Recent statin and medication advances have led some researchers to suggest surgical treatments for carotid stenosis should be limited to symptomatic patients ­–  primarily those who have already had a stroke or TIA. However, a new study published in the Journal of Vascular Surgery questions whether medical therapy is a sufficient stroke-reduction strategy.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be implementing a new framework for greater coordination and cooperation between the two agencies for addressing medical device cybersecurity. The partnership is part of a memorandum of agreement the two agencies issued this month.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is pausing the CONCERT-HF trial, which involves patients with chronic heart failure. Recent calls for the retraction of journal articles in related fields of cell therapy research have raised concerns about the scientific foundations of this trial, according to the NHLBI.

Hitachi Healthcare Americas participated in the cardiovascular screening and diagnostic triage event that took place across four clinical sites in the greater Morgantown, W. V. on Oct. 20, 2018. This event provided 375 rural patients a resource for diagnostic screening not normally available in their region.

Eko, creators of a machine learning-based heart and lung monitoring platform, announced a collaboration with Mayo Clinic to develop a data-driven technology to help physicians detect potentially dangerous heart diseases that may otherwise be missed. The two entities will work together to develop and commercialize a machine learning-based algorithm with a smart digital stethoscope that screens patients for the presence of a low ejection fraction. Once identified, evidence-based treatments are available that prolong life and reduce the risk of symptoms.