December 7, 2017 — Edwards Lifesciences Corp. announced the acquisition of Harpoon Medical Inc., a privately held medical technology company pioneering beating-heart repair for degenerative mitral regurgitation (DMR). Edwards announced a structured upfront investment in Harpoon in 2015, with an exclusive option to acquire the company.

Toshiba Medical, a Canon Group company, showcased the Aquilion Precision, what it calls the world’s first ultra-high resolution computed tomography system (UHR CT) at the 2017 Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Annual Meeting, Nov. 26-Dec. 1 in Chicago. The system, which is pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance, is capable of resolving anatomy as small as 150 microns, providing CT image quality with resolution typically seen only in cath labs. The UHR detector is newly designed to provide more than twice the resolution when compared with today’s CT technology, featuring an all-new detector as well as tube, gantry and reconstruction technologies.

December 6, 2017 — French company Robocath, which designs and develops robotic solutions for the treatment of vascular diseases, announced an increase in capital of €1.7 million ($2 million). This is partly thanks to a €1.25 million ($1.5 million) contribution from Crédit Agricole Innovations et Territoires (CAIT), a fund dedicated to technological innovation in France, managed by Supernova Invest.

New data on the Corvia intra-atrial shunt to treat diastolic heart failure were presented at the recent 2017 American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions. It was the most popular story in November.

Here is the list of the most popular articles and videos on the Diagnostic and Interventional Cardiology (DAIC) magazine website from the month of November, based on website analytics of the month’s 144,797 pageviews: 

1. First Transcatheter Implant for Diastolic Heart Failure Successful

December 6, 2017 — At the American Heart Association (AHA) annual meeting in November, a group of 16 non-partisan patient and consumer groups issued a statement on the recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report of repealing mandated insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In the report, the CBO assessed the impact of a repeal of the ACA’s individual mandate to purchase health insurance coverage, which estimates it will reduce the number of Americans that have health insurance by more than 10 million and increase insurance premiums for those who remain on insurance plans.

December 6, 2017 — Electronic cigarettes are more frequently used by people who recently quit smoking and alcohol drinkers, according to preliminary research presented at the 2017 American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2017in November.

Researchers examined data from 5,423 individuals with recorded tobacco use in the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). A total of 116 (2.6 percent) of NHANES participants were found to use e-cigarettes.

December 6, 2017 — Women who develop high blood pressure during pregnancy are more likely to experience heart problems within a few years of giving birth, according to preliminary research presented at the 2017 American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions in November.

December 6, 2017 — Older women who do not get enough sleep were more likely to have poor cardiovascular health, according to preliminary research presented at the 2017 American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions in November.

In the new study, researchers considered sleeping at least two hours more during the weekend than on the weekday as a sign of being in sleep debt. Among the roughly 21,500 female health professionals between ages of 60 and 84 the research team followed, women who were in sleep debt were more likely to be obese and have hypertension.

A tool designed to more accurately predict the risk of heart attack in older patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery works significantly better than traditional risk assessment tools, according to new research from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). By having more accurate information, older patients and their physicians can make an informed decision on whether to undergo surgery, UCLA researchers concluded.

Infant deaths from critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) decreased more than 33 percent in eight states that mandated screening for CCHD using a test called pulse oximetry. In addition, deaths from other or unspecified cardiac causes decreased by 21 percent, according to a recent study.

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