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| The Monthly Pulse |
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| TTVR with Evoque device linked to substantial benefits after 1 year
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| The Story |
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| According to data presented at Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics 2024, the Evoque transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement (TTVR) system has shown significant symptom and quality of life (QOL) improvements after one year. The system, developed by Edwards Lifesciences, is the first of its kind to receive FDA approval, providing US patients with severe TR an option for a full transcatheter valve treatment. |
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| What You Should Know |
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| The data presented included findings from nearly 400 patients with severe TR; 259 of whom received the TTVR system and 133 who were treated with optimal medical therapy exclusively. QOL outcomes were significantly better after 30 days, six months, and a year among those who received TTVR, and the TTVR group was twice as likely to be alive with a good QOL after one year than the control group. These findings point to a promising treatment option for patients who experience debilitating symptoms due to structural heart diseases.
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| Physicians, hospitals decry 2025 Medicare payment rates
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| The Story |
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| The recent finalization of the 2025 Medicare reimbursement rates for physicians and hospital clinics will result in a 2.9% Medicare rate drop, leading to $1.8 billion less in funding for doctors in the coming year. The CMS did finalize a 2.9% rate update for outpatient departments and ambulatory surgery centers, as well as a 2.9% rate increase for inpatient care. Nonetheless, hospitals and organizations such as the American Hospital Association argue that these updates are inadequate, especially amid rising inflation and labor shortages.
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| What You Should Know |
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| The argument from hospitals that Medicare rate updates fall short has been ongoing for nearly two decades, and doctors that operate their own practices are most likely to be affected by recent factors such as rising inflation. Since 2001, Medicare reimbursement for physician services has declined 29% when adjusted for inflation, a trend that the American Medical Association decries as unsustainable. Several groups have advocated for a yearly inflation-based update to Medicare physician payments as an alternative.
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| Survival Rate in Bilateral Lung and Heart-Lung Transplants Comparable |
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| The Story |
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| According to research presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) 2024 International Congress, survival rates at one and five years were similar for patients who received bilateral lung and heart-lung transplants. Physicians have historically debated whether to opt for a heart-lung or bilateral lung transplant, and lack of definitive indicators has posed challenges when deciding between the two procedures for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). |
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| What You Should Know |
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| The decision to compare data among the two procedures stemmed from the lack of understanding as to whether the heart could remodel on its own. This research indicated that the right ventricle, which is the area most affected in PAH, can readapt after a bilateral lung transplant alone. In cases where patients do not have structural heart damage, opting for this procedure can save donor hearts for other recipients who truly need them.
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| STS 2025 - 61st STS Annual Meeting |
| Fri., Jan. 24 - Sun., Jan. 26 |
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Critical Care Congress |
| Sun., Feb. 23 - Tues. Feb. 25 |
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| 2025 AANP Health Policy Conference |
| Sun., Mar. 2 - Tues., Mar. 4 |
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| AAPA Executive Leadership Conference |
| Mon., Mar. 3 - Wed., Mar. 5 |
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| AmSECT International |
| Wed., Mar. 19 - Sun., Mar. 23 |
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| AACN NTI 2025 |
| Mon., May 19 - Wed., May 21 |
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