BIBA Publishing
AstraZeneca calls on Americans to join US AGAINST ATHERO
This year's Artery Explorer tour kicks off this month, urging people across the USA to take action against atherosclerosis.
Fully bioabsorbable drug-eluting stent next phase trial
Abbott has announced the initiation of the next phase of the ABSORB trial to evaluate the safety and performance of the fully bioabsorbable drug eluting coronary stent.
Mini-crush vs. T-provisional techniques in bifurcation lesions
Results of a study performed to assess the clinical and angiographic long-term outcome after implanting drug-eluting stents were published in JACC Cardiovascular Interventions.
Opinion: The value of FAME
Dr Ascan Warnholtz, University of Mainz, Germany, puts into perspective the results of the trial and the use of myocardial fractional flow reserve.
“Stent 4 Life” is launched to increase the use of primary PCI
The aim of the campaign is to improve quality of care and reduce mortality rates among acute coronary patients.
New appropriateness criteria guide treatment of patients with heart blockage
Document helps physicians deciding whether it is appropriate to treat chest pain with medical therapy alone or prescribe medical therapy and also perform revascularisation.
Taxus and Cypher safe for unprotected left main coronary artery disease
According to study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, both stents provide comparable clinical and angiographic outcomes.
Taxus reduces restenosis in saphenous vein graft lesions
The SOS study showed that Taxus reduced restenosis, target lesion revascularisation, and target vessel failure compared with bare metal stents.
ATLANTA trial results are published
Catania coronary stent with NanoThin Polyzene-F shows sustained 12-month benefit in the treatment of de novo lesions.
Neurostimulation system for chronic angina receives CE mark
St Jude Medical has announced European CE mark approval of its Genesis neurostimulation system for managing chronic angina.
Randomised trial will compare Nevo to Xience
Cordis has announced plans to launch NEVO II, a global, head-to-head clinical trial to compare the Nevo sirolimus-eluting coronary stent to the Abbott's Xience V everolimus-eluting stent.
Two-year results of fully bioabsorbable drug-eluting stent published
Data in The Lancet demonstrate Abbott's device is absorbed within two years, leaving behind blood arteries that appear to move and function similar to untreated vessels.
EUROASPIRE III: Treatment fails to meet standards of international guidelines
Survey shows that large proportions of European coronary patients are failing to achieve lifestyle, risk factor and therapeutic targets for the prevention of further disease.
Heart attack: Why hospitalisation remains the same
Report proposes an explanation for the apparent paradox of improved prevention, falling mortality rates but stable rates of hospitalisation.
First patient is treated with CrossBoss and Stingray devices in the USA
BridgePoint Medical has completed the first human clinical case using its CrossBoss CTO Catheter and Stingray CTO Re-Entry System.
Abbott launches Voyager NC coronary balloon catheter
The Voyager NC is a balloon dilatation catheter designed to optimise the treatment of patients with coronary artery disease during angioplasty procedures.
PROTECT I assesses Impella’s safety
Results of the trial were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology showed device is easy to use and provides excellent hemodynamic support.
Certain combined drugs following heart attack may increase risk of death
Following an acute coronary syndrome, patients who receive a medication to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding that may be associated with the use of clopidogrel and aspirin have an increased risk of hospitalisation or death.
Abnormal heart function associated with reduced capacity for exercise
Patients with abnormal diastolic function in the left ventricle have a substantially lower maximum capacity for exercise, according to a study published in the JAMA.
Guidelines for cardiovascular disease often based on weaker evidence
An examination of clinical practice guidelines for treating cardiovascular disease finds that current recommendations are largely based on lower levels of evidence or expert opinion.
Simple blood test may predict risk of heart attack
In the not-too-distant future, a simple blood test may predict the genetic risk of suffering a heart attack, according to research from the McMaster University, Canada.
Trials examine ACS strategies
Many among the abstracts at the AHA Scientific Sessions 2008 were focused on the setting of ACS. Two such sessions were included among the high-profile Late-Breaking Clinical Trials. A third examined treatment for children with familial hypercholesterolemia.
Beta-blocker linked to risks of death and MI after non-cardiac surgery
Study shows that some patients who received beta-blockers before and around the time of non-cardiac surgery appear to have higher rates of infarction and death within 30 days of the procedure.
Emerging therapies for antiplatelet inhibition
New developments for prevention/reduction of atherothrombotic events in patients with acute coronary syndromes who undergo PCI were presented at the VEITHsymposium 2008.
ACUITY one-year sub-analysis published
Data show that Angiomax (bivalirudin) provides acute coronary syndrome patients who are undergoing PCI with similar results from ischaemic events and death versus standard therapy.
New minimal-invasive aortic valve resecting tool
Innovative prototype of a novel heart valve resection tool is based on foldable nickel-titanium (NiTi) blades.
ASH: ARB combinations effective across subgroups
Among key sessions at 2008 American Society of Hypertension (ASH) Annual Meeting were several reports on combination therapies, including those differentiating effects among specific subgroups.
Babies’ rapid weight gain linked to higher blood pressure as adults
Study over the first five years of life found that there is a link between the pace of weight gain in early childhood and high blood pressure in adulthood.
Cardiology studies on the decline
A new review of clinical trials, published online in Nature in August, revealed that the number of registered cardiology studies declined during a recent two-year period.
EU project will develop computer models of the heart
A project involving institutions from six European countries, euHeart has been created to improve the diagnosis, therapy and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Warfarin seriously underused despite efficacy in preventing stroke
Results from a Canadian study show that only 40% of ischaemic stroke patients who had atrial fibrillation had received warfarin before their stroke.
Treadmill therapy can improve mobility in stroke victims
Results from a new study suggest that patients' brains may retain the capacity to rewire through a treadmill exercise programme months or years after conventional physical therapy has ended.
Survey reveals major gap between prevention guidelines and reality
Study was designed to investigate how the standards set in 2003's Third Joint European Task Force guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention have been put into practice.
Elderly HF patients do not benefit from intensive medical therapy
The TIME-CHF trial showed that the use of natriuretic-peptide levels rather than symptoms alone to guide the medical management of heart failure failed to influence the primary endpoint of hospitalisation-free survival over 18 months.
New ATHENA data suggest decrease in stroke risk with dronedarone for AF
Results from a post-hoc analysis of the data from the trial show that dronedarone reduces stroke risk.
Omega-3 apparently beneficial in heart failure, but rosuvastatin fails
Two studies showed that statin treatment with Crestor had no effect in patients with chronic heart failure, while a one-a-day capsule of omega-3 can reduce mortality and admission to hospital for cardiovascular reasons.
ESC updates guidelines for STEMI, heart failure and pulmonary embolism
The European Society for Cardiology Committee for Practice Guidelines has released three new sets of updated guidelines in these three areas of cardiovascular care.
Dr Kim Fox
Cardiovascular News talks to Dr Kim Fox, immediate past-president of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), about getting into cardiology, his interest in ischaemic heart disease and the future of cardiovascular medicine.
JUPITER: reduced events in patients with low LDL, raised CRP
In JUPITER (Justification for the use of statins in prevention: an intervention trial evaluating rosuvastatin), a clinical trial enrolling individuals who do not currently qualify for statin therapy, rosuvastatin significantly reduced all-cause mortality by 20%.
FFR-guided stenting improves outcomes with fewer devices
The FAME trial showed that routine measurements of fractional flow reserve during percutaneous coronary intervention compared to angiographic approach reduces rate of composite endpoint of death.
Why high pressure postdilatation with non-compliant balloons is required to optimise long-term DES outcomes
The aim of this article is to review the incidence and all the possible causes and consequences of a suboptimal stent expansion.
DES market growing in Western and Central Europe
A market report from BIBA Research shows that drug-eluting stents (DES) penetration rate in Western and Central Europe increased by 1.1% to 47.6% in the second quarter 2008.
Dr Michael Ellis DeBakey (1908-2008)
The Editor of Vascular News, Professor Roger Greenhalgh, Imperial College, London, writes a personal appreciation of DeBakey.
Dr Fausto J Pinto
Professor Fausto Pinto discusses his major influences, his career achievements and his passion for travelling, books and music.
