Cardiac Arrhythmia

Cath Lab Digest explores the role of Cardiac Arrhythmia in the treatment of coranary artery disease. For more information, feel free to browse through some of articles below on the topic of Cardiac Arrhythmia.

Professional Perspective: Cartoid Stenting Commentary Not very long ago, the idea of directly injecting the coronary vasculature with a contrast agent was thought to be fatal, for surely, the patient would suffer a fatal arrhythmia or infarction. In the late 1950s, Dr. F. Mason Sones proved that coronary angiography could be done safely. About 20 years later, the idea of treating coronary artery disease with a catheter was met with the same doubts and fears, but Dr. Andreas Gruentzig believed otherwise. At first, percutaneous transluminal balloon angioplasty (PTCA) was a fairly risky procedure, with cardiac arrhythmias, vessel dissections, and emergent bypass surgery not uncommon.

Selected News from the American College of Cardiology Annual Scientific Sessions: March 24-27, 2007, New Orleans, Louisiana The American College of Cardiology (www.acc.org) represents the majority of board-certified cardiovascular physicians in the United States. Its mission is to advocate for quality cardiovascular care through education, research, promotion, development and application of standards and guidelines, and to influence health care policy.

Cath Lab Expense/Cost Process Improvements It is budget time, and the phrase of the day is ?decrease expenses and increase revenue.? At the same time, DRG and APC reimbursement for cardiac services in some areas is being reduced. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposal is to ?adopt both the HSRV cc weighting methodology and the consolidated severity-adjusted DRGs. More than 1000 hospitals in rural areas will see an average increase of 3.7 percent in FY 2007; urban hospitals will see an average increase of 3.4 percent in FY 2007. Cardiac specialty hospitals will see an average increase of only 1.2 percent in FY 2007 because of the refinements CMS is making to improve payment accuracy.? Some of the ?proposed? DRG changes include:

News: Part 1

The Use of an XMI-Rapid Exchange Rheolytic Thrombectomy Catheter During an Acute Myocardial Infarction Secondary to Thrombus Burden of the Right Coronary Artery: A Case Study Acute myocardial infarctions caused by ruptured plaque can create a large thrombus burden down the infarct-related artery. This acute thrombus can be treated in several ways. The current treatment for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction is immediate revascularization through percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).1 During PCI balloon dilation, the dissolution of this acute thrombus can result in embolization to the distal micro-vasculature, causing myocardial injury. This injury may be reflected in a further increase in myocardial enzyme levels and eliciting further myocardial damage.2

Clinical and industry news ? The investigators found the average systolic ? Future modules will be based on data from CryoCath?

Clinical and Industry News Medical Ventures Signs Letter of Intent to Acquire Angiometrx; Homocysteine Tied to Heart Failure; Cardiogenesis Granted FDA Panel Review of Percutaneous Myocardial Revascularization (PMR) System; AXIOM Artis TA Now with Integrated Ultrasound; Vascular Access Safety Kit; EECP Demonstrated to be Effective in Patients with Cardiac Syndrome X; Teen Gets Piercing-Related Heart Infection; In Case of Heart Failure, Mice Don?t Act Like Men; Demographic Changes Direct the Growth of Interventional Cardiology Markets; Argatroban Assigned Medicare and Medicaid Ambulatory Payment Classification Code; CryoCor Clinical Progress Update; Medtronic Study of Neurostimulation for Refractory Angina Pain Gets Underway; Healthcare Institutions Can Take Positive Steps to Ease Critical U.S. Nursing Shortage

Geisinger Medical Center Opens First Computerized Simulation Training Center in Eastern U.S. Providing physicians, nurses and technologists with state-of-the-art training in invasive and interventional cardiovascular techniques and promoting patient safety ? these are the primary goals of the SimSuite? Center at Geisinger. Opened in October 2002, the SimSuite Center marries the look and feel of a cardiac catheterization lab with computerized simulation equipment to provide hands-on medical training. Modeled after the aviation industry?s ground-based flight trainers, SimSuite is unique in its field, providing complete case management training.