EP Lab Digest - May 2008 - (Page 51)

MAY 2008 EP MEETINGS 51 Next year’s Spring Meeting will take place in Dublin, Ireland on April 24-25, 2009. and risk factor management in coronary patients following their cardiac event. According to the results of this survey, only half of all smokers had given up smoking a year after their event, with women smoking more than men. Most patients had altered their diets, but only one-third had increased their physical fitness and most remained overweight. Furthermore, only onethird had access to a cardiac rehabilitation program.This means there is considerable potential to raise the standard of preventive care in Europe through programs involving multidisciplinary teams of health care professionals helping patients to achieve the lifestyle and therapeutic targets prescribed by their doctors. Gender issues continue to attract our attention. One abstract showed that although there has been a considerable effort recently to educate women on the dangers of CVD, a majority of them do not see themselves as at risk for coronary heart disease. When experiencing warning symptoms, many women try to persuade themselves that the symptoms will disappear; they attempt to handle the pain and discomfort rather than seeking professional care. Another abstract presented showed that cardiovascular disease in women has also been misunderstood by health professionals due to the fact that women tend to experience coronary heart disease differently than men. Other studies relating to gender differences explored the outcome of coronary bypass surgery; the impact of gender on acute coronary events; female sexual dysfunction related to hypertension and use of oral contraceptives in women with congenital heart disease. Preventing the death of young athletes is equally a cause for concern. Annual CV check-ups should be mandatory, because as with women, young people do not see themselves as candidates of heart disease. There is a need to inform sportspersons of risks and conduct preventive surveillance among young people, particularly athletes, whose hearts suffer greater pressure. Interesting studies on the outlook of life after cardiac arrest show constant anxiety or fear of it happening again. Being aware of their own mortality led patients to change their priorities and goals in life. Although the people interviewed stated that they avoided thinking too much about what had happened and that life was back to normal, the studies presented at our meeting showed they in fact lived in the shadow of their cardiac arrest. Depression is also known to be prevalent in heart failure patients. Separate studies showed that depressed patients have a higher chance of being readmitted and that the length of readmission was significantly longer. Another study proved that depression does not impair knowledge acquisition, so these patients are capable of understanding the importance See SPRING MEETING page 52 Introducing the D i s c o v e r Yo u r S i x t h S e n s e The confidence, control, and accuracy you always dreamed of—that’s the power of the Sensei™ Robotic Catheter System, with IntelliSense™ Fine Force Technology. Superb catheter control in three dimensions, with six degrees of freedom and immediate force-sensing quantification, takes you beyond the limitations of the past—all while seated away from the field of radiation. Discover your next power at www.hansenmedical.com. Visit Booth 2229 at Heart Rhythm 2008 San Francisco, CA, May 14-17 The safety and effectiveness of this system for use with cardiac ablation catheters in the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation, have not been established. 380 North Bernardo Avenue | Mountain View, CA 94043 | PH: 650 404 5800 | FAX: 650 404 5901 | www.hansenmedical.com © 2007 Hansen Medical, Inc. All rights reserved. 112807 http://www.hansenmedical.com http://www.hansenmedical.com http://www.hansenmedical.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of EP Lab Digest - May 2008

EP Lab Digest - May 2008 Is There an Under-Referral of Women for Atrial Fibrillation Ablation? A Hybrid Approach to the Cure of Atrial Fibrillation Contents Letter from the Editor Spotlight Interview: University of Michigan Health System 10-Minute Interview: Amit J. Shanker, MD Modular EP Units: Are They Possible? One Hospital’s Experience All About My Job: Technician Supervisor (New Column!) Alcohol Septal Ablation in the Cath Lab: What is it All About? About the Canadian Heart Rhythm Society: Interview with Martin J. Gardner, MD, FRCP(C), FACC Email Discussion Group: May 2008 Second Annual Salary Survey My First Year in Electrophysiology: What Have I Got Myself Into? Highlight on Technology: Video-Audio Integration for the EP Lab On the Horizon: A New Remote Catheter Manipulation System Striving for Excellence in the Care of Cardiac Patients Five Reasons to Participate with a Professional Organization Suspected Shunting of Defibrillation Energy in the EP Lab Can Digital Music Players Cause Interference with Implantable Devices? ECG 101: Ambulatory ECG Monitoring Events Calendar Industry News and Products Classifieds Advertisers Index

EP Lab Digest - May 2008

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