June 22, 2010 – St. Jude Medical Inc. last week announced the first enrollment in its LAPTOP-HF (Left Atrial Pressure Monitoring to Optimize Heart Failure Therapy) study. The goal of the LAPTOP-HF study is to demonstrate that the new investigational left atrial pressure (LAP) management system safely and effectively improves outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF).

June 21, 2010 – Seven out of 10 men admitted to hospital for a heart attack, or acute ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), had erectile dysfunction (ED) in the six months prior to their admission, according to new data presented last week at the World Congress of Cardiology Scientific Sessions in Beijing, China.

June 21, 2010 – Long-term data presented today from Ardian’s Symplicity HTN-1 study demonstrate that the significant reductions in blood pressure achieved using renal denervation (RDN) treatment are sustained through 24 months. The data were presented at the late-breaking trials session of the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) Annual Scientific meeting in Oslo, Norway.

June 17, 2010 – AGA Medical Holdings Inc. this week announced first patient enrollment in the feasibility phase of the prospective, multicenter, randomized Amplatzer Cardiac Plug clinical trial. William Nicholson, M.D., an interventional cardiologist and structural heart specialist at York Hospital in Pennsylvania, enrolled the first patient in this multicenter, randomized trial.

June 17, 2010 – The Protecta portfolio of defibrillators will soon be available in Europe. Medtronic Inc. today announced the European launch of the Protecta portfolio of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) and cardiac resynchronization therapy-defibrillators (CRT-Ds).

June 16, 2010 – An updated ultrasound system announced this week will feature automated measurements, enhanced image quality and improved volumetric imaging. Siemens Healthcare announced the 1.5 release of its Acuson SC2000 volume imaging ultrasound system this week at the 21st Annual Scientific Session of the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE).

June 15, 2010 – Patients with smaller abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) (less than 5.5 cm) have no significant differences in clinical outcomes after endovascular repair (EVAR) than those with larger AAAs according to data from a five-year prospective clinical trial setting. The researchers maintain their recommendation that small aneurysms should not be treated surgically.