2012 Top 10 Advances in Heart Disease and Stroke Research

Resuscitation, cell regeneration, a new high blood pressure treatment and developments in devices for treating stroke are among the key scientific findings that make up this year's top cardiovascular and stroke research identified by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association.

December 28, 2012 — Researchers have discovered that adding lovastatin, a widely used cholesterol-lowering drug, to traditional antimalarial treatment decreases neuroinflammation and protects against cognitive impairment in a mouse model of cerebral malaria.

December 27, 2012 — Cardiosonic Inc., a private developer of technology in the field of renal denervation for the treatment of hypertension, announced it has closed on the first $6.1 million of a planned $16.1 million Series B financing.

December 27, 2012 — Biotronik announced that the first implant has taken place in the BIOHELIX-I trial in the United States. The BIOHELIX–I trial is set to evaluate the safety and performance of the Pro-Kinetic Energy coronary bare metal stent.

According to Millennium Research Group (MRG), a company focused on global medical technology market intelligence, approximately 80 percent of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures are being performed on high-risk patients who are ineligible for surgical heart valve replacement. New clinical evidence that supports TAVR in treatment of intermediate and high-risk operable patients has led to expanded reimbursement for a new patient base for the procedure. The inclusion of these patients will fuel much of the growth of the TAVR market in Europe over the next four years. The market will grow by 60 percent between 2012 and 2016, following 30 percent growth from 2011 to 2012. The European TAVR market will have a total value of $650 million dollars by 2016.

A dozen years ago, controversial clinical trial results caused an international medical society to warn against the use of stents in leg arteries. But recent years have brought significant improvements in stent technology. One-year follow-up results of a worldwide, multicenter trial with 744 patients show that 90 percent of participants had successful procedures that did not require a repeat treatment.

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