September/October 2008

Digital Edition
St. Jude Medical Releases Trio of Tools for Challenging Lead Placement
St. Jude Medical said recently the FDA cleared its new delivery tools designed to give physicians greater control and precision when placing cardiac pacing leads. The CPS Duo stylet and guide wire system, the PCS Courier guide wire and the Mond stylet are all tools designed to place leads in precise positions that can be difficult to access.
LUMEDX Offers Multi-modality, Web-Enabled Cardiology PACS
Philips’ Hand-Carried Ultrasound Brings Premium Echo Imaging to Bedside
Philips Healthcare has developed a hand-carried ultrasound with reportedly advanced imaging quality. The CX50 CompactXtreme was released in 2009. Primarily designed for echocardiography, the CX50 was designed with many of the same features of the iE33 echocardiography system, providing clinicians a portable ultrasound that can be used for diagnosis.
LLD EZ Designed to Remove Infected Cardiac Leads
Boston Scientific, Abbott Offer New Everolimus-Eluting Coronary Stents
Medtronic’s New Left-Heart CRT Lead Gets FDA Clearance
The FDA has cleared Medtronic’s Attain StarFix OTW (over-the-wire) lead (Model 4195), an active fixation left-heart lead for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT).
Cook Launches a Sheath Set for Lead Extraction
Vascular Solutions Launches Axis Specialty Guidewire
Small Vessel Peripheral Imaging Catheter Launched
FDA Clears New Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Endovascular Graft
Cook Medical has received approval from the FDA for its Zenith TX2 Thoracic TAA Endovascular Graft, marking the expansion of Cook Medical’s portfolio of devices to treat aortic diseases.
MAQUET Cardiovascular Launches Seal System for CABG Surgery
TRUMPF Introduces In-Light HD OR Camera for Video, Still Images
Longer, Larger Scoring Balloon Catheters Target PAD
AngioScore Inc. has introduced longer and larger AngioSculpt PTA Scoring Balloon Catheters for the treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD).
Philips Releases Xcelera Cardiology Upgrade
The Xcelera R2.2 upgrade is a new version of the Xcelera multimodality cardiology image management, analysis and reporting solution, designed to offer enhanced functionality and greater workflow efficiency.
Carestream Introduces New 3D Solution
InTouch Health Launches New Telestroke Platform
Near Infrared Diffuse Spectroscopy Laser Targets CAD
The FDA has approved the LipiScan Coronary Imaging System, an angiography laser scanner by InfraReDx Inc., which is intended to characterize fatty deposits in coronary vessel walls using near infrared diffuse spectroscopy.
St. Jude Releases EnSite System Version 8.0
Thinking PACS Featured at ASNC 2008
SJM’s Radiofrequency ICD Features Wireless Communication
St. Jude Medical’s Promote RF CRT-D (cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator) and Current RF ICD (implantable cardioverter defibrillator) are radiofrequency (RF) wireless devices used to treat patients with heart failure and with potentially lethal heart arrhythmias.
R Series Defribillator from ZOLL Aims for Simplicity
HeartStart MRX Provides CPR Monitoring, Feedback
Nihon Kohden Gets 510(k) for Early Detection, Notification System
Philips' New SPECT/CT Captures Low-Dose, High-Res CT Images
HeartCentrix 6.2 Connects EMR for Access to ECG, Stress, Holter Tests
Biotronik Rolls Out Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators, Cardiac Resynchronization Defibrillator
Biotronik GmbH launched the Lumax 540 series, which includes implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and a cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator (CRT-D), which is used with Biotronik Home Monitoring to enable continuous automatic daily data transmission of the patient’s cardiovascular status via the Internet.
Vascular Solutions Launches Ultra-Low Profile Snare
What are Your Thoughts on Issues Regarding Cardiac Technology?
As the new editor of Diagnostic and Invasive Cardiology (DAIC), I hope communication will not be one-sided with me presenting or reviewing new technology on the market. I would like to hear from the readers — the end users of these products — to find out your thoughts. I would also like to find out what you consider as important issues, or what technologies you would like to hear more about.
An Introduction to Embolic Protection Devices
The use of embolic protection devices (EPD) during percutaneous cardiac procedures has helped reduce the number of complications due to debris being released into the bloodstream and causing blockages in smaller vessels. The devices are designed to capture and remove debris that may be dislodged during procedures. There are three classes of EPD devices:
Flat Panel Detectors Lower the Dose
Angiography systems have been a diagnostic mainstay in cardiac cath labs for more than 50 years, playing a pivotal role in the diagnosis and treatment of heart and vascular diseases. Replacing imaging intensifiers with flat panel detectors (FPD) for angiography has broadened digital imaging’s role in the cath lab.
An Introduction to Stents: Coronary, Carotid, Peripheral
SPECT vs. PET, Which is Best?
If the case went to court for whether positron emission tomography (PET) or single, photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is better suited for myocardial perfusion imaging, experts say the current technology and developments on the horizon would result in a hung jury.
What Drives New Technology Adoption?
While the primary reason hospitals adopt new technology is to increase patient care and produce better outcomes, there are many other factors that also affect purchasing decisions.
Technological Innovations Drive Coronary CT Angiography’s Growth
The process of the coronary CT angiography (CTA) becoming the preferred imaging modality is akin to the process of obtaining a pilot’s license.
Cardiovascular Images Connect Enterprise Wide
The landscape of cardiovascular care is changing. In the cath lab alone, the shift in volume and type of diagnostic and interventional procedures has broadened the lab’s scope, increased demand and raised expectations.
Cath Lab RFID Tracking Reaps Big ROI
Tight inventory control in the cath and electrophysiology (EP) labs is critical to hospitals' bottom lines due to the expense of the items and their rapid expirations. A new technology showing big returns on investment is radio-frequency identification (RFID) tracking.
Calming Cath Lab Could Help Clinical Outcomes
In as much as the environment in which you live can affect your quality of life, so can the environment in which someone receives medical care affect patient outcome – at least in theory.