Acute Coronary Syndromes

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is most commonly caused by a heart attack (myocardial infarction) where blood flow to the heart is suddenly blocked. This is usually caused by a blood clot from a ruptured coronary artery atherosclerotic plaque. Other causes include spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), which most commonly occurs in women. ACS is usually treated in a cath lab with angioplasty and the placement of a stent to prop the vessel open.

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SCAI celebrated William W. O'Neill, MD, and Cindy L. Grines, MD, two veteran interventional cardiologists who played key roles guiding the development of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) as a treatment for ST-elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients.

Cardiologists reflect on developing primary PCI in face of criticism and pushback

SCAI celebrated cardiologists William W. O'Neill, MD, and Cindy L. Grines, MD, for the important roles they played in the development of primary PCI. “It was challenging,” Grines explained. “We had the pharmaceutical industry that was anti-primary angioplasty and we had a lot of our own colleagues that were anti-primary angioplasty."

Example of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) shown as part of the multimodality imaging capability on the Fujifilm CVIS.

IVUS-guided PCI reduces risks in patients with diabetes

PCI can be more challenging in high-risk patients presenting with diabetes and ACS. IVUS guidance was associated with improved outcomes among these patients compared to angiography guidance alone. 

Predicting sudden cardiac death after a heart attack may be impossible—for now

Researchers tried to crack the code, but they fell short time and time again. AI may offer potential as one way to finally find an answer, they added. 

money maze benjamin franklin reimbursement medicare

Payment cuts and beyond: Key takeaways for cardiologists from the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

The American College of Cardiology has shared its perspective on new CMS payment policies, highlighting revenue concerns while providing key details for cardiologists and other cardiology professionals. 

‘A huge win’: CMS significantly increases Medicare payments for cardiac CT

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.

HeartLung Technologies, a Houston-based artificial intelligence (AI) company, has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for new software that assesses chest CT scans for signs of coronary artery disease (CAD) and other potentially fatal heart conditions. The newly cleared offering, AutoChamber, was designed with opportunistic heart evaluations in mind.

FDA clears AI tool that flags signs of heart disease in chest CT scans

The newly cleared offering, AutoChamber, was designed with opportunistic screening in mind. It can evaluate many different kinds of CT images, including those originally gathered to screen patients for lung cancer. 

Cardiologist Sanjit Jolly, MD, MSc, at TCT 2024

Colchicine falls flat in large heart attack trial, convincing cardiologists to stay away

Treating AMI patients with colchicine is not associated with better cardiovascular outcomes, according to new data presented at TCT. The drug did help with inflammation, but that was the only benefit researchers could identify.

New data highlight long-term benefits of HeartFlow’s AI-based CAD evaluations

HeartFlow kicked off TCT 2024 by sharing new research on the long-term impact of its FFRCT Analysis and Plaque Analysis software.

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