves forward, according to the New York Times, but restrictive policies prevent some doctors from practicing.

As randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews in healthcare have grown in their number and influence, there is an increasing need to identify those studies which should change how physicians treat their patients – and those which should not. F1000Trials extends the widely-recognized system of peer-nominated experts identifying great research in biology and medicine pioneered by F1000Prime. In F1000Trials, the F1000 Faculty Members provide expert assessment of newly published trial articles and write short reviews, recommending the most noteworthy by assigning star ratings and highlighting those which change clinical practice.

Nicolas Chronos, MD has been named Chief Medical Officer for Endotronix.  Dr. Chronos is an interventional cardiologist who is well known for his pioneering research in the treatment of heart disease.