Cypher stent now in 2 million patients

Two million patients have received the Cordis (Miami Lakes, Florida) Cypher sirolimus-eluting coronary stent since its market introduction in Europe in April 2002, a "first-time milestone for any company in the drug- eluting stent industry," the company said.

"The Cypher stent represents an innovative advance in science that has significantly changed the practice of interventional cardiology," said Professor J. Eduardo Sousa, MD, PhD, Institute Dante Pazzanese of Cardiology (Sao Paulo, Brazil). "It is a safe and effective treatment option for a wide range of patients and continues to be the top choice for interventional cardiologists globally." Sousa was the first physician in the world to implant a Cypher stent.

Cordis also reported that it has submitted a premarket approval application to the FDA for approval of a 2.25 mm version of its Cypher stent.

CCHIT seeking jurors

The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT; Chicago) is seeking qualified jurors to assess ambulatory electronic health record (EHR) products and how well they conform to the CCHIT certification criteria. CCHIT is seeking about 30 jurors to test ambulatory EHR products.

A team of three clinical jurors – one of whom must be a physician – and an IT security evaluator will assess each product's compliance to the certification criteria. The inspection involves critiquing a product's performance during execution of a series of tests and reviewing documentation supplied by the vendor.

Testing is web-based and is expected to take one day with an additional day for re-testing, if necessary, plus documentation review and completion of surveys. Jurors must be available to participate in a minimum of six tests during a six-month period, preferably with a minimum of one test per month.