Study On CPR During Ambulance Transport Of Cardiac Arrest Patients Named Best EMS Professional Research Presentation At NAEMSP Conference
ZOLL Medical Corporation (NasdaqGS: ZOLL) announced that a study entitled, "Increased CPR Variability During Ground Ambulance Transport of Patients in Cardiac Arrest" presented by Ben Bobrow, M.D., Medical Director for the Arizona Department of Health Services, Bureau of Emergency Medical Services & Trauma System and the Maricopa Medical Center Resuscitation Science Center, was named the "Best EMS Professional Research Presentation" at the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP® ) 2010 Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. With data supplied from ZOLL E Series® devices, the study concluded that healthcare providers are able to perform more consistent compressions when treating cardiac arrest patients at the scene as opposed to in the back of a moving ambulance.
IOM Report On Reducing Hypertension Releases Feb. 22
High blood pressure is the second leading cause of death in the United States, triggering more than one-third of heart attacks and almost half of heart failures each year even though it is relatively easy to prevent and inexpensive to treat. In a new report, A Population-Based Policy and Systems Change Approach to Prevent and Control Hypertension, the Institute of Medicine explores the question of how we can better reduce and control the condition. The report focuses on diet, physical activity, and other public health approaches, as well as discusses the need for health care providers to better diagnose and treat hypertension. The report will be released with a one-hour public briefing on Monday, Feb.
After Creatimng A Beating Animal Heart In A Laboratory, U Of Minnesota Finalizes License Agreement To Form Start-Up Company Based On Taylor's Research
A major step in commercializing the groundbreaking research of Dr. Doris Taylor was achieved recently when the University of Minnesota signed an exclusive, global license agreement with Miromatrix Medical Inc. Dr. Taylor's research garnered worldwide attention in 2008 when her team announced that it had created a beating animal heart in her laboratory. The technology licensed to Miromatrix holds the promise of one day enabling the replacement of entire human organs with non-transplantable organs, harvested from either animals or donors, which are stripped of their cells and recellularized with cells from the recipient or compatible donor cells. "This is a major step forward for our technology commercialization efforts, " said Tim Mulcahy, the University's vice president for research.
Cooling Inflammation For Healthier Arteries
Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-funded scientists have reported new reasons for choosing "heart-healthy" oats at the grocery store. Nutritionist Mohsen Meydani, director of the Vascular Biology Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Mass., led the research on the oat compounds, called avenanthramides. Meydani previously has shown that phenolic antioxidants in oats obstruct the ability of blood cells to stick to artery walls. Chronic inflammation inside the arterial wall is part of the process that eventually leads to a disorder known as atherosclerosis. Meydani and colleagues have reported findings that suggest the avenanthramides of oats decrease the expression of inflammatory molecules.
New Book Helps Pharmacists Play Larger Role In Heart Health
As more Americans fall victim to cardiovascular disease each year, and more and more drug treatments are available, pharmacists can play an increasingly critical role in medication choices and treatment plans. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists' (ASHP) new book, Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy: A Point-of-Care Guide, by Michael Crouch, Pharm.D., FASHP, BCPS, is being released in February, to coincide with American Heart Month. This concise reference provides pharmacists and students with a quick way to access necessary clinical and therapeutic information that has the potential to improve the lives of patients suffering from cardiovascular disease.
Prevention Guidelines Help Predict Women's Cardiovascular Risk
A simplified strategy for assessing cardiovascular disease risk can predict women's odds of heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular events in the following 10 years, according to new research in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, a journal of the American Heart Association. The strategy, outlined in the 2007 update to the American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Women, was tested using the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study. In the WHI, researchers followed an ethnically diverse population of 161, 808 women, ages 50 to 79, for nearly eight years. Using known cardiovascular risk factors as recommended in the 2007 association guidelines, researchers classified 11 percent as high risk, 72 percent as at risk and 4 percent as optimal (low) risk.
New Blood Test For Coronary Artery Disease Now Available At Vanderbilt Heart And Vascular Institute
Just in time for American Heart Month, Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute is offering a new blood test that can predict if a patient is at high risk for heart disease. Vanderbilt is among the first institutions in the country, and the only one in Tennessee, to offer this test. "We now have a novel way to check for the presence of significant coronary artery disease by looking at genes that are associated with heart disease, " said John McPherson, M.D., director of the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. "This is the first of many future tests that will move in the direction of evaluating diseases by looking at a patient's genetics and the dynamic changes in expression of genes when disease is present.
Cameras Of The Future: Heart Researchers Create Revolutionary Photographic Technique
Scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and the British Heart Foundation at the University of Oxford have developed a revolutionary way of capturing a high-resolution still image alongside very high-speed video - a new technology that is attractive for science, industry and consumer sectors alike. By combining off-the-shelf technologies found in standard cameras and digital movie projectors they have successfully created a tool that will transform many forms of detailed scientific imaging and could provide access to high-speed video with high-resolution still images from the same camera at a price suitable for the consumer market.
News From The Annals Of Internal Medicine: Feb. 16, 2010
1. Early Release: Annals Readers Respond to USPSTF Mammography Guidelines An editorial and a selection of reader responses to the November 17 article, "Screening for Breast Cancer: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement, " was published early online at http://www.annals.org on February 15. 2. Pipe and Cigar Smoking Strongly Associated with Decreased Lung Function, COPD Pipe and cigar smoke may be more harmful than once thought. While some believe pipes and cigars are healthier than cigarettes, a major known cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a new study directly links pipe and cigar smoking to decreased lung function.
Stentys Drug-Eluting Self-Expanding Coronary Stent Shows 4 Restenosis In Complex Lesions
Medical device pioneer Stentys announced today that the complete 'OPEN-I' clinical study was presented by Stefan Verheye, M.D., Ph.D., at the Joint Interventional Meeting ("JIM") 2010 in Rome, demonstrating superior results in 60 patients (27 Stentys drug-eluting stents and 33 Stentys bare-metal stents) who were followed - up angiographically after six months. "These clinical results suggest very promising benefits for patients, " said Stefan Verheye, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Cardiology, Middelheim Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium. "We had already demonstrated that the self-expanding and disconnectable Stentys platform ensured optimal wall apposition and easy access to side branches.