Cath Lab Recap: Fat Imaging IDs Heart Disease; Fracturing for Valve-in-Valve

— Interventional cardiology news to note

MedicalToday

Medtronic's CoreValve Evolut line of devices won expanded approval from the FDA for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in intermediate-risk patients -- almost a year after competing devices from Edwards Lifesciences, the Sapien XT and Sapien 3, received theirs, reported.

CT imaging of fat cells around coronary arteries can reveal and differentiate between stable and unstable plaque, researchers reported in Science Translational Medicine.

Calcified aortic valves were than women, despite the former having less severe aortic stenosis on baseline, according to a study published in Heart. Both sexes had doubled odds of cardiovascular morbidity when echocardiography revealed such calcification.

If arises during endovascular arch repair, emergency TAVR may be performed as a bailout, as shown in a case study from the Journal of Endovascular Therapy.

People with small, degraded bioprosthetic heart valves may have to get the valve frame fractured before a can introduce another valve into the narrow orifice. Polymer frames could be fractured in the 8-10 atm range, and metal ones at 19-26 atm, researchers reported. (EuroIntervention)

The higher the level in patients, the more likely that atrial fibrillation will recur after catheter ablation. This relationship was only seen in those under 65 years of age, however, according to the study in Europace.

Pediatric patients with could undergo interventional catheterization if given continuous renal replacement therapy or continuous cycling peritoneal dialysis during the procedure, according to a small case series. By reducing the risk of fluid overload, there were no electrolyte abnormalities after the procedure. (Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions)

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    Nicole Lou is a reporter for , where she covers cardiology news and other developments in medicine.