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People who take bisphosphonates for osteoporosis may be at risk for serious atrial fibrillation (AF), or irregular heartbeats, according to a new study.

Reuters - In a US national survey, the risk of heart attack was increased fourfold among young adults who had used cocaine more than 10 times in their lifetimes, report researchers from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

Researchers at Rhode Island hospital have created the first animal model that can reveal the side effects of anesthetic agents (the substances used to block pain during surgery) in individuals genetically predisposed to sudden cardiac death. the researchers also found that some anesthetic agents may trigger arrhythmias. The study appears in an upcoming issue of the American Journal of Physiology - Heart Circulation Physiology and is currently available online.

For those of us trained to read nutrition labels, conventional wisdom tells us that fat isn't good for the heart. But a team of University of Houston researchers has set out to use fat cells to beef up heart muscles damaged by heart attack - and they're using an out-of-this-world device to do it.

Measuring an electrical current in an organism is pretty straightforward. All you need is an electrode. Measuring the flow of chemicals in cells or live tissue, however, is much more difficult because the molecules diffuse, mix with one another, and interact with their surroundings.

Cordis Corporation and Conor Medsystems, LLC announced today that patient enrollment has been completed for a randomized clinical trial comparing the NEVOT Sirolimus-eluting Coronary Stent, a new cobalt chromium reservoir-based stent design, to the Taxus® Liberte® Paclitaxel-eluting Coronary Stent. Data from this trial-known as RES-ELUTION I-may be used to support a regulatory filing for a CE Mark in countries outside the United States.

VasoGenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced today that preclinical in vivo screening of a series of synthetic analogs of calcitonin gene-related peptide ('CGRP'), which naturally occurs in humans, retained the properties of CGRP at equal or greater potency. The Company will select one of these compounds to pursue for the treatment of heart failure, which is the nation's most expensive disease.

Cook Medical, the world sales leader in the embolisation market, has received CE Mark approval for its MiraFlexT High Flow Microcatheter. Specially engineered to complement the existing offering of Cook embolisation products and coils, MiraFlex High Flow embodies the latest innovation in microcatheter technology designed to enhance traceability necessary for accessing the most distal vasculature.

Dr. Hein J. Wellens, a leading researcher in the field of cardiovascular science will receive the Canadian Institutes of health Research Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (CIHR-ICRH) Distinguished Lecture and Prize Award. This award is given to an outstanding researcher for his work advancing cardiovascular sciences.

Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute cardiologist Prediman K. (P.K.) Shah, M.D., director of the Division of Cardiology, has been selected by the American Heart Association's Council on Clinical Cardiology to receive its highest award, the James B. Herrick Award, for scientific achievements that have contributed profoundly to the advancement and practice of clinical cardiology.