The first U.S. implant was announced for St. Jude Medical’s LEADLESS II pivotal trial, designed to evaluate the Nanostim leadless pacemaker for U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. The world’s first retrievable, non-surgical pacemaker was implanted at The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City by Vivek Reddy, M.D.

Mercom Capital Group LLC, a global communications and consulting firm, released its annual report on funding and mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity for the healthcare information technology (IT) sector in 2013.

For U.S. hospitals and emergency medical services (EMS) looking to upgrade their aging defibrillator-monitors, new technologies added to these systems enable more feedback to first responders and can help speed door-to-balloon times by transmitting pre-hospital ECGs.

Stage 2 meaningful use guidelines for electronic medical records (EMRs) suggest use of clinical decision support (CDS) software to help clinicians choose appropriate labs, diagnoses, therapies and imaging exams. A draft policy to replace the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula now being considered by a joint U.S. Senate Finance and House Committee on Ways and Means Committee might make this suggestion a requirement in the future. The draft policy would deny Medicare payment for exams if the ordering physician did not consult appropriate use criteria (AUC) and require prior authorization for outlier providers.

The push for healthcare to be digitally transformed and paper-free means having access to electronic medical records anytime/anywhere. This effort amplified, has left many cardiology departments struggling to catch up. According to the Administration on Aging people 65+ represented 12.4 percent of the population in the year 2000, but are expected to grow to be 19 percent of the population by 2030. The increase in longevity-on top of advances in medications, less invasive treatments and diagnostic testing will greatly increase demand for cardiology.