Patients who underwent early surgery for mitral regurgitation were less likely to have postoperative mortality and heart failure compared with those who waited for rescue surgery, according to a Mayo Clinic analysis.

For patients with type 2 diabetes and stable ischemic heart disease, measuring their cardiac troponin T concentration may help predict their risk of death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal MI or nonfatal stroke, according to an analysis of a randomized study.

Factors associated with greater odds for a 30-day readmission included patient comorbidity, race/ethnicity, insurance status, a longer length of hospital stay and developing postoperative complications.

An analysis of eight surgical subspecialties at Johns Hopkins hospital found that more than 80 percent of the variability in 30-day readmissions was due to individual patient factors. The overall readmission rate was 13.2 percent, including 9.6 percent of patients who underwent cardiac surgery.

Cook Medical recalled more than 38,000 of its angiographic catheters in the U.S. after receiving reports that the catheter tip may split or separate from the catheter. Of the 26 reports, 14 resulted in adverse events.

Cardiovascular Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSII) (CSI), today announced that it has received FDA clearance for its new ViperWire Advance® Peripheral Guide Wire with Flex Tip for their Peripheral Orbital Atherectomy Systems (OAS). The new guide wire provides physicians with improved flexibility, navigation and ease-of-use—particularly in hard-to-reach, tortuous vessels—when treating arterial calcium associated with peripheral artery disease (PAD).

Improvements in door-to-balloon times have helped to push down mortality rates and boost outcomes for MI patients, the New York Times reports in part of a series on cardiovascular care in the U.S. The article includes educational slides on heart attacks and PCI treatment.

Eleven hospitals in New Jersey that do not offer cardiac surgeries onsite are seeking to perform elective angioplasties on an elective basis. The state currently allows 18 hospitals to perform the procedures.