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Newer heart devices significantly improve survival, complication rate and quality of life

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A new generation of implanted devices that help a failing heart function properly is significantly more effective than the previous version, making these new devices an appropriate permanent therapy for many of the more than 5 million Americans who suffer from heart failure.

Cardiothoracic surgeons projected to be in short supply by 2025

Health and population trends could increase demand for cardiothoracic surgeons in the United States far greater than the supply -- diminishing and delaying care, according to a report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

4 out of 106 heart replacement valves from pig hearts failed

Pig heart valves used to replace defective aortic valves in human patients failed much earlier and more often than expected, says a report from cardiac surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. This is the first report to demonstrate this potential problem, the researchers say.

Drug therapy cuts risk of stroke during coronary bypass

Treating patients with a drug called aprotinin reduces the risk of stroke by 47 percent in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, according to a study published in the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. The study, a large-scale analysis evaluating data from 35 CABG studies, determined that use of aprotinin reduced the need for a blood transfusion by 39 percent. Blood transfusions during CABG surgery have been associated with an increased risk of stroke. Stroke and neurological injury occurs in five percent of the more than 300,000 CABG surgeries performed annually.



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