June 23, 2014 — Men who reported being sedentary, with low levels of physical activity, were at a significantly higher risk for heart failure than those who were more active, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published earlier this year in the journal Circulation: Heart Failure. The study showed the increased risk of heart failure with prolonged sedentary behavior.

June 23, 2014 — BG Medicine Inc. earlier this year announced the issuance of patent 8,672,857, titled “Galectin-3 and Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy,” by the United State Patent and Trademark Office. The patent claims methods for predicting responsiveness to cardiac resynchronization therapy by the measurement of the concentration of the protein galectin-3 in blood.

June 23, 2014 — Researchers have announced the results of a four-year study that used 3-D echocardiography to examine the role of mid left atrial cross sectional area (LACSA) as a risk factor for cardioembolic (CE) stroke, atrial fibrillation (AF) and stroke recurrence.

Pulsar Vascular announced it received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigative device exemption (IDE) approval for the PulseRider, a minimally invasive aneurysm neck reconstruction device.

Cardiac surgeons could use a patent-pending invention by Purdue University engineering students to standardize a test that determines if a pacemaker's leads are securely embedded in heart tissue.

Distinguished physicians from leading cardiac surgery centers gathered at an educational symposium to share their experiences with a new-generation blood evacuation system for use following cardiothoracic surgical procedures.