Conference News

• Simple Echo Measures of Dyssynchrony Can Help Predict Which HF Patients Best Respond to CRTAmong those heart-failure patients in whom the value of cardiac resynchronization therapy is not yet clearly established, the presence of mechanical dyssynchrony as measured by simple Doppler echo can help predict responders, a new study finds.
  Heartwire, June 27, 2008
• Cryoablation: Safer Than RF But Slightly Lower Success Rate?Long-term results have been reported on the emerging technique of cryoablation--which uses freezing rather than heat to ablate the pulmonary vein for the treatment of atrial fibrillation.
  Heartwire, June 24, 2008
• CPR in the Elderly Is Very SuccessfulA new Swiss study shows that cardiopulmonary resuscitation for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is even more successful in the very elderly than in the general population. This is probably because many of these people live in nursing homes, where automatic external defibrillators are widely available and staff members are trained in CPR, say the researchers.
  Heartwire, June 24, 2008
• REFORM: First Prospective Data Show Benefit of Home Monitoring for ICD PatientsInitial results from the first prospective, randomized, multicenter trial of home-based monitoring of ICD function have shown that the technology reduces the follow-up burden by almost 50%.
  Heartwire, June 20, 2008
• Antiarrhythmics vs Ablation as First-Line for AFWhether left atrial ablation should be used as an initial therapy for patients with atrial fibrillation was the provocative theme of a debate at the 16th World Congress in Cardiac Electrophysiology and Cardiac Techniques.
  Heartwire, June 20, 2008