April 20, 2007 — John G. Harold, M.D., a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, was presented with the “Passion of the Heart” award at the annual Heart Awards Gala on April 14, hosted by the American Heart Association’s Western States Affiliate. The “Passion of the Heart” award is the highest recognition of a physician by the organization.

Dr. Harold, who joined Cedars-Sinai’s medical staff in 1985, recently served as chief of staff, one of several leadership positions he has held at the medical center.

April 20, 2007 — Scientists at Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute in Pittsburgh, PA, have created a robotic device that can be inserted onto a heart using minimally invasive surgery to deliver medical treatment. Resembling a robotic caterpillar, the 20-millimeter-long HeartLander can crawl across the surface of a beating heart, delivering drugs or attaching medical devices.

April 20, 2007 — Monebo Technologies Inc., Austin, TX, announced today that its Interpretive ECG Algorithm has been approved by the FDA and is commercially available now. The algorithm is used for the assessment of heart arrhythmias using ambulatory ECG data, and provides the most comprehensive arrhythmia analysis and interpretation available in a multiuse algorithm.

April 20, 2007 — Medical Simulation Corp. (MSC) has announced the opening of the Houston Regional SimSuite Education Center, which is easily accessible to the Texas Medical Center and broader Houston Metroplex.

April 19, 2007 — Cardiac-device maker St. Jude Medical Inc. said Wednesday it received approval from the FDA for its Web-based system for storing patient device data for implantable cardiac devices, Associated Press reported.

April 19, 2007 — Following Tuesday’s seizing of all implantable medical devices from Shelhigh Inc., Union, NJ, by FDA investigators and U.S. marshals, the company has responded with denials to FDA claims that its manufacturing processes that may compromise the safety and effectiveness of the products, particularly their sterility. Shelhigh will challenge the decision in Federal Court (07 Civ 1769 WJM, New Jersey).

April 19, 2007 — Schering-Plough Corp. has announced plans to initiate two global Phase III large-scale clinical outcomes trials for its novel selective oral antiplatelet therapy, the thrombin receptor antagonist (TRA) SCH 530348.

The investigational compound inhibits the most potent stimulus of platelet activation, thrombin, which is a driver of the clotting process. This compound is being evaluated to determine whether it has the potential to provide clinical benefit without the additional bleeding liabilities often found in current therapies.


Genesis Health System has been dedicated to providing compassionate and quality health services from its inception over 12 years ago. Living up to that mission has required a commitment to information technology.

Among the challenges that face us in healthcare, retaining our best and brightest nurses is close to the top of the list. Nurse turnover is very expensive and seriously impacts the bottom line of every healthcare organization.

April 18, 2007 — Boston Scientific Corp. says the FDA has cleared the new Acuity steerable left ventricular lead device, for use with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators and cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemakers, both of which treat heart failure.

The product, which the company plans to launch in July, features a deflectable tip for precise placement of the lead even in difficult-to- access branch vessels on the left side of the heart, the company said in a statement.

Subscribe to
© Copyright Wainscot Media. All Rights Reserved.
Subscribe Now