Cardio

Presentation of neurological data confirms patients in the device group had fewer, smaller strokes that were less likely to originate from blood clots passing through the PFO

Device company Biosensors International Group, Ltd., has announced financial results for its third fiscal quarter (“Q3 FY13”) and nine months ended 31 December 2012. In a newly announced arrangement the company will now co-promote its Nobori stent in Japan with Terumo, replacing the original distribution arrangement.

Cardiva Medical, Inc. has gained an FDA Premarket Approval (PMA) for the VASCADE Vascular Closure System (VCS). Clinical data demonstrated that the VASCADE VCS is clinically and statistically superior in both safety and efficacy compared to manual compression for patients undergoing percutaneous procedures through the femoral artery.

Thoratec Corporation, famous for its Heartmate ventricular assist device, has reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2012. Sales of Heartmate are growing nicely and rumours abound that a major shareholder wants to cash in its chips.

St. Jude Medical, Inc. has announced the first patient implant of its 25 mm Portico™ Transcatheter Aortic Heart Valve using the Transfemoral Delivery System in its ongoing European trial.

Medtech intelligence company Millennium Research Group says the European interventional cardiology market will barely grow through 2017. Growth will however come from bioresorbable stents and intravascular imaging.

Contact-force sensing cardiac ablation for arrhythmia treatment has taken a step forward with the announcement by Endosense that its newest iteration device has been used in a US patient for the first time. The device has been on general release in Europe since last June.

We’re always on the look-out for technologies that nudge the state of play forward. Medtronic’s next-generation Evera® ICDs offer patients proven treatment performance, increased longevity, improved comfort and are now CE marked.

New Jersey based Svelte® Medical Systems has announced treatment of a first patient in the DIRECT II study into its drug-eluting stent. The company claims to have the lowest profile drug eluting stent on the market, benefits of which it hopes this new study will demonstrate.

A newly published audit suggests U.K. cardiology practices have caught up with Europe and in some cases are aligned with U.S standards of care, notably in door-to-balloon times.

St.Jude will be hoping that a new study of different degrees of hypertension may expand the indication for its EnligHTN renal denervation technology for hypertension to new patient populations.

California’s Direct Flow Medical®, Inc., has gained CE Mark approval for its distinctive transcatheter aortic heart valve with a metal-free frame and low-profile transfemoral delivery system. The system uses a twin-donut effect fillable ring to optimise positioning.

VHS/Betamax/Bluetooth/DVD/Ultrasound/RF? It seems like we’re approaching a technology stand-off in the growing world of renal denervation. Ultrasound advocates claim advantages in reaching the nerves RF can only reach by heating things up a bit too much.

So, a drug eluting stent which doesn’t rely on a polymer coating to carry the drug. Clever. And now CE marked in the form of BioFreedom from Biosensors International.

Heartwire (theheart.org) has reported the findings of a group of cardiologists who have identified three cases of what they believe to be thrombosis on the prosthetic valve in people who have undergone transcatheter aortic-valve implantation (TAVI) in the preceding couple of years.

St.Jude didn’t miss the opportunity to tout its news at the recent Boston AF symposium last week. Not the least of its offerings was a newly CE marked cardiac catheter which is claimed to offer a new level of manou…maneu…ma… oh it handles really well, OK?