September 23rd, 2010
Fondaparinux Effective in Superficial-Vein Thrombosis
Larry Husten, PHD
In the randomized, double-blind CALISTO (Comparison of Arixtra in Lower Limb Superficial Vein Thrombosis with Placebo) trial, 3002 patients with acute, symptomatic superficial-vein thrombosis in the legs, but without DVT or symptomatic PE, received either fondaparinux (2.5 mg) or placebo for 45 days. The primary efficacy endpoint ─ a composite of all-cause death, symptomatic PE […]
September 23rd, 2010
Howdy, PARTNER!
Michael Mack, M.D., E Murat Tuzcu, MD, L. David Hillis, MD and Richard A. Lange, MD, MBA
CardioExchange welcomes Mike Mack and E. Murat Tuzcu, investigators for the PARTNER trial, an ongoing, randomized study of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in patients with severe aortic stenosis at high surgical risk. The first reported findings, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed an impressive 20% absolute reduction in 12-month mortality with […]
September 22nd, 2010
PARTNER Results Boost Transcatheter Aortic-Valve Implantation
Larry Husten, PHD
Patients with aortic stenosis who are not candidates for aortic valve replacement surgery can benefit from transcatheter aortic-valve implantation (TAVI), according to results of the PARTNER (Placement of AoRTic TraNscathetER Valves) trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine. (The trial will also be presented at the TCT conference on Thursday.) Martin Leon and colleagues […]
September 21st, 2010
See Everything
John Mandrola, MD, FACC
John Mandrola is a cardiac electrophysiologist and blogger on matters medical and general. Here is a recent post from his blog Dr John M. Do you see anything wrong with this picture? (Hint: see the right column) I guess the European electrophysiologists couldn’t wait for us in North America. They have published their own 54,000 […]
September 21st, 2010
What it Really Means to be a “Best Doc”
CardioExchange Editors, Staff
Guest blogger “Dr. Grumpy” tells CardioExchange what it’s really like to be dubbed a “Best Doc” in one’s field by a local magazine. Can you relate to his amusing account? Share your experiences here.
September 20th, 2010
Encouraging Observational Data on Clopidogrel and PPIs
Larry Husten, PHD
Compared with a PPI alone, the combination of clopidogrel and a PPI does not increase risk for cardiovascular events, according to a large observational study from Denmark published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Mette Charlot and colleagues analyzed data from 56,406 Danish patients discharged after a first MI and found no difference between the […]
September 20th, 2010
FDA Panel Unanimously Recommends Approval for Dabigatran
Larry Husten, PHD
The FDA’s Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee voted 9-0 in favor of approval of dabigatran (Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim) for the prevention of stroke in patients with AF. The panel was split on whether both dosages (150 mg bid and 110 mg bid) used in the RE-LY trial should gain approval, although in an informal straw […]
September 20th, 2010
What Does Gregg Stone Most Want to See at TCT This Year?
Gregg W Stone, MD
CardioExchange asked Gregg Stone, Director of the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) 2010 meeting, what he thinks will be the three most important trials or topics presented at this year’s conference. The most important and impactful trial is undoubtedly the PARTNER trial, which is a large randomized trial of transcatheter aortic valve implantation compared to medical […]
September 19th, 2010
A Rich OASIS for Your Journal Club
Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM
I’m always scouting for papers to discuss in journal club with my students. Earlier this month, I found the perfect pair: two simultaneously published articles from the industry-funded CURRENT–OASIS 7 randomized trial, one in the New England Journal of Medicine and the other in the Lancet. Many of the authors of the two papers were […]
September 17th, 2010
FDA Announces Safety Review of Pioglitazone
Larry Husten, PHD
The FDA announced today that it was undertaking a safety review of pioglitazone (Actos). The review was initiated after the FDA received data from Takeda, the drug’s manufacturer, suggesting a possible increase in bladder cancer in patients taking the drug for more than 2 years. The data are taken from a planned 5-year analysis of […]