Credit card-sized device detects heart disease
Testing people for heart disease might be just a finger prick away thanks to a new credit card-sized device created by a team of researchers from Harvard and Northeastern universities in Boston.
Cardiovascular diseases
Long-term association between smoking and cardiovascular risk
Non-smokers live longer and have less cardiovascular disease than those who smoke, according to a 30-year follow-up study of 54,000 men and women in Norway. Smoking, say the investigators, is “strongly” related to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality from various causes.
A multimodal approach strengthens non-invasive diagnostics
Echocardiography is the work horse of non-invasive cardiovascular diagnostics. Has this developed?
Met at KIMES
During KIMES, Karoline Laarmann (European Hospital) met with Joong-Ho Lee, Senior Executive Vice President of the ultrasound systems manufacturer MEDISON, the Korean firm that entered the ultrasound market in the 1980s and quickly established a global reputation for innovative developments (e.g. the firm produced the first commercial real-time 3-D ultrasound scanner).
Data management system automates ECG processing and storage
Agfa HealthCare has released the latest version of its IMPAX HeartStation, a comprehensive management system for electrocardiograms (ECGs). Built on standards-based architecture, the system supports most existing and new ECG devices, integrating easily with the legacy hospital and clinic IT infrastructure and ECG workflow, Agfa reports.
EuroPCR 2009
EuroPCR 2009 is focused on minimally invasive cardiac surgery, but narrowing the broad field of cardiology does not make this conference any less complex.
Protein cocktail directs production of new heart cells
A cocktail of proteins that triggers the production of new heart muscle cells has been discovered by Benoit G Bruneau and Jun Kakeuchi at the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, in San Francisco.
Test for low fingertip temperature detects coronary plaque
Results of five clinical studies evaluating the predictive value of VENDYS, a new FDA-approved cardiovascular test, were presented at the 2009 Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology in Florida.
The 75th DGK Congress
In April, the 75th annual congress of the German Cardiac Society (DGK) was considered a great success, drawing in some 7,900 specialists.
Congenital cardiac surgery in Russia
Last year a special cardiac surgery department was opened in the Filatov Children's Hospital in Moscow. Until then, the only one in all of Russia was at the Children's Hospital #1, in Saint-Petersburg, where cardiac surgeon Vadim Lubomudrov has led the field in this delicate work.
Cultural-sensitive care and the European Qualification framework
Healthcare services often do not reach the target groups because socio-cultural preferences and values of patients and their relatives are not properly considered.
Gene Test Determines Risk of Heart Surgery Complications
Genetic differences can explain why some patients undergoing heart surgery later experience shock and kidney complications, according to a study by German and Australian researchers. The results indicate that performing a genetic test on patients before they have surgery can help guide treatment after they leave the operating room.
Non surgical mitral valve repair: First enrollment in ACCESS-Europe study
Evalve, Inc., the leader in the development of devices for the percutaneous repair of cardiac valves, announced the first enrollment in the ACCESS-Europe study, a post-market observational study of the MitraClip therapy in Europe. The system is the first commercially available treatment option for non-surgical mitral valve repair for patients suffering from the effects of functional and…
Hybrid approach to treat coronary artery disease
Patients with coronary artery disease -- blockages of the vessels that feed the heart -- can be treated in a number of ways. With their doctor, they decide on the best course of action: surgery, stent placement or medication. Sometimes, a combination of these is the best approach.
Deutscher Kardiologenkongress startet in Mannheim
Von Donnerstag, 16. April 2009, bis Samstag, 18. April 2009, findet in Mannheim die 75. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Kardiologie (DGK) statt, zu der rund 7000 aktive Teilnehmer aus 25 Ländern erwartet werden.
The summit of science
For this year's ECR president, Professor Borut Marincek, there could be no more apt motto for the event than The Summit of Science. ‘Over the last 20 years, imaging procedures, particularly radiology, have revolutionised healthcare. At the same time, radiology as a high-tech discipline is dependent on an increased natural scientific and technological knowledge. Therefore, the objective is to…
Cardiovascular MRI
The role of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assess the effect of therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction was demonstrated in a series of papers during the 12th Annual Scientific Sessions of the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), held in Orlando, Fla. USA (29 Jan - 1 Feb).
GE's new Discovery PET/CT 600 scanners go global
GE Healthcare's first Discovery PET/CT 600-series scanners are being installed in a number of leading clinics around the world. "This first set of installations is a big step forward in the diagnosis and monitoring of disease", said Terri Bresenham, newly appointed vice- president and general manager of GE Healthcare's global Molecular Imaging business.
Heart, body and mind
The clear focus of the numerous lectures given at the International MRI Symposium was on cardiac imaging.
Day Time sleepiness provides red flag for cardiovascular disease
Clinicians should be alert to patients reporting “excessive” day time sleepiness, says the European Society of Cardiology, after a French study found healthy elderly people who regularly report feeling sleepy during the day have a 49 % relative risk increase of cardiovascular death, compared to those who do not report sleepiness.
Royal Philips Electronics leads Sonodrugs Project
Philips leads the €15.9 million project to develop image-guided localized drug delivery technologies that could significantly impact the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular disease. The goal is to maximize therapeutic efficiency and minimize side effects of treatments for cancer and cardiovascular disease. The hope is that this level of control will also provide a means of tailoring the…
Better management of complex arrhythmias
Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands and global company Bard Electrophysiology are starting a collaboration to develop new clinical tools for the work of electrophysiologists and lab staff. The ambitious goals are to improve the workflow with simpler and more intuitive approaches and to gain detailed visualization for interventions within the heart's electrical circuitry.
Cold winter months increase risk of hypertension
The colder the weather, the greater the increase in blood pressure in the elderly population - to this conclusion comes a French study from Bordeaux, Dijon and Montpellier. The authors recommend to improve the blood pressure management in the elderly when outdoor temperature is very low by close monitoring of blood pressure and antihypertensive medication.
Diabetes: Low-glycemic food decreases risk for heart diseases
A study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently has found that those with type 2 diabetes who had a diet high in low-glycemic foods such as nuts, beans and lentils had greater improvement in glycemic control and risk factors for coronary heart disease than those on a diet with an emphasis on high-cereal fibre.
11% drop in AMI admissions
Less acute heart attacks in Italy five months after the introduction of a smoking ban in indoor public places.