Candace Stuart, Editor

Two oh one two. Among many rituals, practicing the change in date is a common exercise after we enter the New Year. At Cardiovascular Business, we have been looking forward to 2012 and beyond in many magazine and web articles. The selection in our final newsletter for 2011 features editor favorites, many of which provided a glimpse into the medical, regulatory and economic climate in the near future.

As the cover story of our December magazine emphasized, 2012 will be a year when cost consciousness will permeate many activities, from research to revascularization. Everyone expects to feel the pinch in 2012—more reason to review our article on healthcare reform, which details reform’s employment and reimbursement implications. Don’t miss tips on how hospitals can prepare for impending cuts.

Heart failure readmissions continue to taunt the healthcare community, costing Medicare more than $17 billion per year. Is the problem intractable? No, although it is a complex disease that may require a holistic and team-based approach to care, according to cardiologists interviewed for our magazine article on this topic.

Several FDA decisions such as approval of the Sapien transcatheter heart valve (Edwards Lifesciences) and dabigatran (Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals) will have a significant impact going into 2012 and beyond. Stroke complications from transcatheter aortic valve implantations, as our coverage illustrated, remained a concern during the FDA advisory meeting. The FDA advisory panel unanimously voted in favor of dabigatran.      

Expect innovation in 2012 as well. We offer several interviews that address administrative, procedural and technological advancements. Those include using angioplasty as a treatment for multiple sclerosis and next-generation stents.

Innovation has entered into appropriate use criteria (AUC) and guidelines as well, judging by articles on the PCI and echocardiography guidelines. The streamlined 2011 PCI guidelines promote the concept of the heart team, for instance, while the echo AUC inspired the creation of facilitative web-based tools and IT.

Cardiovascular business involves not only practices but also suppliers such as Cordis, which opened the door for other innovators when it announced it was discontinuing several drug-eluting stent products. You can read about that surprising move here.

What will transpire in 2012? Despite cost constraints—and in some cases because of them—innovation will continue to make headlines in 2012. The need for affordable quality cardiovascular care and your commitment to provide that care will drive change in 2012. We look forward to giving you the information you need to achieve success.

Please continue to share your knowledge, insights and concerns in 2012.

Candace Stuart
Cardiovascular Business, Editor
cstuart@CardiovascularBusiness.com