Cardiac News Round-Up April 17

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Stroke

Thrombolysis Safe in Mild Stroke

Jose G. Romano, MD and colleagues reported in the April issue of JAMA Neurology that few treatment complications were seen when treating patients who experienced mild strokes with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). Mild strokes are defined by an NIHSS score of 5 or less. The study did not address long-term outcomes in the mild-stroke population.

Monitoring Improves NOAC Adherence

Mintu P. Turakhia, MD reported in April issue of JAMA that adherence to new oral anticoagulant (NOAC) dabigatran was highest when pharmacists assisted in monitoring compliance. Dabigatran is one of four fixed-dose NOACs that have been approved as alternatives to warfarin for reducing stroke risk in patients with Afib.

Heart Failure

Ivabradine for Heart Failure Gets FDA Nod

The FDA approved the first new drug for heart failure since 2005---invabradine---approved to "reduce hospitalization from worsening heart failure."

Acute MI

New Strategy can Help Determine Heart Attack in Patients Within One Hour

Results are in from a larger-scale clinical trial for an high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T algorithm (hs-cTnT) which accelerates treatment for patients suspected of having acute MI. The test allows for safe rule-out and 75 percent accurate rule-in. ACVP blog discussed a similar, gender-specific test in January, which found that high-sensitivity is necessary for more accurate diagnosis of heart attacks in women.

Special Report (4): Robotics improve efficiency and reduce radiation exposure

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

In 2011, the Society of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions published new guidelines for a Radiation Safety Program for the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory.

With regards to procedures, they recommended limiting exposure duration, reducing dosage, limiting high-dose high contrast use, reducing magnification, and increasing distance from the x-ray beam to name a few.

Mayo Clinic reduced doses by 40 percent over a 3-year period in a case study released in 2012, where researchers noted that "the physician's expectations [had to] change from a desire for excellent image quality to a desire for low radiation dose and acceptance of clinically adequate image quality."

Technology itself might not be able to change culture, but it can significantly improve many relevant factors, as demonstrated by trials and testimonials of Corindus's CorPath system.

Continue reading Special Report (4): Robotics improve efficiency and reduce radiation exposure

Special Report (3): Mitigating Work-Related Musculoskeletal Pain

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Most references to musculoskeletal pain suggest they are best treated by identifying and treating the cause of the pain. But what if the cause of pain is work-as-usual for cardiovascular professionals in the Cath Lab?

In our special report series we've already discussed the recent research that showed non-physician Cath Lab personnel reporting more musculoskeletal pain due to interventional procedures involving radiation. We also shared pieces from Dr. James Goldstein's editorial on the subject, discussing the importance of the issue and suggesting ways to advocate and educate. We're also planning on discussing new technological applications that allow cardiovascular professionals to avoid radiation during procedures.

But in this piece, we'll take a lighter look at ways to mitigate musculoskeletal pain including stress reduction techniques and some alternative approaches.

Continue reading Special Report (3): Mitigating Work-Related Musculoskeletal Pain

Special Report (2): Advocating and Educating about Work-Related Pain in the Cath Lab

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Last Thursday, we discussed the ground-breaking study that found non-physician Cath Lab personnel reporting more work-related musculoskeletal pain. Today we'll discuss editorial comments from Dr. James Goldstein in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and explore ways to advocate and educate about work-related pain from procedures involving radiation in the Cath Lab.

Continue reading Special Report (2): Advocating and Educating about Work-Related Pain in the Cath Lab