The transcatheter paediatric heart valve
Many companies are competing to develop the ideal transcatheter heart valve and catheter-based valve replacement procedures, which are revolutionizing valve replacement for larger patients.
Cardiovascular diseases
EuroPCR 2006
France - EuroPCR is a major European event for interventional cardiologists and radiologists. Focusing on existing and new technologies in percutaneous interventions (coronary, peripheral and non-coronary cardiac diseases), cardiac and vascular invasive and non-invasive imaging, this year's meeting will take place at the Palais des Congrès, Paris, from 16-19 May.
Firemen to treat emergency cardiac cases
UK - Fire-fighters are being trained to assess possible cardiac patients in emergencies, and to use automatic defibrillators and oxygen therapy.
Diseased heart pumps effectively after 10-year rest
UK - Ten years ago a donor heart was transplanted into a 2-year-old patient, suffering cardiomyopathy, to take over the function of her own enlarged and failing heart. However, unlike many transplant cases - her own heart was not removed.
Tissue engineering in paediatric cardiac surgery
When heart valves need replacing mechanical or biological heart valves are usually used. Both have disadvantages: Mechanical prostheses promote the development of blood clots so that patients need anticoagulant treatment for their lifetime.
Cardiovascular disease
Countries in the European Union spent €169 billion in 2003 on cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to research from a team at the Health Economics Research Centre, Department of Public Health, University of Oxford, England, just published on-line by the European Heart Journal.
The vendor, system administrator and manager in a new fully digital environment
A report about the installation of a new HIS in combinations with the setting up of a new Economic Software platform at Semmelweis University.
Biotechnology for regenerative surgery
Tissue engineering caused a stir at the 34th Annual Meeting of the Germany Society for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.
Right light lifts fatigue and concentration
Melatonin hormone controls the circadian rhythm. In periods of darkness, melatonin reduces cardiovascular activity and induces fatigue. Morning light inhibits melatonin secretion in the pineal gland, which increases cardiovascular activity.
First implants of absorbable metal stents
Germany - Following positive results in numerous animal studies and the first human implantations of the Biontronik Absorbable Metal Stent (AMS) in below-the-knee arteries that confirmed device safety, at the end of July the first patients (worldwide) received AMS implants.
Successfully treating CHD in infancy
Germany - 0.7% of newborn babies need surgery for congenital heart defects (CHD) - i.e. around 5,000-6,000 children in every 700,000 born.
The electronic stethoscope
A processing system said to pick up cardiac sounds and correlate these with any related abnormalities, e.g. valve defects, stenosis, fibrillation, septal defect, etc, has been developed by the US firm Biosignetics Corporation.
Viagra tested on Everest
Sildenafil, an active agent used in the impotence drug Viagra, has been administered to seven young mountaineers on an Everest expedition, to test its effect on the lungs. Seven other men on the expedition are receiving a placebo.
Small silent VADs
Ventricular assist devices (VAD) have been used since the 1980s, primarily to provide support after cardiac surgery for several days during recovery, or more often to keep patients alive until later heart transplantation (HTx).
The ESC Congress
25,000 visitors and medical professionals from 47 National Cardiac Societies across central and greater Europe, will attend the 2004 ESC Congress, where 'Diabetes and heart disease' will be the main theme. Lars Ryden, ESC Past-President, team member for the Euro-Heart Survey on Diabetes, and Chairman of the 'Guidelines for Diabetes & the Heart', and William Wijns, co-chair and Chairman of the…
Cardiovascular disease
Europe - Every year, 4 million people die from cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Europe as a whole (as many as 800,000 of them under 65 years old) and, in the EU Member States, over 1.5 million people die annually from CVD.
CHF: A major healthcare burden
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a major healthcare problem with 1-2% of the population affected in Western countries. Because it increases with age, the prevalence of CHF is escalating with our aged populations.
BP: A poor indicator for cardiac disease
Blood pressure (BP) screening, either alone or in combination with other cardiovascular risk factors such as cholesterol levels, does not determine a person's chance of having a heart attack or stroke, reports Professor Malcolm Law and colleagues at the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine in the Journal of Medical Screening.
Taxus
France - Four studies of three TAXUS paclitaxel-eluting stents have demonstrated their safety and efficacy, according to the maker, Boston Scientific Corporation of Natick, Maryland, USA.
50 years of open heart surgery
Fifty years ago Henry Gibbon introduced a vital tool for cardiac surgery - the heart-lung machine. While pioneering efforts were made in the first half of the 20th century, this equipment enabled reproducible operations for either congenital or acquired heart disease in many patients.
'Polypill' cuts cardiac attacks by 80%
A newly invented 'Polypill', composed of currently available drugs, may act as a 'vaccine' against heart disease, according to new research published in the British Medical Journal (28 June. BMJ 2003;326:1419).
Artificial hibernation and aortic surgery
2,871 aortic surgery procedures were carried out in Germany last year. 317 of these were on the aortic arch - and particularly dangerous.
Mobile test detects infarction in minutes
The earlier a cardiac infarction is detected the better the patient's chances of survival. However, because tests for cardiac infarction check for protein molecules that are released from heart muscle during cell necrosis, and these enter the blood very slowly, it can take three hours to gain a reliable result.
PUI saves costs
Russia & Netherlands - Immediate echocardiographic assessment during consultation rounds can lead to significant cost savings and can shorten the time to diagnosis, according to a new study carried out by teams at the Dept. of Cardiology, Thoraxcentre, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam and the Dept. of Internal Diseases, Medical Academy of Nizhny, Novgorod.
Cardiac Assist Devices
Cardiac assist devices (CAD) are blood pumps that support the circulatory functions of severely ill cardiac patients.