September 2, 2014 — Boston Scientific has released the primary endpoint results from its NEural Cardiac TherApy foR Heart Failure (NECTAR-HF) clinical trial, the first and only randomized sham-controlled clinical trial investigating vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) for the treatment of heart failure (HF) patients.

Janssen Research & Development, LLC and its development partner, Bayer HealthCare, announced results from the X-VeRT trial, demonstrating once-daily rivaroxaban may be an alternative to vitamin K antagonists in treating and reducing the risk of blood clots in non-valvular atrial fibrillation patients undergoing elective cardioversion, a common medical procedure to reset the heartbeat back to a regular rhythm.

The high demand for qualified health IT professionals continues, as revealed in the 2014 HIMSS Workplace Study, conducted by HIMSS Analytics. The study shows more than 84 percent of survey respondents reported their organization hired at least one staff member in the past year, a finding consistent with the 2013 survey (86 percent). With hiring in 2014 expected to continue at the 2013 pace, 82 percent of survey respondents planned to hire at least one full-time employee (FTE) in the next 12 months, a slight increase from the 79 percent of respondents planning the same in 2013.

August 29, 2014 — Direct Flow Medical announced it received CE mark for a 23 mm valve as part of its Direct Flow Medical transcatheter aortic valve system, expanding the patient population that can be treated with this technology. The company also announced receipt of the CE mark for implantation of all its valves without the use of contrast media, protecting patients from kidney injury during transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).

August 29, 2014 — CardiacAssist announced it has received a Class 2 medical device license from Health Canada for its new Protek Duo veno-venous cannula. The Protek Duo is licensed for use as a single cannula for both venous drainage and reinfusion of blood via an internal jugular vein during extracorporeal life support procedures.

A research study published in the July issue Journal of the American College of Cardiology reports that genetic mutations in a neuronal sodium channel gene are associated with inherited sudden cardiac death syndromes, including the Brugada syndrome.

CMS announced the Open Payments system is once again available for physicians and teaching hospitals to register, review and, as needed, dispute financial payment information received from healthcare manufacturers. The system was taken offline on Aug. 3 to resolve a technical issue. To account for system downtime, CMS is extending the time for physicians and teaching hospitals to review their records to Sept. 8, 2014. The public website will be available on Sept. 30, 2014.