stents

Evidence-based medicine--it sounds good, but how often is it really practiced? Not as often as it could be, it seems. The most recent evidence of these came this week, when researchers concluded that angioplasties and stents are used far more often than they should be. The problem is, doctors are understandably reluctant to deny patients treatments they think will work, even if …

A new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that more than 50,000 unnecessary angioplasties are performed each year in the U.S. The study, which examined outcomes for 2,166 patients, concluded that angioplasties made no difference in outcomes if they were performed more than three days after a heart attack. Monitored patients got two alternate course of treatment; one half got drug therapy, angioplasty and a …

The FDA has announced plans to tighten up regulations governing several medical devices, including stents, pacemakers, implantable defibrillators and other medical devices it regulates. The move was prompted, in part, by concerns over last year's massive defibrillator recalls, which concerned more than 200,000 devices. Among other steps, the FDA would like to see devices marked with a unique …

Recently there have been reports that blood clots can form within drug-coated stents designed to keep arteries clear. But cardiologists at the Transcather Cardiovascular Therapeutics show say patients are "far more are being killed each year by the failure of doctors to promptly clear coronary arteries and install stents when patients arrive at a hospital during a heart attack." Experts say that many studies have proven the superiority of stents to clot-busting drugs, and that the risk of …

> Care Improvement, a Medicare Advantage HMO, has launched a health plan targeting chronically ill seniors in Georgia and South Carolina. Release

> The West Nile virus pops up in Missouri. Article

> It's the tale of a Petaluma, Calif.-based hospital …

> In a recent journal article, researchers argue that drug-coated stents cause 2,000 needless deaths per year. Editorial

> Disease management company Healthways has agreed to acquire preventative-health firm Axia Health Management for $450 million. Article

> The South …

An internal FDA estimate of the dangers posed by a Boston Scientific pacemaker suggests that they may be far higher than earlier estimates had suggested. In the report, agency experts argue that the odds of the Contak Renewal short circuiting may be ten times higher than than its maker previously admitted. Boston Scientific acquired the pacemaker when it bought Guidant in a $27-billion deal. The news comes a day after The Wall Street Journal published a front-page piece …

In a page one story, The Wall Street Journal reports that some leading cardiac centers are cutting back "drastically" on their use of drug-coated stents. Cardiologists at Cedars-Sinai, Brigham and Women's and other top centers are shifting back to the bare metal variety based on concerns about the long-term risks of blood clots associated with drug-eluting models. Although statistics show the use of the newer models has not changed much overall, observers suspect the news could …

In a key decision in the power struggle between two rival device makers, a federal judge upheld a patent protecting Boston Scientific's drug-eluting stent. According to The New York Times, the ruling appears to "level the playing field" in the battle between the company and Johnson & Johnson for dominance in the $6 billion stent market. The verdict is the latest twist in the patent war between the two companies. Last year a federal court ruled in favor of J&J, upholding a …

CMS is considering reducing Medicare reimbursements for implantable heart devices, a change that could be a painful hit for specialty hospitals and device makers, if it does in fact go through. The cuts would impact some of the most lucrative heart device categories on the market, including pacemakers, defibrillators and stents. CMS officials say the changes are necessary to eliminate loopholes that specialty hospitals had been exploiting. The agency is weighing reducing payments for …