News and views

National audit shows improved heart failure survival...

‘Biological bypass’ shows promise in coronary artery disease...

Pitfalls in the interpretation of cardiopulmonary exercise testing data Dear Sirs Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is non-invasive, safe,1 and reproducible.2 CPETs provide objective information on exercise capacity. Peak oxygen uptake (VO2 peak) – the primary parameter when investigating a decrease in exercise tolerance – is affected by many cardiac and non-cardiac diseases and is a validated independent predictor for hospitalisation and death.3–5 The oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES) is another valuable measurement to assess exercise tolerance and is valid even when patients are not able to exercise till their maximum. ...

The theme running through the recent 2017 British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) Annual Conference was ‘Cardiology at the extremes’. Few conditions in medicine can be more extreme than chronic and acute exacerbations of heart failure. In this report from the BCS meeting in Manchester, we focus on heart failure since it is 30 years since the landmark Co-operative North Scandinavian Enalapril Survival Study (CONSENSUS) was reported, a milestone noted at the conference. In accompanying podcasts, we interview some of the presenters who have been much involved in heart failure services in the UK to find out their experiences of the ‘real world’ of managing heart failure outside randomised clinical trials and also consider what challenges remain in this field. ...

Air pollution linked to heart problems...

We are delighted to announce two new members to our editorial board: Professor Una Martin and Dr Juan Pablo Kaski....

This year’s ACC.17 was a very newsy meeting with good news for lipid lowering, and the first outcome study for the new PCSK9 inhibitors reporting. Studies also looked at extending the range of indications for new anticoagulant agents, while a study in the Bolivian Amazon has found a population with the least vascular ageing of any yet studied. The 66th Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) were held in Washington DC, USA, from March 17th–19th 2017....

Held on 2nd March 2017, the 9th British Society for Heart Failure (BSH) Training and Revalidation Day drew heart failure experts to London from around the UK. A superb series of talks addressed fields including the intersection of cardio-oncology and cardio-obstetric care, the role of the primary care heart failure specialist, and the approach to patients with advanced heart failure. Dr Simon Beggs reports on some of the highlights from a day that proved informative and enjoyable in equal measure. ...

An imaginative programme addressing head-on challenging debates within the valve community was presented at the recent British Heart Valve Society Annual Meeting. Held at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, on 14th October 2016, the meeting attracted cardiologists, cardiologists in training, cardiac physiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons and microbiologists. Margaret Loudon reports its highlights. ...

A roundup of the latest news in the area of anticoagulation....