Volume XV | Issue 8 | August 2023 | |
HCI's Monthly Review of the Healthcare Industry | |
Robert J. Stilley
President, CEO
HeartCare Imaging, Inc.
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Dear Colleagues –
As summer days slowly give way the fall season, a familiar excitement fills the air. It's that time of year again when stadiums roar to life, and the gridiron becomes a battleground for the heart and soul of our favorite teams. Yes, college football season is upon us!
Much like the anticipation leading up to the kickoff of a new football season, we at HeartCare Imaging are fueled by a similar spirit of enthusiasm and determination. Just as coaches strategize and players give their all on the field, our team continually strives for excellence in the realm of healthcare services.
As the nation's college football teams prepare for their opening games, we, too, gear up to tackle the challenges and opportunities ahead. The dedication, teamwork, and unwavering commitment we witness on the football field are qualities we hold dear at HeartCare. We believe in giving our all, exceeding expectations, and, most importantly, putting the well-being of those we serve at the forefront of everything we do.
So, as we cheer on our favorite teams this college football season, let's also carry that same spirit into our work. Together, we can achieve remarkable victories, not only in the world of healthcare but in making a meaningful difference in the lives of our patients and partners.
With the excitement of college football season as our backdrop, let's gear up for another season of success and excellence at HeartCare Imaging.
Best Regards,
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PSMA PET/CT Waives the Need for Pre-Imaging Biopsy in Elderly Patients
In elderly patients with suspected prostate cancer, PSMA PET/CT can diagnose advanced disease and aid in therapy selection without the need for a biopsy. Published in the July issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, this new research demonstrates how imaging with PSMA PET/CT can potentially reduce the number of prostate biopsies and associated complications in the elderly while providing accurate staging data.
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Lantheus to Discontinue Production of Azedra
On August 18, Lantheus informed SNMMI that it has decided to discontinue production of Azedra (iobenguane I-131), its FDA-approved therapy for pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PPGL). Although the company will wind down its manufacturing site in New Jersey, it will continue to produce doses through early 2024 to allow current patients to complete their treatment.
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Tau PET the best tool to predict rate of cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s
Tau PET is the best imaging tool to predict the rate of cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s, researchers asserted in a new study published Aug. 9.
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Heart Disease Death Rates In US Have Fallen Sharply In Past 30 Years, Research Finds
HealthDay reports, “Fatal heart disease in the United States dropped about 4% a year between 1990 and 2019, but Americans need to quit smoking, drinking and overeating or those gains could be wiped out, according to new research.” Investigators found that “among people ages 25 to 84, deaths from heart disease fell from more than 397,000 deaths in 1990 to about 237,000 in 2019,” but “those declines, however, slowed significantly between 2011 and 2019.” The research was published in the American Heart Journal.
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Interventional echocardiography expected to grow thanks to new structural heart procedures
Interventional echocardiography is expected to see a lot of growth in the next few years as new transcatheter tricuspid and mitral devices gain U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance.
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Weight loss drug semaglutide reduces risk of adverse cardiovascular events by 20% among overweight, obese patients
Weekly treatments of semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist from Novo Nordisk originally developed to treat diabetes, are associated with reducing a patient’s major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE) risk by 20%, according to initial results from the SELECT trial.
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FDA clears new AI to guide point-of-care cardiac ultrasound exams
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted market clearance to UltraSight for its artificial intelligence (AI) guidance technology, which shows ultrasound users how to perform a diagnostic quality echocardiography exam. The UltraSight real-time AI guidance software can assist medical professionals without sonography experience in acquiring cardiac ultrasound images at the point of care in multiple settings.
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Simple blood test may predict future heart, kidney risk for people with Type 2 diabetes
An analysis of a clinical trial of more than 2,500 people with Type 2 diabetes and kidney disease found that high levels of four biomarkers are strongly predictive for the development of heart and kidney issues.
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Hyperbaric oxygen may improve heart function in long COVID
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) increased markers of heart function in a small randomized, controlled trial of patients with long COVID.
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Skipping Aspirin After Heart Attack Raises Odds for Recurrence
If you’ve had a heart attack, your doctor likely told you to take a low-dose aspirin daily to stave off a second heart attack or stroke, but most people don’t follow through with this advice over the long-term.
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Coronary Disease That Comes With a Donor Heart Does Carry Risk
Coronary artery disease (CAD) that comes with a donor heart was not uncommon and conferred cardiovascular risk, although not an early death overall, according to data from a large Spanish registry.
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Arterial stiffness may cause and worsen heart damage among adolescents by increasing blood pressure and insulin resistance
Arterial stiffness is a novel cause of premature heart damage among adolescents, according to a new follow-up study. The study was conducted in collaboration between Texas Children's Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine in the US, the University of Bristol in the UK, the University of Exeter in the UK, and the University of Eastern Finland, and the results were published in Atherosclerosis.
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A wake-up call for kids' poor heart health
Today in the U.S., a child with risk factors for heart disease (high blood pressure, overweight, etc.) can wait close to a year to see a cardiologist because of high demand and limited resources. This is precious time that could be spent managing their conditions to help them avoid having a heart attack or stroke at a young age. A new study from Northwestern University and the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago provides the firstcomprehensive look at the practice of pediatric preventive cardiology in 30 years. It found a high incidence of youth with risk factors for cardiovascular disease but a significant lack of resources and personnel to provide the timely, preventive care they need.
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FDA clears AI-powered software that pinpoints suspicious findings on chest X-rays
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared artificial intelligence-powered software able to pinpoint suspicious findings on chest X-rays, developer Imidex Inc..
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She Didn’t Speak for 18 Years. A Computer Helped Find Her Voice.
Computers are getting better at giving voice to the voiceless. A paralyzed woman who hadn’t spoken in almost 20 years found her voice again through a virtual avatar, thanks to a brain implant and mind-reading algorithm.
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FDA approves first vaccine to protect newborns from RSV
The US Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the first vaccine that protects newborns from respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV. The vaccine, made by Pfizer, is given to mothers late in their pregnancies and provides protection to infants through their first six months of life.
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Cell therapy that repairs cornea damage with patient's own stem cells achieves positive phase I trial results
Novel stem cell therapy called a CALEC transplant was performed safely in four patients with serious chemical burns tracked in a phase I clinical trial for 12 months. The patients experienced early clinical gains: two were able to undergo a corneal transplant and two reported significant improvements in vision without additional treatment. CALEC procedure takes small amount of stem cells from healthy eye, grows and expands stem cells on a graft, before it is transplanted into the patient's damaged eye.
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Toddlers' Screen Time Linked to Delayed Development
Young children who spent more time in front of screens -- whether television, video games, or mobile phones and other electronic devices -- had higher likelihood of developmental delays, according to a Japanese study.
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Commercially available Alzheimer's blood test could help early diagnosis
Quest Diagnostics has introduced the AD-Detect™ Test for Alzheimer’s disease, a blood-based biomarker test available for purchase by consumers.
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Vaccines Against Shingles, Pneumonia May Also Lower Your Alzheimer's Risk
Certain adult vaccines, including shingles and pneumonia shots, may also help seniors fight off Alzheimer's disease, new research reveals.
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CDC and WHO monitoring new Covid variant with large number of mutations
A handful of cases of BA.2.86 have been identified globally, but scientists aren't sure if the variant is capable of spreading widely.
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1 in 5 women report mistreatment during maternity care: CDC
Twenty percent of women reported experiencing mistreatment during pregnancy and delivery care, a new CDC report found.
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Rotavirus Hospitalization in Kids Linked to Autoimmune Disease Later On
Rotavirus-ass
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Health Care Industry News | |
The Upheaval at America’s Disappearing Nursing Homes, in Charts
The U.S. has at least 600 fewer nursing homes than it did six years ago, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of federal data. More senior care is happening at home, and the Covid-19 pandemic caused many families to shun nursing homes while draining workers from an already short-staffed industry.
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95% of patients say telehealth is easiest way to get diagnoses
Telemedicine received the highest ratings when 1,000 U.S. patients were asked about the easiest way to obtain a diagnosis.
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Epic, Microsoft expand partnership to accelerate generative AI in healthcare
The EHR vendor and technology giant are working together to quickly deploy “dozens” of tools like clinical note summarization and coding suggestions.
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The starting salary slowdown
Big pay hikes that came with job changes in recent years are beginning to flatten or fall across many industries — a signal for healthcare employers that the bidding wars for talent spanning industries are cooling down.
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Closing the Gap in Rural Health Outcomes
Recent health care metrics demonstrate a concerning trend: rural Americans face higher mortality rates than urban residents.
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Pandemic relief funds bolstered operating margins at vulnerable hospitals, Health Affairs finds
Hospital pandemic relief funds have come under scrutiny, with some reports suggesting that high-performing hospitals capitalized on funds to post record operating margins.
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Parkinson’s Puzzle: Is the Root in the Gut, Not the Brain?
For years, Parkinson’s has been labeled a brain disorder. However, intriguing research hints at its origins not in the brain, but the gut.
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ALS Breakthrough: Neuron Grafting Restores Muscle Function
Researchers have discovered a promising method to restore muscle function in a severe mouse model of ALS using a blend of grafted motor neurons and optical nerve stimulation.
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Elderly People Who Live Alone at Increased Risk of Cognitive Decline
A startling study unveils a critical deficiency in the U.S. healthcare infrastructure: about 1 in 4 older Americans with dementia or cognitive impairments live solo, confronting increased hazards such as unsafe driving, medication mishaps, and overlooked medical appointments. This issue looms large, especially when juxtaposed against the backdrop of an aging demographic that’s set to grow exponentially.
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Eye Scans Detect Parkinson’s Years Before Symptoms Surface
A new study identified markers in eye scans which can detect the presence of Parkinson’s disease an average of seven years before clinical presentation. This research, the largest of its kind, utilized artificial intelligence to analyze retinal imaging, revealing these early indicators of Parkinson’s.
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Brain recordings capture musicality of speech -- with help from Pink Floyd
For those with neurological or developmental disorders compromising speech, brain machine interfaces could help them communicate. But today's interfaces are slow and, from electrodes placed on the scalp, can detect letters only. The speech generated is robotic and affectless. Neuroscientists have now shown that they can reconstruct the song a person is hearing from brain recordings alone, holding out the possibility of reconstructing not only words but the musicality of speech, which also conveys meaning.
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Florida sued over Medicaid redeterminations
Three Floridians, including two children, filed a lawsuit against the state on Tuesday alleging it illegally cut their Medicaid coverage without proper notice.
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Boehringer sues to block US drug price program
The pharma’s suit, which claims Medicare’s new power to negotiate certain drug prices is unconstitutional, comes days before the agency will reveal the first 10 medicines to be included under the plan.
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Will the Biden administration’s short-term plan rule increase the uninsured rate?
Free-market advocates argue proposed restrictions on short-term plans will leave consumers without coverage. Health policy researchers aren’t so sure.
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Kentucky sues major PBMs over rising insulin prices
The lawsuit is the latest in a series this year alleging PBMs and drug manufacturers work in tandem to raise the cost of insulin prices.
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NYC Health Chief Aims to Redefine Public Health Post-COVID
Public health has endured a very public critique during the acute crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath.
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HeartCare Imaging, Inc. | Phone: 561-746-6125 | Fax: 561-741-2036 | info@heartcareimaging.com | | | | |
