Angela O'Neill

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American Heart Association appoints Mitchell Elkind as president

The American Heart Association (AHA) has named Mitchell SV Elkind as president of the organisation for its 2020–2021 fiscal year, which began on 1...

NuVera announces successful first-in-human use of NuVision ICE catheter

NuVera Medical has announced the initiation of the company's first-in-human clinical trial to evaluate the performance of its NuVision intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) catheter. The...

Boston Scientific gets FDA 510(k) clearance for Lux-Dx ICM

Boston Scientific has received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance for the Lux-Dx insertable cardiac monitor (ICM) system, a new, long-term diagnostic...

Proximo Medical and Coala Life announce partnership for US markets

Proximo Medical has announced a partnership with digital health company Coala Life in select US markets. According to a press release from Proximo Medical,...

HRS 2020 Science: Packer assesses CABANA’s legacy

As part of this year’s HRS 2020 Science virtual event Douglas L Packer (Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA) delivered the 2020 Eric N Prystowsky lecture...

EP societies provide roadmap for restoration of arrhythmia services

A joint document has been issued by the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), the American Heart Association (AHA), and the American College of Cardiology (ACC)...

British Heart Foundation calls for urgent resumption of routine services for...

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is calling on the Government and the NHS to urgently address the immediate needs of heart and circulatory patients...

FDA issues IDE for Impella ECP and EUA for Impella RP

Abiomed has received investigational device exemption (IDE) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for an early feasibility study with a first-in-human trial...

ACC launches summer COVID-19 education series

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is to host a weekly virtual meeting— the Summer COVID-19 Education Series—to provide the healthcare community with actionable...

ESC to stream the latest science in heart failure

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) has announced that the HFA Discoveries online event will be running six days of live sessions from 5...

Boston Scientific launches its DirectSense technology in the USA

Boston Scientific has announced the US launch of DirectSense technology, a tool for monitoring the effect of radiofrequency (RF) energy delivery during cardiac ablation...

Decreased ACE2 levels found in ageing and cardiovascular disease can increase...

The reduced levels of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) 2 associated with cardiovascular disease and increasing age lead to a higher susceptibility to greater disease...

PPE guidance for cardiology during COVID-19 pandemic operating in a “vacuum”...

Simon Ray, president of the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS), has told the COVID-19 Cardiovascular Conference that a lack of consistency in national guidance around...

Raised troponin and interleukin-6 levels are associated with a poor prognosis...

Raised troponin and IL-6 levels associated with poor prognosis in COVID-19
A raised troponin level in myocardial injury “greatly alters the prognosis adversely” in COVID-19 patients, Graham Cole (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK)...

Italy, USA and the UK share their cardiology COVID-19 experiences in...

The COVID-19 Cardiovascular Conference, hosted as a live webinar by The Imperial College Network of Excellence in Vascular Science at Imperial College (London, UK),...

HRS, ACC, and AHA publish guidance for electrophysiology during pandemic

The Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), The American College of Cardiology (ACC), and the American Heart Association (AHA) have released a joint document dealing with...

Daniel M Philbin Jr named new chair of the ACC board...

Daniel M Philbin Jr has been named chair of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) board of governors and secretary of the board of...

Live webinar on Thursday 2 April to share COVID-19 cardiovascular experience

The Imperial College Network of Excellence in Vascular Science at Imperial College London (UK) is to run a COVID-19 Cardiovascular Conference as a live...

Adapt clinical studies to alleviate effect of pandemic

A viewpoint in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) has offered potential solutions to modifying ongoing randomised clinical trials during the COVID-19...

Cardiac injury in COVID-19 patients linked with higher death rate

Cardiac injury is common among hospitalised patients with COVID-19, and is associated with a higher risk of in-hospital mortality, a study from Wuhan, China,...

CDRH adjusts working practices with medical device companies to deal with...

Raised troponin and IL-6 levels associated with poor prognosis in COVID-19
The US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) has written to the medical device industry to outline its...

BCIS and BCS ratify NHS guidance for cardiology during COVID-19 pandemic

The British Cardiovascular Intervention Society (BCIS) and the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) have endorsed guidance published by NHS England and NHS Improvement on the...

KardiaMobile 6L can be used to measure QT duration in COVID-19...

AliveCor has announced that its KardiaMobile 6L is now allowed for use in the measurement of a patient’s QTc and detection of potentially dangerous...

One-third of critically ill COVID-19 patients in Washington State series developed...

A case series of US experience with COVID-19 has upheld suggestions of a link with cardiomyopathy, which developed in 33% of intensive care patients. In...

FDA issues new policy on remote monitoring devices for use during...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an immediately-in-effect guidance that allows manufacturers of certain FDA-cleared non-invasive, vital-sign-measuring devices to expand their...

ACC.20/WCC will be a virtual meeting

The American College of Cardiology Scientific Session Together with World Congress of Cardiology (ACC.20/WCC) is to run as a virtual meeting, following its cancellation...

Portola Pharmaceuticals unveils data on Andexxa in patients with multiple types...

Portola Pharmaceuticals announced new data that they say reinforces the value of Andexxa (coagulation factor Xa , inactivated-zhzo). The company statement outlines that the...

Algorithms can identify rate of OAC prescription for AF in emergency...

Researchers have derived several algorithms to identify emergency department (ED) oral anticoagulant prescriptions for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) in a large health dataset....

Leadless pacing shows high rate of success at six months

Almost 70% of patients treated with a leadless left ventricular (LV) endocardial pacing system had a favourable clinical response at six months, a post-market...

Apple Watch could be used to record a quasi-standard ECG

Miguel Angel Cobos Gil (Instituto Cardiovascular, Hospital Clinico San Carlos, Madrid, Spain) outlines in the Annals of Internal Medicine a novel method of using...

Novel device “safely obliterates” left atrial appendage with minimal amount left...

The novel left atrial appendage (LAA) closure device Appligator (Append Medical) was a finalist in the 2019 ICI Innovation Award Competition (Innovation in Cardiovascular...

Impulse Dynamics appoints medical director to leadership team

Impulse Dynamics, developer of cardiac contractility modulation (CCM) therapy delivered by the Optimizer Smart System, has announced the appointment of Ishu Rao as medical...

EHRA 2020 and ACC 20/WCC meetings cancelled due to coronavirus

The scientific congress of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA 2020) and the Scientific Session of the American College of Cardiology Together with World...

Novel lattice tip catheter safe, feasible, and durable in RF ablation

Vivek Reddy
Rapid high-current, temperature-controlled point-by-point pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) and linear ablation has been shown to be clinically feasible and safe in a first-in-human study...

RHYTHM AI to collaborate with Biosense Webster on STAR Mapping clinical...

Rhythm AI and Biosense Webster on STAR Mapping trial
RHYTHM AI has announced the signing of a research collaboration agreement with Biosense Webster. A press release from RHYTHM AI outlines that the agreement...

Abbott announces trial to assess new therapy option for stroke

Amplatzer Amulet
Abbott has announced approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the CATALYST trial to examine its Amplatzer Amulet device compared to...

FDA approves Abbott heart pump for less invasive surgical approach

Abbott has announced US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of a new alternative surgical technique for Abbott's HeartMate 3 heart pump that the...

Artificial intelligence can predict AF and mortality from ECGs

Using artificial intelligence (AI) to examine echocardiograms (ECGs) can identify patients at risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF), as well as accurately predict one-year...

WRAP-IT shows significant mortality risk with CIED infection and reduced quality...

Major infection in patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) is associated with a threefold risk of mortality at one year, and impaired quality...

Biosense Webster launches initiatives to tackle atrial fibrillation

STSF Tip Illus on Surface Biosense Webster WEB
Biosense Webster, a Division of Johnson & Johnson, has reaffirmed its commitment to tackling atrial fibrillation (AF) by launching two major initiatives to coincide...

Youths with cardiac arrhythmia more likely to have ADHD or depression

Children and teens with cardiac arrhythmias are more likely to have depression, anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) compared with those of similar...

Apple Heart study finds low rates of AF notification, and high...

Final results from the Apple Heart study demonstrate a low probability of receiving an irregular pulse notification. It also found that 34% of those...

Global AF Aware Week 2019 begins on 18 November

Monday 18 November marks the start of Global AF Aware Week 2019, launched by the AF Association. The annual awareness week is dedicated to...

Study suggests routine use of AI-based machine learning algorithms could increase...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
A joint press release from Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer has highlighted the findings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-based machine learning (ML) technique that...

“Cuffless” system to monitor blood pressure could replace traditional methods

system to monitor blood pressure could replace traditional methods
A wrist-based optical blood pressure monitor has the potential to replace cuff monitoring systems for ambulatory blood pressure, suggests a study in the journal...

Medtronic releases MARVEL 2 data on leadless pacing in AV block

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Medtronic has announced results from the MARVEL 2 (Micra Atrial Tracking Using A Ventricular accELerometer) study. A press release from the company says that...

Almost one in 200 patients die early after AF ablation in...

Early mortality following atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation affects nearly one in 200 patients, with the majority of deaths occurring during 30-day readmission, an analysis...

Decline in defibrillation testing during ICD implantation is due to institutional...

Decline in defibrillation testing during ICD implantation
The use of defibrillation testing (DFT) when inserting an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) declined significantly in US hospitals between 2010 and 2015; during the...

Diversity strategies in cardiology are not working, study finds

Different strategies are needed to address the continuing lack of diversity in the US cardiology workforce, say the authors of a cross-sectional study which...

iRhythm launches Zio patch in the UK

iRhythm Technologies collaboration
iRhythm Technologies has launched its Zio service in the UK to support the identification and clinical diagnoses of cardiac arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation...

US FDA approves Farxiga for reduction in risk of heart failure...

heart failure drug farixga
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Farxiga (dapaglifozin, AstraZeneca) to reduce the risk of hospitalisation for heart failure in adults with...

Acutus Medical and Innovative Health to collaborate to increase patient access...

Acutus Medical and Innovative Health have announced a partnership in electrophysiology that they say will offer advanced technology to improve patient outcomes in a...

Douglas Drachman named as next vice chair of American College of...

Douglas Drachman
Douglas Drachman has been selected as the next vice chair of the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session. Drachman will serve as vice...

Cardiac magnetic resonance safe and effective at measuring the contraction response...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Researchers have used cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging for the first time to demonstrate the mechanistic improvements in cardiac contractility consequent to cardiac resynchronisation...

HRC 2019: Post-implantation QRS area is a better predictor of cardiac...

Osita Okafor (Aston University, Birmingham, UK) presented an oral abstract this week at the Heart Rhythm Congress (HRC 2019; 6–9 October, Birmingham, UK) that...

HRC 2019: Sequential approach using STAR mapping system identifies key early...

The use of a Stochastic Trajectory Analysis of Ranked signals (STAR) mapping approach consistently identified early sites of activation (ESA) in patients with persistent...

Orchestra BioMed announces positive data for its BackBeat Cardiac Neuromodulation Therapy

BackBeat Cardiac Neuromodulation Therapy gets postive data
Orchestra BioMed, a biomedical innovation company, announced results from its MODERATO II double-blind, randomised study of BackBeat Cardiac Neuromodulation Therapy (CNT). In a press...

AccuCinch ventricular repair system associated with favourable safety profile at 30...

AccuCinch ventricular repair system
Data from an interim analysis of heart failure patients treated in the CorCinch FMR study show, a press release reports, that the AccuCinch ventricular...

TCT 2019: Apixaban plus a P2Y12 inhibitor is the optimal strategy...

Stephan Windecker presents preferred strategies with Apixaban
A prespecified analysis of data from the AUGUSTUS study, released at late-breaking session at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics scientific symposium (TCT 2019; 25–29 September,...

Prediction model of individual arrhythmic risk in ARVC can be used...

individual arrhythmic risk in ARVC and primary prevention
Primary prevention of arrhythmic events in arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) remains challenging; Cynthia James explains how she and colleagues developed a model for...

FDA grants Fast-Track designation to develop heart failure drug

heart failure drug farixga
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation for the development of dapagliflozin (Farixga, AstraZeneca) to reduce the risk of...

Stereotaxis appoints Kimberly Peery as chief financial officer

Stereotaxis appoints new CFO
Stereotaxis has appointed Kimberly Peery as chief financial officer (CFO), effective from 1 October 2019. Martin Stammer, who has served as CFO since 2013,...

FDA grants Breakthrough Device Designation for the WiSE CRT

AF
  EBR Systems has announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Device Designation for its WiSE cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT)...

Patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillators do not adhere to driving restrictions

Jenny Bjerre outlines the results of a study presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress (ESC 2019; 31 August–4 September, Paris, France) which...

Individualised home-based education dramatically decreases atrial fibrillation-related hospitalisations and other cardiovascular...

hospitalisations in patients with atrial fibrillation.
Personalised education delivered in a home setting significantly reduces hospitalisations in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). This was among the findings of the HELP-AF...

ESC 2019: Maximum-fixed energy shocks are more effective than low-escalating energy...

cardioversion in patients
A study that compared the use of maximum-fixed energy and low-escalating energy shocks for cardioversion in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) found that maximum-fixed...

Video games can take cardiology training to the next level

Virtual patient care is creating exciting learning opportunities for interventional cardiologists. Atman P. Shah considers how training through gaming can deliver a state-of-the-art profession. Recently,...

RHYTHM AI successfully closes seed financing round

RHYTHM AI has announced the closure of a £2.15 million seed financing round. The round was led by an affiliate of Rinkelberg Capital, a...

iRhythm and Verily to collaborate on health management solutions for atrial...

iRhythm Technologies collaboration
iRhythm Technologies has announced a collaboration with Verily to develop solutions aimed at improving the screening, diagnosis, and management of patients with atrial fibrillation...

ESC 2019: Study suggests increased use of DOACs in AF leads...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
A four-year Italian study of oral anticoagulant (OAC) use in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) has shown that as prescription rates increased healthcare costs...

ESC 2019: Guidelines on supraventricular tachycardias underline pivotal role of catheter...

New ESC guidelines on SVTs
The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) unveiled guidelines for treatment of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) on the opening day of its Congress (ESC 2019; 31...

Medtronic announces global registry of HVAD thoracotomy implants

global registry of HVAD thoracotomy implants announced by Medtronic
  Medtronic has announced plans for a global registry of its HeartWare HVAD System, following the release of two-year outcomes from the LATERAL clinical trial....

Pooled analysis shows LAAC is cheaper than drug therapy for AF

Vivek Reddy
A pooled analysis of five-year data from the PROTECT AF and PREVAIL trials has shown left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) to be cost‐effective, and...

Diagnosing AF with ICMs leads to short- and long-term changes in...

diagnose AF in a population at high risk for stroke guides
Using insertable cardiac monitors (ICMs) to identify atrial fibrillation (AF) in a population at high risk for stroke guides both immediate and long-term patient...

AHA provides US$14 million for research into arrhythmias and sudden cardiac...

arrhythmias and sudden cardiac arrest fundraising for research
The American Heart Association has awarded research grants of more than US$14 million to four scientific teams to create a new research network focused...

US$170m funding for Acutus Medical

A company providing what a press release calls “next-generation electrophysiology technology solutions” has announced that it now has US$170m financing. The press release reports...

BioMonitor III injectable cardiac monitor launched onto European market

biomonitor
After receiving the CE mark, Biotronik has launched its next-generation injectable cardiac monitor (ICM)—BioMonitor III—onto the European market. A press release reports that the...

New Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science established

Gregory YH Lip, Price-Evans chair of cardiovascular medicine
The Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science, an alliance between academia and the NHS, was established to advance cardiovascular and stroke research and innovation locally,...

Primary ICD therapy for patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy in NYHA class...

Primary implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation may have an incremental benefit for patients who have ischaemic cardiomyopathy without heart failure symptoms. The findings, published in...

NOAC therapy leads to increased risk of ischaemic events following TAVI...

The one-year bleeding risk for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who undergo transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is the same whether they are receiving...

HeartLight expands its availability to more than 100 hospitals globally

The HeartLight Excalibur Balloon used with the HeartLight X3 system
The HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation System is now offered at more than 100 hospitals worldwide. CardioFocus highlighted the expanded availability of its catheter ablation technology...

Zoll and Cardiac Science join forces on AED delivery

Zoll Medical, which manufactures medical devices and related software solutions, has signed a definitive agreement to purchase Cardiac Science, a provider of automated external...

First robotic EP fellows graduate from Stereotaxis programme

  Stereotaxis has announced the first graduating class from its Robotic Electrophysiology Fellows Programme. A press release from the company explains that the programme is designed...

Cardiologists can help to avert nuclear doomsday

Cardiologists can help to reduce the threat of nuclear war and move “the hands of the Doomsday Clock back from the midnight hour”, according...

Carnation Ambulatory Monitor wins “Best New Diagnostic Technology”

The Carnation Ambulatory Monitor (Bardy Diagnostics) has received the “Best New Diagnostic Technology” award in the 2019 MedTech Breakthrough Awards programme. In a press...

White paper from Heart Rhythm Society suggests Afib treatment has reached...

The Heart Rhythm Society has published a white paper looking at the consequences of oral anticoagulants for managing stroke risk in atrial fibrillation which...

ICD implantation can be used for primary prevention in asymptomatic heart...

Asymptomatic heart failure patients are likely to benefit from prophylactic implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) treatment, irrespective of cardiomyopathy aetiology, according to the findings from...

American College of Cardiology names its first director of diversity and...

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has announced the appointment of Ranna Parekh as its first director of diversity and inclusion. Parekh will work...

Low rates of device-related thrombus found with Amplatzer Amulet occlusion device

Amplatzer Amulet
Device-related thrombus (DRT) following left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) with the Amplatzer Amulet device (Abbott) was “infrequently” observed according to a report published in...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 45 – May 2019

Highlights: CABANA finds reduced AF and better quality of life after ablation but no reduction in mortality ELIMINATE-AF shows low thromboembolic and bleeding events...

Mapping early sites of activation for AF can be used to...

A stochastic vector-based approach to mapping and ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) can be used to determine early sites of activation and to guide...

First active-fixation left heart lead approved by FDA

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted approval to Medtronic for the Attain Stability Quad MRI SureScan left heart lead. It is...

Charles Antzelevitch

Charles Antzelevitch is professor and executive director of the cardiovascular research program at the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research in Pennsylvania, and a professor...

Personal ECG cleared for detection of three common arrhythmias

The KardiaMobile device from AliveCor has received two additional Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k)-cleared indications for arrhythmias that are not atrial fibrillation—for bradycardia,...

Luminize demonstrates safety and efficacy at 30 days

The Luminize (Boston Scientific) radiofrequency balloon catheter is safe and effective at 30 days in the treatment of atrial fibrillation, data from the AF-FICIENT...

Phased RFA for AF shows efficacy and quality of life improvements

Phased radiofrequency (RF) ablation using the PVAC GOLD catheter for pulmonary vein isolation in paroxysmal and persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) has demonstrated good outcomes for...

Smart watch can identify undetected fibrillation

An app on a smartwatch can be used to detect atrial fibrillation, providing a boost for the role of digital technology in healthcare. Mintu Turakhia...

Heartlight X3 gains European CE Mark

The HeartLight Excalibur Balloon used with the HeartLight X3 system
  CardioFocus has announced the European CE Mark approval for its HeartLight X3 endoscopic ablation system, used in the treatment of atrial fibrillation. The HeartLight X3 system...

Biomarkers may predict AF after catheter ablation

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Researchers have identified a combination of serum biomarkers that is independently associated with higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation, and with increased incidence and recurrence...

Eliminate AF shows low thromboembolic and bleeding events with edoxaban

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Uninterrupted anticoagulation with edoxaban (Lixiana, Daiichi Sankyo) resulted in low rates of thromboembolic and bleeding events in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing catheter ablation,...

Making a case for cardiovascular genetic testing in patients who survive...

Sudden cardiac arrest remains a major cause of death among young people. Babken Asatryan outlines his research into the genetic basis of the disease,...

CABANA finds reduced AF and better quality of life after ablation...

Catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation leads to a reduction in atrial fibrillation, better quality of life and lower hospitalisations than medical therapy, but does...

Repeat ablation with contact force sensing “does not necessarily guarantee a...

Preliminary results from the ABLATOR observational registry have shown similar success rates (around 58%) in first time ablation and repeat ablation for persistent atrial...

Cardiac resynchronisation therapy guided by imaging: The next step for optimal...

Jonathan Behar (London, UK) co-inventor for the Guide CRT platform—shortlisted as a 2017 finalist for the EHRA Inventors Award—details the benefits of this novel...

EHRA Inventors Award ideas focus on cardiac remote monitoring and CRT...

For the second-year running, the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) held the EHRA Inventors Award competition at EHRA-EUROPACE CARDIOSTIM (18‒21 June, Vienna, Austria), a...

Saving lives with re-used cardiac implantable electronic devices

Behzad Pavri (Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, USA) is an advocate for re-use of cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) as life-saving medical technology for...

The impact of the humanitarian EP

Inspired by the 2017 Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) Scientific Sessions opening plenary theme “Becoming a citizen of the world” and the key speaker, Hugh...

US FDA accepts Biologics License Application resubmission of reversal agent andexanet...

Portola Pharmaceuticals has announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has found its resubmitted Biologics License Application andexanet alfa (AndexXa) to be...

Remote monitoring allows earlier diagnosis of asymptomatic arrhythmias in patients with...

The first study to assess the clinical impact of remote monitoring with the Reveal LINQ implantable loop recorder (Medtronic) has demonstrated the benefits of...

Update on treatment strategies for vasovagal syncope

When speaking on therapy of vasovagal syncope (VVS), it is important to stress that a specific treatment of VVS is only rarely necessary in...

Cardiac sympathetic denervation helps to reduce sustained ventricular tachycardia and ICD...

By Angela Gonzalez A retrospective study, including the largest series of patients with refractory ventricular tachycardia undergoing cardiac sympathetic denervation for structural heart disease, has...

Princess Grace Hospital publishes data demonstrating more rapid transmural lesion formation...

Stereotaxis and Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco have announced the publication of a study comparing the speed of lesion formation of magnetic catheters using the Niobe system to manually...

Pneumonia or sepsis in adults associated with increased risk of cardiovascular...

Pneumonia or sepsis in adults that results in hospital admission is associated with a six-fold increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the first year,...

CardioFocus receives approval for HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation System in Japan

CardioFocus has announced that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has approved the HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation System for the treatment of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation...

Heart Research UK funds UCL research to improve baby congenital heart...

National charity, Heart Research UK has granted funding for an innovative research project with University College London, UK, and Great Ormond Street Hospital, London,...

Long working hours associated with higher risk of atrial fibrillation

By Angela Gonzalez People working 55 hours or more a week had an approximately 40% higher risk of atrial fibrillation compared with people working 35...

Internists and geriatricians have insufficient understanding of implantable cardioverter defibrillator use

Physicians in internal medicine and geriatrics and even physicians working in cardiology departments lack basic knowledge of treatment with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and...

AliveCor and Mayo Clinic announce collaboration to develop artificial intelligence technology...

AliveCor has announced a collaboration with Mayo Clinic to develop tools for medical and non-medical personnel to easily screen for long QT syndrome (LQTS)...

The Heart Rhythm Society announces grant recipients of the 2017 AFib...

The Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) has announced eight US facilities to be awarded funding to support the development of the 2017 AFib Screening and...

Europace 2017: Thrombus formation on left atrial appendage occlusion devices strongly...

A French multicentre analysis of left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation patients has found a 5.3% rate of thrombus...

Cardiac sympathetic denervation for treatment of ventricular arrhythmia: Where are we...

Chance M Witt and Christopher J McLeod (Rochester, USA) review current treatment of ventricular arrhythmias with cardiac sympathetic denervation.  What is cardiac sympathetic denervation? Most electrophysiologists...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 37 – June 2017 EU edition

Highlights: -Could etripamil nasal spray be a “game-changer” for paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia? -Long detection in single-chamber ICDs decreases mortality and unnecessary shocks -Chance M Witt and Christopher...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 37 – June 2017 US edition

Highlights: -Could etripamil nasal spray be a "game-changer" for paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia? -Long detection in single-chamber ICDs decreases mortality and unnecessary shocks -Chance M Witt and Christopher...

S-ICD technology continues to advance rapidly

The benefits of the Subcutaneous Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (S-ICD, Boston Scientific) over transvenous (TV)-ICD, including lower rates of lead-related complications and lower in-hospital complication...

Low risk of repeat infection in reimplanted cardiac devices

It is safe to reimplant a new cardiac device after the removal of an infected one, and repeat infection rates are low, a large...

Biotronik receives CE mark for 3 Tesla full-body MRIs with newest...

Biotronik has received CE mark approval for 3 tesla (T) full-body scans with its latest range of magnetic resonance (MR) conditional pacemaker systems, including...

Carlos Morillo

Carlos Morillo (Calgary, Canada) was one of the first physicians to document the potential of ablation of the pulmonary vein region as a strategy...

How safe is it to implant insertable cardiac monitors outside hospital...

Writing for Cardiac Rhythm News, Jan Steffel (Zurich, Switzerland) reviews current data and practice regarding safety of insertable cardiac monitors (ICMs) implantation in office...

HRS 2017: New implantable string subcutaneous defibrillator shows promise for sudden...

The use of a novel implantable string subcutaneous defibrillator (ISSD, Newpace) that has no can, and has been designed to be placed without the...

HRS 2017: Could etripamil nasal spray be a “game-changer” for paroxysmal...

A phase 2 trial (NODE-1) of a nasal spray formulation of etripamil (Milestone Pharmaceuticals) shows it is safe and effective at terminating paroxysmal supraventricular...

CRT optimisation: Why a sensor-based strategy may be the optimal solution

This video has been sponsored by LivaNova. Over the past two decades there have been several optimisation strategies, whether they are echo-guided or EKG-guided, aimed...

HRS 2017: Watchman prevents stroke even in high-risk patients: One-year follow-up...

Left atrial appendage closure with the Watchman device (Boston Scientific) is safe and effective at stroke prevention, with a high implant and sealing success,...

HRS 2017: Endovascular occlusion balloon inclusion during lead extraction reduces mortality

Patients who suffer superior vena cava tears (SVC) during lead extraction are more likely to survive when treatment includes an endovascular occlusion balloon, a...

HRS 2017: S-ICDs successful despite a range of comorbidities, and across...

Initial real-world experience with the S-ICD (subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator) in the USA show that implant success rate is high and short-term complications acceptably...

HRS 2017: Long detection in single chamber ICDs cuts mortality and...

Unnecessary shocks and all-cause mortality are reduced in patients treated with a single chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) programmed with a long detection window. Lead...

Abbott receives CE mark for its Confirm Rx insertable cardiac monitor...

Abbott has announced CE mark and first use of the new Confirm Rx ICM. According to a company release, this is the world’s first smartphone...

Remote monitoring of ICDs is more cost-effective than standard management

Remote monitoring of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD), particularly in cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT-D), reduces direct healthcare costs compared with standard monitoring, an economic evaluation...

Rate of early death after ventricular tachycardia ablation as high as...

Early post-procedural mortality occurred in 5% of cases of radiofrequency catheter ablation in patients with scar-related ventricular tachycardia (VT), with more than half of...

Boston Scientific announces scheduled presentations at Heart Rhythm Society 2017

Boston Scientific has announced the schedule of key data presentations, including two late-breaking clinical trials that will be featured at the Heart Rhythm Society’s...

Surgical left atrial appendage occlusion reduces thromboembolic stroke and mortality in...

Surgical left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is associated with a reduction of thromboembolism and all-cause mortality among older atrial fibrillation (AF) patients undergoing cardiac...

Acutus Medical receives FDA clearance for AcQGuide Steerable Sheath

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Acutus Medical has announced the FDA clearance of the AcQGuide Steerable Sheath, which marks the first US regulatory milestone for the company. The AcQGuide Steerable...

Thomas F Deering

Thomas F Deering (Piedmont Heart Institute, Atlanta, USA) considers that the biggest challenge in electrophysiology (EP) is to “move from the volume to the...

Teleflex gets FDA 510(k) clearance for the Arrow AC3 Optimus Intra-Aortic...

Teleflex has announced 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its AC3 Optimus Intra-Aortic Balloon Pump (IABP).This device helps a weakened...

In memoriam: Mark E Josephson

Mark E Josephson, a pioneer of clinical cardiac electrophysiology (EP), passed away at the age of 73 on 11 January 2017 after a courageous...

SOLAECE to become LAHRS

At the last Latin American Society of Electrophysiology and Cardiac Stimulation (SOLAECE) Congress (Porto Alegre, Brazil, November 2016) the Executive Board of SOLAECE announced...

MADIT S-ICD global study enrols first patient to assess sudden cardiac...

Boston Scientific has initiated a worldwide study (MADIT S-ICD) that will evaluate the survival benefit of patients treated with the Emblem MRI Subcutaneous Implantable...

Syncope may increase risk of workplace accidents, job loss

Working-age people who have syncope have a higher risk of occupational accidents and job loss, compared to adults without the condition, according to new research...

Pacemakers with Closed Loop Stimulation programming help to reduce recurrence of...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Patients with refractory reflex vasovagal syncope who received a pacemaker programmed with Closed Loop Stimulation (DDD-CLS, algorithm from Biotronik) had a seven-fold reduction in...

Modular cardiovascular device communication: A step towards artificial intelligence to treat...

The implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) is a well-established therapy for the prevention of sudden cardiac death. However, it is still associated with complications over...

ACC 2017: Uninterrupted dabigatran performs better than warfarin in atrial fibrillation...

Results from the RE-CIRCUIT study have shown that uninterrupted dabigatran (Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim), was associated with fewer bleeding complications than uninterrupted warfarin before, during...

Registry shows positive results with new mechanical lead extraction device

An Italian prospective multicentre registry with a large study population has demonstrated the safety and efficacy of a new hand-powered bidirectional rotational mechanical lead...

Clinical study validates efficiencies of Stereotaxis Niobe ES system compared to...

Stereotaxis has reported results of a study conducted at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (CHU) of Saint-Étienne, France, which validates the advantages of the Niobe ES magnetic navigation...

New research indicates “harmless” painkillers are associated with an increased risk...

According to a study published in European Heart Journal–Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy, painkillers that are traditionally considered harmless by the general public are associated with increased...

AtriCure names US principal investigator for the CONVERGE IDE clinical trial

AtriCure has announced David B DeLurgio as the US principal investigator for the CONVERGE IDE clinical trial. DeLurgio is a cardiac electrophysiologist at Emory Healthcare in Atlanta, USA. He is...

First guideline for evaluating and managing syncope released in USA

The American College of Cardiology (ACC), the American Heart Association (AHA) and the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) have recently released the first US guideline...

FDA clears Reveal LINQ Insertable Cardiac Monitor with TruRhythm Detection

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given 510(k) clearance to Medtronic for its Reveal LINQ Insertable Cardiac Monitor (ICM) with TruRhythm Detection. A...

Medtronic announces Medicare reimbursement for Micra Transcatheter Pacing System

Medtronic has announced that the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved coverage for the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS). This...

Clinical trial rules should protect patients and results not operational details,...

Rules governing the conduct of clinical trials are failing to produce the intended benefits for patients and should be rewritten through a transparent process...

AF ablation associated with phrenic nerve injury: Is this complication now...

Phrenic nerve injury is a well-established complication of all types of atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation and is most common with balloon-based approaches, writes Hugh...

Cardiac resynchronisation therapy upgrade is less favourable than de novo implantations

Results from a large multicentre observational study have shown that patients undergoing cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) upgrade had worse clinical response and long-term survival...

US FDA approves Abbott’s FlexAbility Catheter, Sensor Enabled

The FlexAbility Ablation Catheter, Sensor Enabled is designed to improve the versatility and precision during cardiac ablation procedures to treat atrial flutter. The Sensor Enabled...

Pacemaker function may be impacted by electric appliances

Electric and magnetic fields generated from everyday household appliances, electrical tools and more, used in very close proximity to the body, can interfere with...

Occlutech left atrial appendage occluder shows high procedural success in first-in-man...

The first-in-man study exploring the safety, feasibility and neurological outcome with the Occlutech left atrial appendage (LAA) occluder (Occlutech) has shown a 93% procedural...

Superior vena cava does not seem to contribute to long-standing persistent...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
The arrhythmogenicity of the superior vena cava has been rarely detected in patients with long-standing persistent atrial fibrillation, according to study from China recently...

ADVERTORIAL: Experience with the ColumbusTM 3D EP Navigation System in the...

Electrophysiologists Manuel Ayala Patete, Dulce Garcia, Mikel Liñero, Vanesa Burgos and Carlos Garcia Lithgow, all from Centro Cardio-Neuro-Oftalmologico y Transplante (CECANOT) in Santo Domingo,...

Multielectrode mapping may be more effective than point-by-point mapping for VT...

Results from the first randomised study comparing multielectrode mapping vs. conventional point-by-point mapping for ventricular tachycardia (VT) substrate ablation procedures have shown that a...

US FDA approves Assurity MRI pacemaker

Abbott has announced US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for magnetic resonance (MR)-conditional labelling for both the Assurity MRI pacemaker and the Tendril...

Biotronik launches a new series of Ilivia CRT devices

Biotronik has announced the launch of a new series of cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) devices with several functionalities that allow physicians to offer an...

New multidisciplinary care pathway helps to reduce the risk of recurrent...

A growing body of evidence suggests that the underlying cause for many cryptogenic strokes is atrial fibrillation (AF). However, many of these patients do...

Educational Supplement ‒ St. Jude Medical: Tackling heart failure with innovative...

This educational supplement is only available in countries outside the USA. This educational supplement contains highlights of the 5th edition of The Future of Heart...

The WiSE CRT technology: A feasible and effective alternative to conventional...

In this case report, Timothy Betts (consultant cardiologist and electrophysiologist, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK) details the benefits of the WiSE...

AF Symposium 2017: First-in-man study shows promising results with a multi-electrode...

Results of AF-FICIENT, the first-in-man study which seeks to evaluate the safety and performance of the new Apama radiofrequency (RF) balloon catheter system (Apama...

AF Symposium 2017: Use of intracardiac echocardiography is a “viable option”...

Intracardiac echocardiograpy (ICE) facilitates a high success implant rate of the Amplatzer Amulet left atrial appendage (LAA) occluder (St Jude Medical/Abbott) as well as...

Few cardiologists take steps to avoid radiation exposure during pregnancy despite...

cardiac arrest
The Women in Cardiology (WIC) section of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) report that 47% of female cardiologists have avoided being pregnant during...

Abbott completes the acquisition of St Jude Medical

Abbott has now completed the acquisition of St Jude Medical. The Abbott press release announcing the completion of the acquisition said, “The transaction provides...

Advances in non-invasive imaging to treat ventricular tachycardia and prevent sudden...

We are standing at a crossroads of non-invasive imaging technologies in the field of electrophysiology. Advances in cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) mean that...

Case strengthens for opportunistic atrial fibrillation screening

By Angela Gonzalez In the quest to reduce the number of atrial fibrillation (AF) related strokes, which account for a third of all ischaemic strokes,...

Transcatheter atrial shunt benefits persist through one year in treatment of...

Twelve-month results of the REDUCE LAP HF (Reduce elevated left atrial pressure in patients with heart failure) trial have shown both continued device patency...

Christian Butter wins best abstract for SELECT-LV final trial results at...

Christian Butter (Heart Center Brandenburg, Bernau bei Berlin, Germany) was awarded best abstract at the XVII International Symposium on Progress in Clinical Pacing (29...

CASE REPORT: WiSE CRT technology ‒ a feasible and effective alternative...

This case report has been written by Timothy Betts (consultant cardiologist and electrophysiologist, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK) and has been sponsored by...

In search of innovative technologies for ventricular tachycardia ablation with cryoenergy

A proof-of-concept study has demonstrated that a new cryoablation system, which achieves “much cooler” temperatures than previous cryoablation technologies, is able to create large,...

Insights into current heart failure management

Piotr Ponikowski (Centre for Heart Disease, Clinical Military Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland), chairperson of the 2016 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Guidelines for the diagnosis...

AHA 2016: Multisensor algorithm may help predict worsening heart failure

Results from the MultiSENSE study have demonstrated that a new multisensor algorithm, the HeartLogic Heart Failure Diagnostic Service (Boston Scientific), provides a timely alert...

“We still have a long way to go to understand the...

In light of the recently presented results from REM-HF and MORE-CARE trials, Gerhard Hindricks and Nikolaos Dagres, both from Leipzig University Heart Center, Leipzig,...

Trudie Lobban discusses “Detect – Protect – Correct” campaign for AF...

With the aim to help tackling the limitations of detecting atrial fibrillation (AF) across the globe with a simple pulse check and to raise...

AHA 2016: Low-dose rivaroxaban reduces clinically significant bleeding in PCI patients...

Two drug regimens involving low doses of rivaroxaban (Xarelto, Bayer)—one with a 15mg once daily dose of the drug and a P2Y12 inhibitor and...

OSYPKA AG launches HAT500® RF ablation system in Europe

OSYPKA AG has announced the launch of the HAT500® radiofrequency (RF) ablation system in Europe. The device received CE mark in October 2016. OSYPKA AG,...

AHA 2016: Elizabeth M McNally wins AHA prize for research into...

The American Heart Association (AHA) awarded its Basic Research Prize for 2016 to Elizabeth M McNally (Chicago, USA) for “Ground-breaking investigations of novel genetic...

AHA 2016: Combination of drug therapy and left ventricular assist device...

More than a third of advanced heart failure patients treated with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) and intensive drug therapy have recovered their heart function enough...

Biotronik launches Inventra ICD for heart failure patients with higher defibrillation...

Biotronik has announced the US launch of Inventra HF-T, an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) that delivers “ultra-high” energy with 42 joules (J) on the...

Quadra Allure MP CRT-P gets CE mark approval for MRI labeling

St Jude Medical has announced CE mark approval for magnetic resonance (MR) conditional labeling for the company’s Quadra Allure MP cardiac resynchronisation therapy pacemaker (CRT-P). The...

First-in-human data demonstrate safety and efficacy of new lead for temporary...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
A first-in-human study has shown that a new temporary lead for cardiac pacing (Tempo Lead, BioTrace Medical) is safe and effective for use in...

Charity believes NHS programme will leave hundreds of atrial fibrillation patients...

Arrhythmia Alliance, the UK-based heart rhythm charity, is calling on NHS England to reconsider a programme that it says will mean the “hundreds” of...

Acute and chronic performance of communicating leadless anti-tachycardia pacemaker and S-ICD

Martin Burke (CorVita Science Foundation, Chicago, USA) presents the preclinical acute and chronic performance of the combined implant of a leadless anti-tachycardia pacemaker and...

Commissioning through evaluation for LAAO in England

Dhiraj Gupta (Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Liverpool, UK) discusses NHS England's commissioning through evaluation for left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO). This programme is...

Patent foramen ovale closure is more effective than medical management in...

  Final results from the RESPECT trial found that percutaneously closing a patent foramen ovale (PFO) using the Amplatzer PFO Occluder (St Jude Medical) was...

AtriCure announces approval for the cryoICE platform in Japan

AtriCure has announced that it has received approval from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) for its cryoICE platform and CRYO2 cryoablation probe....

FDA approves Amplatzer PFO occluder device ahead of first report investigation...

The FDA has approved St Jude Medical’s Amplatzer patent foramen ovale (PFO) occluder device for the prevention of stroke. Announced on 28 October, this...

CardioFocus announces new management appointments

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
CardioFocus has announced the appointment of Omari Bouknight as chief commercial officer and Jeff Rynbrandt as vice president of US Sales. Together they will lead the commercialisation of...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 34 – October 2016

Highlights: -Rethink of ICD implantation in non-ischaemic heart failure may be on the cards -Remote monitoring for heart failure may not improve clinical outcomes -Stefan Spitzer: The...

Jeremy Ruskin

Jeremy Ruskin (Boston, USA), professor of medicine Harvard Medical School and director emeritus of the Cardiac Arrhythmia Service and Clinical Electrophysiology Laboratory at Mass...

Pre-clinical study indicates light could be used to treat ventricular arrhythmias

Tobias Brügmann (Institute of Physiology I, University of Bonn, Life and Brain Center, Bonn, Germany) and others report in The Journal of Clinical Investigation...

Interview with Richard Schilling ‒ president-elect of the British Heart Rhythm...

Cardiac Rhythm News speaks to Richard Schilling (St Bartholomews & The Royal London Hospital, London, UK), president-elect of BHRS (2017‒2019), about his objectives during...

Lifelong high endurance exercise may cause arrhythmias

A first-of-its-kind study has found that male veteran athletes have a significantly higher prevalence of arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, sinus pauses,...

Lifelong high endurance exercise may cause arrhythmias

A first-of-its-kind study has found that male veteran athletes have a significantly higher prevalence of arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, sinus pauses,...

Cryoballoon ablation demonstrates lower healthcare system costs compared to radiofrequency ablation

Analyses from the FIRE AND ICE trial has shown lower costs with cryoballoon catheter ablation compared to radiofrequency ablation—related to trial period—as a result...

Medtronic gets FDA approval for MRI compatible cardiac rhythm and heart...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Medtronic has announced US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its suite of cardiac rhythm and heart failure devices and leads to be...

FDA warns premature battery depletion in some ICD and CRT-D devices...

The Food and Drug Administration has recently issued a safety advisory communication regarding premature battery depletion associated with lithium deposits for some implantable cardioverter...

SentreHEART announces first clinical use of the Eclipse surgical left atrial...

  SentreHEART has announced it has treated the first patients using the Eclipse surgical device for left atrial appendage (LAA) closure. Krzysztof Bartus (Jagiellonian University,...

Heart Rhythm Congress (HRC) calls for urgent action to prevent thousands...

Heart Rhythm Congress (HRC), the UK’s largest educational congress devoted solely to heart rhythm disorders will gather over 3,000 heart rhythm experts and healthcare...

World Heart Federation launches global Roadmap to tackle atrial fibrillation

With the aim to help prevent atrial fibrillation (AF) and to improve its management worldwide— particularly in low- and middle-income countries—the World Heart Federation...

Painkillers linked to increased risk of heart failure

Commonly used prescribed painkillers for treating pain and inflammation are associated with an increased risk of hospital admission for heart failure, finds a study...

Mitac launches wearable ECG-sensor to monitor cardiac arrhythmias

Mitac Europe has announced the launch of its MiCor A100, an electrocardiograph wristband that measures heart rhythm and highlights symptoms of cardiac conduction abnormalities. According...

First US commercial atrial fibrillation procedure with HeartLight system performed at...

CardioFocus has announced the first commercial US procedure using its HeartLight Endoscopic Ablation system for the treatment of patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF)...

New postgraduate programme aims to train future leaders in arrhythmia management

The European Heart Academy of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) and the Maastricht University Medical Centre are...

Light could potentially be used to treat ventricular arrhythmias

Scientists from Johns Hopkins University and University of Bonn in Germany have found that beams of light could potentially replace  electric shocks to terminate ventricular...

ESC 2016: “User-friendly” risk score may help to better identify atrial...

A new risk score, based on data from GARFIELD-AF (Global anticoagulation registry in the field), may be superior to the CHA2DS2-VASc score at predicting...

JACC retracts OASIS trial paper

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) has retracted the paper titled: “Impact of rotor ablation in non-paroxysmal atrial fibrillation patients: Results...

ESC 2016: Remote monitoring for heart failure may not improve clinical...

Two randomised clinical trials presented at a Hot Line session of the European Society of Cardiology Congress (ESC; 27‒31 August, Rome, Italy) have shown...

Daily alcohol consumption may lead to atrial fibrillation

Despite the common perception that moderate alcohol intake is good for the heart, new research suggests long-term alcohol consumption, even as little as one...

EBR Systems receives FDA approval to begin IDE study of its...

EBR Systems has announced the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) for its WiSE (Wireless Stimulation Endocardially) technology for cardiac...

What we know about retrieval of leadless pacemakers

Given the early in-human experience with leadless pacemakers, safety and effectiveness of chronic retrieval of such devices is still under question. Reinoud Knops (Amsterdam,...

No significant differences between Watchman and Amplatzer in first comparison

Results from the first study to compare outcomes of two left atrial appendage closure devices—Watchman (Boston Scientific) and Amplatzer (St Jude Medical)—indicate that there...

ESC 2016: Edoxaban is safe and effective in AF patients undergoing...

ENSURE-AF, the largest prospective, randomised clinical trial to date of anticoagulation for electrical cardioversion in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, has shown that edoxaban is an...

ESC 2016: Rethink of ICD implantation in non-ischaemic heart failure may...

Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) do not improve overall long-term survival compared to medical treatment in patients with non-ischaemic systolic heart failure, according to results of...

Results of phase 3b ENSURE-AF study investigating edoxaban in AF patients...

Daiichi Sankyo has announced it will present the first results from ENSURE-AF, the largest prospective randomised clinical trial to date evaluating a non-vitamin K...

First risk score developed for preventing sudden cardiac death in the...

Researchers in the USA have identified the first generalisable risk score for sudden cardiac death. This prediction model, the researchers argue, provides well-calibrated, absolute...

King’s College London joins with Cambridge Design Partnership to further develop...

Cambridge Design Partnership recently announced it is working with Kings College London to further develop a new steerable catheter designed to treat complex cardiac...

Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer to present new apixaban analyses at ESC

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer have announced that 19 abstracts (late-breaking, rapid-fire, oral and poster presentations) on apixaban (Eliquis) will be presented at the European...

Thrombosis Research Institute to announce new real-world GARFIELD-AF registry insights in...

New analyses from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the Field-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) will be presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress (27‒31...

Educational supplement: LAA closure for stroke prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation

This educational supplement is only for readers in countries outside France, Japan and the USA In this educational supplement, sponsored by Boston Scientific, Cardiac Rhythm News explores left...

Increased parental longevity associated with lower risk of cardiovascular risk in...

Heart imaging has been successfully used to predict the benefit or futility of catheter ablation. The investigators described their findings in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Imaging.
Researchers in the United Kingdom (working with colleagues in Connecticut, France and India) examined 186,151 non-adopted participants aged 55‒73 years with deceased parents who...

Arca Biopharma announces 100th patient randomised into the GENETIC-AF phase 2b/3...

ARCA Biopharma has announced that the 100th patient has been randomised into GENETIC-AF, a seamless design phase 2B/3 clinical trial evaluating Gencaro (bucindolol hydrochloride)...

Boehringer Ingelheim launches RE-VECTO global programme to explore idarucizumab use in...

Boehringer Ingelheim has announced the launch of its global RE-VECTO programme for idarucizumab (Praxbind), the specific reversal agent for dabigatran etexilate (Pradaxa). Idarucizumab is approved...

Automated external defibrillator accessibility: Barrier during cardiac arrest

There is just a one in five chance that a potentially life-saving automated external defibrillator (AED) will be nearby when someone experiences cardiac arrest...

Biosense Webster announces US launch of ThermoCool SmartTouch SF catheter

Biosense Webster has announced the US launch of the ThermoCool SmartTouch SF catheter. According to a company release, the catheter pairs contact force technology...

Osypka AG launches 8mm gold-tipped Cerablate Flutter ablation catheter

According to a company release, the new device is ideal for maximum voltage guided ablation of atrial flutter. The Cerablate Flutter is a newly designed...

The OASIS trial: A critical appraisal

Recent results of the first randomised trial—OASIS trial—to compare rotor-only ablation with two other ablation strategies in non-paroxysmal atrial fibrillation patients found poor outcomes...

American Academy of Neurology advises not to routinely offer percutaneous PFO...

  A practice advisory update from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) suggests that percutaneous patent foramen ovale (PFO) closure to patients with cryptogenic ischaemic...

Cardiac resynchronisation therapy with SonR automated feature helps to reduce hospitalisation...

Results from the RESPOND-CRT trial have shown a 35% risk reduction in hospitalisation at two years for heart failure patients implanted with cardiac resynchronisation...

Mediterranean diet without low-fat element reduces cardiovascular events

Hanna E Bloomfield (Minneapolis VA Medical Center, Minneapolis, USA) and others report in Annals of Internal Medicine that limited evidence, from randomised control trials, indicates...

Sudden cardiac death is the most common cause of death in...

An analysis from the ENGAGE AF-TIMI 48 trial has found that sudden cardiac death was the single most common cause of death and accounted...

Relevance of imaging for ventricular tachycardia ablation

Cardiac imaging has emerged as an integral part of mapping and ablation in a variety of complex arrhythmias. Advances in imaging techniques, especially the...

Insights into genetically-targeted prevention of atrial fibrillation in heart failure patients

The current need for new preventative therapies of atrial fibrillation in chronic heart failure patients—with fewer side effects than currently available treatment strategies—has led...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 33 – June 2016 EU Edition

Highlights: -Ablation should be "preferred approach" in drug-resistant ventricular tachycardia -First randomised trial shows "poor outcomes" with rotor ablation -Guilherme Fenelon: Ablation in Chagas disease -Pier Lambiase: EP...

Cardiac Rhythm News Issue 33 – June 2016 US Edition

Highlights: -Ablation should be "preferred approach" in drug-resistant ventricular tachycardia -First randomised trial shows "poor outcomes" with rotor ablation -Guilherme Fenelon: Ablation in Chagas disease -Pier Lambiase: EP...

Many drugs can cause or worsen heart failure, American Heart Association...

Commonly used medications and nutritional supplements may cause or worsen heart failure, according to the first scientific statement from the American Heart Association to...

Texas Children’s Hospital is the first paediatric institution in USA to...

Stereotaxis has announced that Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, USA, has installed the its Niobe ES system, which according to the company, is the only...

Ablation of frequent premature ventricular complex allows safe withholding of ICD...

Patients with frequent premature ventricular complex and primary prevention implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) indication who undergo ablation may be able to avoid ICD implant,...

Afibmatters.org now in Swedish and Portuguese

The European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) is launching the patient- and caregiver-oriented website afibmatters.org in Swedish and Portuguese. Afibmatters.org aims to contribute to improvements in...

Rethink of ICD implantation in non-ischaemic heart failure may be on...

Cardiac Rhythm news for specialists
Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) do not improve overall long-term survival compared to medical treatment in patients with non-ischaemic systolic heart failure, according to results of...

EHRA Proctor Programme applications now open

PFA
The European Heart Rhythm Association 
(EHRA) invites EHRA current and past winners of the Training Fellowship Programmes or established physicians wanting to acquire additional...

Call for 2016 EHRA membership renewal

PFA
The European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) invites its current members to renew their memberships for 2016 and invites cardiac rhythm management and electrophysiology experts,...