Medical Technology Blog - Page 2

By Adam Pick

What Does Your Aortic Valve Look Like in 3D?

By Adam Pick on October 24, 2016

I’m just getting back from the Heart Valve Summit in Chicago. It’s an amazing conference where hundreds of surgeons, cardiologists, nurses and medical device companies gather to discuss the best practices for heart valve management and therapy.

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Technology Update: Exceptional Hemodynamics & More Earn Trifecta GT FDA Approval; 7 Facts You Should Know

By Adam Pick on August 9, 2016

In case you missed it… The Trifecta Valve with Glide Technology (Trifecta GT) just received a U.S. Food & Drug Administration approval. This is really great news for patients given the unique advantages of this aortic valve replacement.

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Technology Update: Can A Mitral Valve Be Replaced Using A Catheter?

By Adam Pick on March 18, 2016

At the recent Heart Valve Summit, I received several questions about the latest technologies including TAVR, sutureless valves and the MitraClip. I also received questions about the new transcather mitral valve replacement device that is currently in a feasibility study.

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Technology Update: FDA Approves Perceval Sutureless Heart Valve; 7 Facts You Need To Know

By Adam Pick on January 26, 2016

In case you missed it… The Perceval Sutureless Heart Valve just received a Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approval on January 11, 2016. This is really big news as the Perceval is the first rapid-deployment, sutureless heart valve for patients with aortic stenosis.

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Technology Update: Feasibility Study Begins for Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement!

By Adam Pick on June 30, 2015

It feels like there is an explosion of new technologies coming out to treat heart valve disease. As of late, we’ve talked about transcatheter aortic valve replacement devices (TAVR) and transcatheter mitral valve repair devices. But, what about about transcatheter mitral valve replacement?

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4 Cutting Edge Apps to Monitor Your Heart Health

By Adam Pick on October 27, 2014

Not that long ago, people who underwent heart valve or other cardiovascular surgery had to wait until their next doctor’s appointment to monitor their heart health. Granted, you probably could have purchased an at-home blood pressure monitor or visited the local pharmacy… But, that was about the extent of it.

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Big Technology Update: CoreValve Gets Accelerated FDA Approval

By Adam Pick on June 19, 2014

In case you missed the big news last week…

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A Look at the Advancements in Heart Surgery

By Adam Pick on March 3, 2014

The world’s very first heart surgery was said to have taken place only a little more than a century ago. Today, it’s almost common place, with millions undergoing surgeries like cardiac catheterizations, coronary artery bypass grafts and valve related procedures.

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Technology Update: The Two-Part Vitality Heart Valve Replacement Explained by Ivan Vesely, Founder of ValveXchange

By Adam Pick on October 15, 2013

New heart valve companies don’t pop up often. The last time there was an innovation rush in this field was about 10 years ago, when several transcatheter heart valve companies were launched to develop valves delivered to the patient’s heart via catheter.  Since that time, the Edwards SAPIEN class of products got FDA approval in the United States, and a whole bunch more are being sold in Europe.

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Heart Valve Summit Video #2: Discussing Catheter-Based Mitral Valve Surgery With Dr. Steven Bolling

By Adam Pick on October 19, 2012

Patient interest specific to transcatheter aortic valve implantation is very, very, very high. However, patients with mitral valve disorders, including mitral regurgitation, are wondering, “What about me? Are there any catheter-based solutions for mitral valve surgery?”

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Tech Update: SAPIEN Valve Replacement Recommended For “High Risk” Aortic Stenosis Patients

By Adam Pick on June 16, 2012

The possibility of aortic valve replacement without an incision to the sternum or ribs of the patient has become a reality for select patient categories. Together, our community has followed the evolution of catheter-based technologies including the SAPIEN heart valve replacement by Edwards Lifesciences which received FDA approval for “inoperable” patients last year. Needless to say, patient interest specific to this and other transcatheter devices, including the CoreValve and the MitraClip, is significant.

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Tech Update: Encouraging Data For Edwards’ SAPIEN Aortic Valve Replacement

By Adam Pick on March 26, 2012

For those of you monitoring the progress of the transformational Edwards SAPIEN Valve, which replaces the aortic valve in “non-operable” patients, more encouraging data was just released at the American College of Cardiology Conference in Chicago. The SAPIEN is the first catheter-based device, approved by the FDA, that replaces a valve suffering from aortic valve stenosis without any trauma to the patient’s sternum or ribs.

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Technology Update: “Will Extracellular Matrix Help Patients Grow Their Own Heart Valves?” By Dr. Marc Gerdisch

By Adam Pick on February 15, 2011

Advances in medical technology for valvular treatment continue to evolve rapidly. Recently, I learned more about the use of Extracelluar Matrix (ECM) for heart valve repair and remodeling from Dr. Marc Gerdisch, the chief of cardiothoracic surgery at St. Francis Heart Center in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2008, Doctor Gerdisch was the world’s first surgeon to use ECM to repair a damaged heart valve.

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Technology Update: Cardiologists & Surgeons Evaluate The SAPIEN Heart Valve Replacement Trial (Part II)

By Adam Pick on October 15, 2010

When the latest results of the PARTNER trial became available, many in the medical, investment and patient communities quickly analyzed the data specific to the new SAPIEN heart valve replacement. As you may be aware, the SAPIEN (i) requires no trauma to the sternum during aortic valve replacement, (ii) is currently used for high-risk patients suffering from aortic stenosis, and (iii) has yet to receive FDA approval in the United States.

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Video: Extacellular Matrix Used In Heart Valve Repair Surgery By Dr. Gerdisch

By Adam Pick on September 1, 2009

I’m fascinated by the different tools and technologies that help surgeons reconstruct the human heart.

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