October 23, 2013 — Vascular Interventional Advances (VIVA) Physicians, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing the field of vascular medicine and intervention through education and research, announced 15 trial results at VIVA 13. The trial results offered new information on advances in the treatment of vascular diseases.
Bracco Diagnostics Inc. announced the availability of syringe packs with spikes, to be used when loading contrast and saline for delivery with power injectors in computed tomography (CT) suites. Bracco syringe packs are specifically designed for use with the EmpowerCTA and Empower CT contrast delivery systems, offering greater flexibility in contrast and saline preparation.
St. Jude Medical Inc. announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and launch of its Ilumien Optis PCI optimization system, a new technology designed to provide physicians with a comprehensive disease assessment tool for treating patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). The system will be on display for the first time in the United States during the 2013 Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) scientific symposium in San Francisco.
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October 22, 2013 — AtheroMed, a developer of catheter technologies for treating peripheral artery disease (PAD), announced results from its Endovascular Atherectomy Safety and Effectiveness (EASE) study during a late-breaking clinical trials session at the Vascular Interventional Advances (VIVA) 2013 conference in Las Vegas. Stephen Williams, M.D., director of the Vascular Medicine Center, Johns Hopkins University, presented the results of the study, which demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of the Phoenix atherectomy system in treating PAD.
A 56-year-old man who had a heart attack survived and is recovering at home after receiving two hours and forty-five minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). The length of CPR time is believed to be among the longest on record and was made possible because of a mechanical chest compression machine called the Lucas device.
AngioScore Inc., a developer of angioplasty catheters for use in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, announced that preliminary data from the first-in-human (FIH) study (“Patent-C”) of the drug-coated AngioSculpt Scoring Balloon Catheter will be presented at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) Conference in San Francisco the week of Oct. 28.
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Nuclear Imaging Services LLC (NIS) has completed the first U.S.-based ECAT Scintron installation into an outpatient cardiology facility. Gulf Coast Cardiology Group in Port Arthur, Texas, is the first to upgrade its Siemens ECAT system to Medical Imaging Electronics' (MiE) ECAT Scintron.

Medtronic Inc. announced the first implants in the CoreValve Evolut R clinical study, which will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the CoreValve Evolut R recapturable system. This recapture-enabled valve and delivery system is designed to advance deliverability and valve performance while providing the option to recapture and reposition the CoreValve Evolut R valve during deployment, if needed, while performing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).
Epsilon Imaging Inc., a visualization and analysis software provider, announced the launch of its newest application specifically designed for right ventricle (RV) assessment. EchoInsight computer-aided visualization and analysis offers quick and intuitive strain imaging along with automated cardiac function measurements for enhanced confidence and workflow in echo interpretation.
Cardiac positron emission tomography (PET) is growing in popularity among cardiologists because it provides the ability ...
Pie Medical Imaging B.V. (PMI) announced that they have signed an agreement with the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) to begin a close collaboration. Under this agreement, the CRF Clinical Trials Center will use PMI’s solutions in their Angiographic Core Laboratory for clinical research and multicenter trials. CRF will also support further development of PMI’s new products for analysis and visualization of medical images.
Medtronic Inc. announced the U.S. launch of the Export Advance aspiration catheter, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-cleared catheter that features a pre-loaded stylet that increases deliverability and kink resistance while traversing the vasculature to reach the aspiration site.
Bard Peripheral Vascular has sent an urgent Class I medical device recall notification letter informing customers of the problems of the LifeStent Solo vascular stent and the actions customers should take. The LifeStent Solo vascular stent is an implantable self-expanding stent and delivery system used to improve the superficial femoral artery (SFA) luminal diameter in the treatment of atherosclerotic lesions.
When performing radiofrequency (RF) ablation to treat cardiac arrhythmia, medical professionals must balance the safety ...

There were three key trends in X-ray vascular imaging systems made evident from new products showcased at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting in late 2012. These include new hardware and software to lower ionizing radiation doses and improve image quality, better dose tracking software, and enhanced maneuverability for improved patient access and use in the growing hybrid OR market. As interventional procedures become more complex, imaging times have increased, raising concerns that are now being addressed by vendors.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning this week about safety issues encountered with the St. Jude Amplatzer Atrial Septal Occluder (ASO), a transcatheter device used to seal congenital holes in the atrial septum. The FDA reported in a rare safety communication that the device may cause life-threatening tissue erosion inside the heart.
M*Modal, a provider of clinical documentation services and Speech Understanding solutions, announced a medical dictation application for iPhone mobile digital devices, expanding the company’s mobility solutions. The M*Modal Fluency Flex Mobile application lets doctors quickly and accurately record clinical notes during patient encounters for easy integration with electronic health record systems (EHRs), increasing physician productivity and documentation quality.