Research News In Brief
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Ablation SMASHes VT: Substrate-based catheter ablation reduces defibrillator shocks in patients with an ICD and a history of myocardial infarction, according to results of the 128-patient SMASH-VT trial, published in the Dec. 27 New England Journal of Medicine. The National Institutes of Health-supported trial randomized patients with a previous heart attack and spontaneous ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation to be treated with an ICD alone or an ICD plus catheter ablation. The primary endpoint was survival with no ICD shocks or pacing needed to treat an arrhythmia. Mean follow-up was 22.5 months. 31% of the patients in the ICD-only group received an appropriate shock compared with 9% of the ICD-plus-ablation group. Mortality was statistically similar for both groups - 17% for the control and 9% for the ablation group. Lead author Vivek Reddy, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital, says the study results should be confirmed in larger studies that also analyze the impact of antiarrhythmic drugs. "In addition, a formal economic analysis would be needed to adequately understand the relationship between the immediate costs of the ablation procedure and the long-term costs of care for patients with ICDs," Reddy explains
You may also be interested in...
Monogram Launches Companion Diagnostic To Pfizer’s New HIV Drug
South San Francisco-based Monogram Biosciences launched its Trofile HIV diagnostic Aug. 6, timed with FDA approval of Pfizer's first-in-class HIV drug Selzentry (maraviroc) the same day
Beauty Firms Using AI-Based Tools Could Be Subject To Health Privacy Laws In US States
Using AI-based programs to collect and store consumer information risks running afoul of new health privacy laws cropping up in US states. Lack of federal regulation or guidance on the issue is one of the biggest challenges for beauty firms deploying AI, according to Stacy Marcus, partner at Reed Smith LLP.
Mustang Bio Enters Race For CAR-T In Autoimmune Disease
The biotech company’s CEO talked to Scrip about plans to bring the CD20-targeting CAR-T MB-106 into an investigator-sponsored Phase I trial later this year.