July 2, 2007 - New research published in the July issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery indicates that arterial blockages in legs from peripheral arterial disease (PAD) represent such a high burden of atherosclerotic plaque that they may cause the blood flowing through "diseased" territory to become more "thick" and prone to form clots.

Vascular Solutions Inc. announced that the FDA has granted 510(k) clearance for the Gopher support catheter, a catheter designed to assist in the passage of interventional devices through arterial lesions by utilizing a rotational force.

The Gopher catheter is designed designed to meet specific needs of physicians performing interventional percutaneous procedures in coronary and peripheral arteries, such as facilitating the passing of an angioplasty balloon in challenging coronary interventions.

July 2, 2007 — Spectrum Surgical Instruments Corp. recently announced their assortment package of surgical instrument tip protectors.

The assortment includes many sizes and colors and can be used for general instruments, verres needles and laparoscopic instruments.

Spectrum’s tip protectors are completely latex free. Patterns can be reordered individually and are available in vented and non-vented styles.

For more information: www.spectrumsurgical.com

June 29, 2007 - Investigators from the Wake Forest University (WFU) School of Medicine in Winston-Salem N.C. and University of California at San Francisco report that debris liberated during angioplasty and stenting of the kidney arteries may harm kidney function.

June 29, 2007 – St. Jude Medical, Inc. today announced that the FDA and European CE Mark approvals to expand the capabilities of its Frontier II cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemaker (CRT-P) to include QuickOpt Timing Cycle Optimization, designed to provide physicians a new option to manage therapy for patients based on their individual needs.

June 28, 2007 - Patients who receive implantable cardiac defibrillators (ICD) have a better survival rate than their counterparts who do not undergo ICD implantation, according to a study by Canadian researchers published in the June 26th issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (J Am Coll Cardiol 2007;49:2408-2415).

June 28, 2007 - CryoCor Inc., a medical device company focused on the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, announced that the FDA Advisory Panel recommended that CryoCor’s application for pre-market approval (PMA) for the treatment of atrial flutter be approved by the FDA.

The meeting of the Advisory Panel was held on June 27, 2007 and a decision from the FDA on CryoCor's PMA is expected in August 2007.

"We are pleased with the decision by the Advisory Panel to recommend our PMA for approval and look forward to the FDA’s decision in August,” said Helen Barold, M.D.

June 27, 2007 - Medtronic, Inc. announced the European launch of the Medtronic CareLink Network, a new heart monitoring system designed to enable patients at risk of heart conditions to electronically transmit data from their implanted cardiac device directly to their physician, allowing the completion of check-ups without requiring the patient to leave home.

June 27, 2007 - According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, estrogen can significantly limit the accumulation of plaque in the arteries of women in their fifties.

The study involved 1,064 participants from ages 50 to 59, who had undergone surgically induced menopause through a hysterectomy. Study participants took estrogen or a placebo for 7.5 years, after which cardiac scans were performed to determine the level of plaque accumulated in their arteries.

June 27, 2007 - CMS and the Hospital Quality Alliance posted on the Hospital Compare Web site data that provide a broad comparison of mortality rates for heart attack and heart failure in hospital patients, in order to promote quality and to give consumers information for making informed decisions in healthcare.

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