Varian Medical Systems (NYSE:VAR), a medical device and software manufacturer focused on radiation-based cancer treatment, awarded a $100,000 grant to the American Board of Radiology Foundation to support a national brachytherapy registry.
Research & Development
TAVI: Medtronic’s next-gen Engager looks good in 1st pivotal study results
Boston Scientific requests more time as enrollment issues delay MultiSense trial
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) needs some extra time to complete its MultiSense CRM monitoring study, the company told the Federal Communications Commission in requesting an extended waiver to access a restricted radiofrequency band.
Heart valves: Three-year Sapien data buoy Edwards Lifesciences
Edwards Lifesciences’ (NYSE:EW) Sapien transcatheter aortic valve implantation system, the only TAVI device on the U.S. market, demonstrated sustained and increasing survival benefits out to 3 years among inoperable heart failure patients, according to newly unveiled study results.
TCT 2012: New trials and positive results for cardiac implants
TCT2012: Medtronic’s CoreValve system shows high survival rate
Minneapolis health giant Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) unveiled new findings from its CoreValve Advance study, showing a 1-year survival rate of 82.1% and improved health-rated quality of life at 1 and 6 months.
Medtronic’s CoreValve device is a self-expanding heart valve prosthetic that can be delivered via catheter rather than through surgery.
Gore enrolls 1st patient in next-gen transcatheter septal occluder trial
W.L. Gore & Associates today announced successful launch of its GORE Septal Occluder Clinical trial, enrolling the 1st of 50 patients to evaluate the company’s heart implant in treatment of atrial septal defect.
The new catheter-based septal occluder is a permanent implant designed to treat holes in the septum between the chambers of the heart.
China’s medtech industry can’t keep pace without innovation, industry analysts say
As one of the fastest-growing medtech markets in the world, China has attracted global investors and medical device industry titans, but Chinese device makers need to step up quality and innovation to make the China “the next IT industry,” according to local analysts.
Does weight-loss surgery lead to substance abuse? | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Patients that underwent weight-loss surgery had a 50% rise in rates of substance abuse after 2 years, according to results from a survey-based study of more than 150 patients.
Researchers suggested that the patients may have been trading one habit for another, a theory called "symptom substitution, after finding that 1 in 8 patients reported using recreation drugs 2 years after the procedure, up from 1 in 25 before weight-loss surgery.
Post-CoreValve pacemaker use may be on the decline
One in 4 patients who received Medtronic’s (NYSE:MDT) CoreValve system between Dec. 2007 and March 2012 also received a pacemaker to counter complications following the procedure, but that’s down from earlier reports and new strategies may push rates even lower.