Posts Tagged 'IVC filter'

New technology treats clots more quickly

A report in the Florida Sun Sentinel describes a new treatment for deep vein thrombosis, or a major blood clot. According to the article, DVT claims more lives each year than AIDS and car accidents combined.

The technology is called the EKOS Ultrasound Accelerated Thrombolysis machine, which uses ultrasound waves to distribute a powerful clot-busting medication throughout the blockage.

The report quotes Warren Swee, an interventional radiologist, as saying that EKOS treatment ...

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FDA lacks system for tracking devices

According to a report by ProPublica, medical devices have no unique code that would allow the government to track problems.

Although many manufacturers imprint a serial number on their devices, there’s no standardized system that would enable the government to easily monitor them. And critics say this gap in FDA oversight has contributed to numerous high-profile cases of medical devices malfunctioning in recent years – injuring and even killing patients.

For example, ...

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IVC filter recipients have higher death rate

Inferior vena cava filters are linked to a higher death rate among the very people they’re supposed to help, according to a Reuters story.

The story cites a March presentation given at the annual scientific meeting of the Society of Interventional Radiology.

Researchers reviewed medical data on more than eight million people with deep vein thrombosis (a blood clot in one of the deeper veins) and pulmonary embolism (a dislodged blood ...

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FDA approves new heart filter

According to a report on TheHeart.org, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new vena cava filter made by Crux Biomedical of California.

The company is touting the new device as a safer alternative to earlier models, which have been prone to potentially deadly fracturing.

The heart processes blood — removing carbon dioxide and adding oxygen from the lungs. The oxygen-poor blood enters the heart through two main veins ...

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Pulmonary embolism treatment has risks of its own

A pulmonary embolism occurs when a blood clot breaks off and travels to the lungs. According to the Mayo Clinic, prompt treatment is essential to prevent serious complications or death.

Treatment usually involves medications. Anticoagulants prevent new clots from forming. They include heparin, which is usually delivered with a needle and works quickly; or warfarin, which comes in pill form and takes a few days to begin working.

Certain medications, called thrombolytics, ...

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