CardioExchange Archive

June 20th, 2012

C3 Global Summit, June 20, 2012

Aaron C. Earles, DO

The coronary track this morning began with discussions of the rationale for CTO interventions in “the era of appropriate use criteria” and of how to recognize unfavorable features for CTO PCI. The session concluded with two live case transmissions. The first case was of a 55-year-old man, an exsmoker with a history of diabetes mellitus and […]

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June 19th, 2012

C3 (Complex Cardiovascular Catheter Therapeutics) 2012

Aaron C. Earles, DO

Greetings from Orlando, Florida! I am in town for the C3 therapeutics global summit being held at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort. This afternoon had some very interesting topics for interventionalists and fellows-in-training. I attended a preconference symposium, Imaging: Moving Beyond Angiography. Throughout the first year of fellowship, I recall multiple cases where angiography alone failed […]

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June 12th, 2012

ACC Releases Appropriate Use Criteria for Noninvasive Peripheral Vascular Tests

Larry Husten, PHD

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has published appropriate use criteria (AUC) for peripheral vascular ultrasound and physiological testing. The criteria were developed in coordination with 10 other medical societies. “This is the first systematic and comprehensive evaluation looking at appropriate indications for vascular testing, such as ultrasound or functional testing,” said Emile Mohler III, the chair […]

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May 15th, 2012

No Benefit Found for Exercise Echocardiography in Asymptomatic Patients Following CABG Or PCI

Larry Husten, PHD

Routine exercise echocardiography in asymptomatic patients after revascularization does not lead to better outcomes, according to a new study published in Archives of Internal Medicine. Although guidelines generally discourage the practice, post-revascularization stress tests are still commonly performed. Serge Harb and colleagues performed exercise echocardiography on 2105 patients after CABG surgery or PCI and followed them […]

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May 7th, 2012

Another Surrogate Endpoint Falls Short

Brahmajee Kartik Nallamothu, MD, MPH

Brahmajee Nallamothu puts into context the most recent study on the value of measuring the progression of carotid intima-media thickness.

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April 13th, 2012

CT Angiography for Safe Discharge of Patients

(Reprinted with permission from NOW@NEJM, a blog for physicians about the New England Journal of Medicine) Chest pain is the second most common reason for Emergency Room visits in this country, and although only 10-15% of patients admitted with chest pain are ultimately diagnosed with an acute coronary syndrome, the majority of patients get admitted. So […]

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April 4th, 2012

Medical Societies Release Lists of Overused Tests and Procedures

Larry Husten, PHD

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) and other medical societies have released lists of commonly overused or misused tests and procedures. The action is part of Choosing Wisely, a broad initiative from the ABIM foundation. Here are the five tests or procedures identified by the ACC: Cardiac imaging tests (particularly, stress tests or advanced noninvasive imaging) should not be […]

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March 26th, 2012

CT Angiography to Rule Out CAD in Chest-Pain Patients

Larry Husten, PHD

Each year, 6 million people in the U.S. arrive at the emergency department (ED) with acute chest pain. Although only 10% to 15% of them turn out to have an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), most are admitted to the hospital. Coronary CT angiography (CCTA) has been proposed as a good method to quickly establish the presence […]

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January 19th, 2012

CT Angiography Found Less Helpful in Patients With High Calcium Scores

Larry Husten, PHD

Computed tomography angiography (CTA) has been proposed as a less invasive method to exclude obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD), but no consensus has been achieved about its clinical role in different patient subsets. Now a new report published in JACC from the CORE-64 (Coronary Artery Evaluation Using 64-Row Multidetector Computed Tomography Angiography) study shows that CTA may not be […]

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November 15th, 2011

SATURN Regression Trial: Gorilla Statin and Statin King Battle to a Draw

Larry Husten, PHD

An epic battle comparing the two most potent statins — the reigning king atorvastatin versus “gorilla statin” rosuvastatin — has ended with a quiet draw. Results of SATURN (Study of Coronary Atheroma by InTravascular Ultrasound: Effect of Rosuvastatin Versus AtorvastatiN) were presented at the AHA on Tuesday and published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine. Stephen Nicholls and colleagues randomized 1039 […]

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