TL;DR
Get health and wellness essentials delivered free — and shop member deals
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Access to Prime Big Deal Days deals on October 6–7
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
A roundup of cardiovascular medicine developments includes a New York court fight over 27 cardiologists’ non-compete agreements that could disrupt patient care, a Swedish study linking GLP-1 drugs to reduced stroke risk in type 2 diabetes, and research showing functional decline up to a decade before cardiovascular events.
Ellis Medicine and St. Peter’s Health Partners are fighting in court over the non-compete agreements of 27 cardiologists in upstate New York, a dispute that CBS6 reported could leave patients at risk of losing access to care. The case is the most prominent item in a MedPage Today roundup of recent cardiovascular medicine developments published September 29, 2026, which also included updated perioperative guidelines, new stroke and diabetes findings, and an FDA clearance for AI-based ECG software.
The non-compete dispute between the two New York health systems centers on contract provisions that can restrict where physicians practice after leaving an employer. According to CBS6’s reporting, patients in the affected communities risk losing care while the case proceeds through the courts. Neither the outcome of the litigation nor the terms of the disputed agreements have been publicly detailed beyond the number of cardiologists involved.
On the research front, a Swedish nationwide study published in eClinicalMedicine found that GLP-1 drugs were associated with reduced stroke risk in people with type 2 diabetes, while SGLT2 inhibitors and DPP-4 inhibitors showed neutral effects. Separately, a secondary analysis of the ANGEL-TNK trial published in JAMA showed that the benefit of intra-arterial tenecteplase after successful endovascular thrombectomy was sustained out to 12 months for stroke patients.
Updated American guidelines on perioperative cardiovascular management for noncardiac surgery, published in Circulation, now carry a strong recommendation to discontinue SGLT2 inhibitors 3 to 4 days before surgery. A nested case-control study in JAMA Cardiology found that functional decline is apparent as early as a decade before a cardiovascular disease event, suggesting an extended window for identifying higher-risk individuals. Tempus AI also announced FDA clearance for its ECG-MR software, an artificial intelligence tool that analyzes standard 12-lead ECGs for signs of mitral regurgitation.
Why Patients and Physicians Are Watching
The New York non-compete fight has direct implications for patient access in a region where 27 cardiologists — a substantial share of local cardiovascular capacity — are caught between two health systems. Physician non-compete agreements have drawn growing regulatory scrutiny, and a court ruling could shape how such contracts are enforced for specialists in underserved areas. Patients who currently see these cardiologists may face uncertainty about whether they can continue receiving care from their established physicians.
The research findings also carry practical weight. The Swedish GLP-1 study adds to a growing evidence base on stroke outcomes for widely prescribed diabetes drugs, though it shows an association rather than proving causation. The JAMA Cardiology findings on functional decline a decade before cardiovascular events point toward earlier screening opportunities, and the updated SGLT2 perioperative guidance gives clinicians a concrete protocol change. A French study presented at the European Emergency Medicine Congress found drones gave people with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest faster access to automated external defibrillators, especially in areas with heavy road traffic — a potential response-time improvement in emergencies where minutes affect survival.
Top picks for "battle over cardiologist"
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
The roundup, written by MedPage Today senior staff writer Nicole Lou, aggregated findings across several journals and announcements. Among them: a Stroke study linked an imaging biomarker of microvascular impairment to the no-reflow phenomenon despite excellent macrovascular reperfusion from thrombectomy; a JAMA randomized trial found that a permissive mean arterial pressure target did not improve outcomes for hypotensive critically ill children; and JACC: Advances reported that transcatheter tricuspid valve interventions increasingly entered real-world practice by the end of 2025, with outcomes generally acceptable.
MediciNova announced promising phase II safety and efficacy data for investigational tipelukast in hypertriglyceridemia and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease associated with type 2 diabetes — a company statement that has not yet undergone independent peer-reviewed publication. A meta-analysis in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found modest associations between microbiome-targeted interventions and improved cardiometabolic markers in childhood, and a study in the European Heart Journal validated HEARTBiT as a transcriptomic biomarker for detecting moderate-to-severe acute cellular rejection after heart transplantation. The Heart Failure Society of America reported that more heart failure clinics are needed in the South and Appalachia.
“In upstate New York, patients risk losing care as Ellis Medicine and St. Peter’s Health Partners battle in court over the non-compete agreements of 27 cardiologists.”
— MedPage Today roundup (Nicole Lou, Senior Staff Writer)
What the Studies Do Not Yet Show
It is not yet clear how the New York court will rule on the cardiologist non-competes, what specific contract terms are contested, or how long patients may face disruption while the case proceeds. Court filings and the health systems’ full positions have not been detailed in the reporting cited.
Several findings carry limits. The Swedish GLP-1 study shows an association with reduced stroke risk, not a proven causal effect, and was specific to people with type 2 diabetes in Sweden. The ANGEL-TNK finding is a secondary analysis, which is generally considered less definitive than a primary trial endpoint. The tipelukast phase II data come from a company announcement by MediciNova and await peer-reviewed publication, and phase II results do not guarantee success in later trials. The childhood microbiome meta-analysis found only modest associations. Whether the FDA-cleared ECG-MR tool improves patient outcomes in routine practice remains to be demonstrated.
Court Ruling and Further Research Ahead
The Ellis Medicine–St. Peter’s litigation will continue in the New York courts, with a ruling expected to clarify whether the non-compete agreements are enforceable and what happens to the 27 cardiologists’ practices. Clinicians will begin implementing the updated perioperative guideline recommendation on discontinuing SGLT2 inhibitors 3 to 4 days before noncardiac surgery. Further analyses of the ANGEL-TNK data and larger or longer-term studies of GLP-1 drugs and stroke risk are likely to build on the Swedish findings, and MediciNova is expected to advance tipelukast into later-stage trials if phase II results hold up. Real-world uptake of transcatheter tricuspid valve interventions and drone-delivered AED programs will be tracked for outcome data.
Key Questions
Why are 27 cardiologists in a legal dispute?
Their non-compete agreements are being contested in court between Ellis Medicine and St. Peter’s Health Partners, two upstate New York health systems. According to CBS6, patients risk losing access to care while the case proceeds. The specific contract terms and likely outcome have not been reported.
Do GLP-1 drugs reduce stroke risk?
A Swedish nationwide study found GLP-1 drugs were associated with reduced stroke risk in people with type 2 diabetes, while SGLT2 inhibitors and DPP-4 inhibitors showed neutral effects. The finding is an association, not proof of causation, and patients should discuss medication decisions with their clinician.
What changed in the new perioperative guidelines?
Updated American guidelines on cardiovascular management for noncardiac surgery, published in Circulation, include a strong recommendation to discontinue SGLT2 inhibitors 3 to 4 days before surgery.
How early can decline appear before cardiovascular disease?
A nested case-control study in JAMA Cardiology found functional decline was apparent as early as a decade before a cardiovascular disease event, suggesting a long window for identifying higher-risk individuals through early screening.
What did Tempus AI get FDA clearance for?
Tempus AI said it received FDA clearance for ECG-MR, an artificial intelligence-powered software that analyzes standard 12-lead ECGs for signs of mitral regurgitation. Whether it improves outcomes in routine practice is not yet known.
Source: rss
Fall Picks
fall essentials
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
