Coronary Artery Disease News and Research

Latest Coronary Artery Disease News and Research

Radiation dose can be reduced for 'triple rule-out' coronary CT angiography

Physicians can dramatically reduce the radiation dose delivered to patients undergoing coronary CT angiography in a "triple rule-out" protocol by simply using tube current modulation, according to a study performed at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA.

6 Apr 2009

Boston Scientific announces Japanese launch of Taxus Liberte drug-eluting stent system

Boston Scientific Corporation has announced the launch of its TAXUS Liberte Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System in Japan.

2 Apr 2009

Accurate assessment of heart disease leads to earlier, more aggressive therapy

In a study comparing the ability of various medical techniques to accurately determine the extent of heart disease and stratify patients according to disease severity, researchers found that myocardial perfusion testing with gated single photon emission computed tomography (gated SPECT) was a more accurate predictor of prognosis in chronic ischemic heart disease (IHD)-a painful condition caused by a temporary reduction of oxygen-rich blood to the heart.

1 Apr 2009

Coronary angiography improves outcomes for cardiac arrest patients

People who suffer cardiac arrests and then receive coronary angiography are twice as likely to survive without significant brain damage compared with those who don't have the procedure, according to a study by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers.

1 Apr 2009

Study answers question of timing in use of eptifibatide

An international study to resolve a decade of debate over the best timing for administering an anti-clotting drug for certain heart patients has come up with an answer: It doesn't matter.

30 Mar 2009

Environmental cardiology - the relationship between air pollution and heart disease

We are used to thinking of heart disease as a product of genetic factors or lifestyle choices, such as what we eat and how much we exercise.

23 Mar 2009

Combination of very low LDL and normal systolic blood pressure attenuate coronary artery disease

New data published in the March 31, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology show that patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) who achieve very low levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol along with normal systolic blood pressure have the slowest progression of CAD.

23 Mar 2009

Levels of PLTP enzyme in blood should be a consideration for potential statin treatment

In a patient study of over 1,000 individuals with coronary artery disease (CAD), researchers have found that high levels of an enzyme called PLTP significantly increased the risk of heart attack in the subset of patients taking statins.

23 Mar 2009

Heart bypass surgery better than angioplasty for certain patients

After three years working with investigators from 10 different clinical trials around the world from Brazil to London to Pittsburgh, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have pooled enough individual patient data to compare the effectiveness of coronary artery bypass surgery with the less-invasive angioplasty procedure on specific groups of patients for the first time.

20 Mar 2009

Boston Scientific launches iCross coronary imaging catheter

Boston Scientific Corporation has announced the launch of its iCross(TM) Coronary Imaging Catheter, a product designed to improve the deliverability of the Company's market-leading intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) technology, the iLab Ultrasound Imaging System.

20 Mar 2009

Genetic links to high levels of HDL cholesterol

HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), or "good" cholesterol, carries excess cholesterol - that might otherwise block arteries - from blood vessels back to the liver for processing and elimination.

16 Mar 2009

Big link between driving and heart attacks

People who have had a heart attack are likely to report having been in traffic shortly before their symptoms began, researchers reported at the American Heart Association's 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention.

15 Mar 2009

Disparities in stroke outcomes between black and white patients still great

In Florida, black young adults are hospitalized for stroke at a rate three times higher than their white and Hispanic peers, a new study by University of South Florida researchers reports.

15 Mar 2009

Schering-Plough's investigational oral thrombin receptor antagonist meets primary endpoint in a newly published study

Results of a Schering-Plough Corporation Phase II trial of SCH 530348, a novel oral thrombin receptor antagonist (TRA), were published today in The Lancet and demonstrated that the investigational antiplatelet compound met its primary endpoints of safety and tolerability.

12 Mar 2009

Number of cardiovascular risk factors could determine safety of IVIg treatment

New research out of Wake Forest University School of Medicine identifies the presence of cardiovascular risk factors as an indicator of how likely it is that elderly, hospitalized patients who receive intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) treatment will have a stroke or heart attack.

5 Mar 2009

Dermatologists caution that severe cases of psoriasis can be associated with other serious medical conditions

On the surface, the thick, red, scaly, itchy plaques of psoriasis - which have been shown to have a significant negative impact on a person's overall quality of life - may not appear to pose a serious health risk for patients. However, a growing body of research suggests that psoriasis patients are at an increased risk of developing serious medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes, particularly when their psoriasis is severe.

5 Mar 2009

Number of cardiovascular risk factors could determine safety of intravenous gammaglobulin treatment

5 Mar 2009

Boston Scientific launches Taxus Liberte drug-eluting stent in Japan

Boston Scientific Corporation has announced the launch of its TAXUS Liberte Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System in Japan.

3 Mar 2009

Stroke treated significantly faster and just as safely by medical residents

Diagnosing acute stroke is a high-pressure decision. The speed with which treatment is delivered makes all the difference. Early treatment can stop brain damage, but if treatment is given inappropriately, it can dangerously increase the risk of bleeding in the brain.

24 Feb 2009

SYNTAX defines borders between CABG and PCI with TAXUS drug-eluting stents

Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) should remain the "standard of care" for patients with complex coronary artery disease, concludes the SYNTAX study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine (online February 18, 2009, Print edition March 5).

23 Feb 2009