Many advances have occurred in mechanical ventilators in recent years and these newer technologies are beginning to be incorporated into anesthesia ventilators. This has reduced the differences between intensive care ventilators and anesthesia ventilators.

Intensive Care Units around the world have been providing their patients with mechanical ventilation for the past 30 years, ever since the first electronic ventilator technology appeared in the early seventies. And ventilation therapy, irregardless of mode, has been delivered in the same manner — a clinician has regulated the pressures and volumes provided to the patient.

An FDA-appointed advisory panel to review drug-eluting stents could have detrimental effects on the $6 billion-a-year market, reports the Chicago Sun Times, but, according to columnist Francine Knowles, Morgan Stanley analyst Glenn Reicin claims there’s no cause for alarm.

FDA says more formally evaluate recent stent studies that linked DES to the development of blood clots within 18 months. European researchers have recently concluded that older and less expensive bare-metal stents, are safer than DES and result in less blood clotting.

FDA has cleared Spectranetics’ new line of devices designed to treat clogged leg arteries. The Turbo elite products will be launched in limited release during the fourth quarter, and fully released in early 2007.

The devices are used in conjunction with the company’s excimer laser system, which helps open clogged or obstructed arteries. Spectranetics, Colorado Springs, CO, is a manufacturers of lasers used to treat heart conditions.

CV Therapeutics Inc. says the MERLIN TIMI-36 study of ranolazine will proceed to the study close-out phase now that the required number of endpoints have accumulated, “Medical News Today” reports.

A new procedure that delivers and places or repairs a heart valve through a catheter could soon become an alternative to open heart surgery for extremely high-risk patients.

Clinical trials to study the efficacy of a novel cardiac viability imaging agent is now underway. FluoroPharma, Inc., an affiliate of QuantRx Biomedical Corp., has developed CardioPET as a means to assess acute and chronic coronary artery disease while patients are at rest.

Entry into Phase I trials follows FluoroPharma's filing with the FDA of an investigational new drug (IND) application for CardioPET, the company's first such application.

FDA has accepted ARIXTRA (fondaparinux sodium) Injection for priority review — the anticoagulant supplemental drug developed by GlaxoSmithKline achieved positive results from two pivotal, Phase III trials (OASIS 5 and 6) that evaluated ARIXTRA in the treatment of a broad spectrum of patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS).

Abbott Vascular says it will begin launching its XIENCE V stent system immediately in most European countries, focusing commercial, manufacturing and clinical resources on this product.

"The positive, differentiating clinical results that XIENCE V demonstrated in SPIRIT II, combined with positive physician feedback about XIENCE V, indicates that XIENCE has significant potential to meet critical next- generation drug-eluting stent needs for physicians and patients," said John M. Capek, Ph.D., president, Cardiac Therapies, Abbott Vascular.

The genesis of the Abaxis Piccolo technology began with NASA, where scientists sought to develop and manufacture a small biochemical analyzer for use in space laboratories. Abaxis acquired the exclusive patent rights and developed an analyzer that was capable of performing multiple blood chemistry tests based on centrifugal and capillary technology.

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