Health care articles within Nature Reviews Cardiology

Featured

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, van Leent and colleagues provide an overview of current PET imaging approaches for assessment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, as well as of whole-body PET applications; discuss the link between imaging readouts and atherosclerotic plaque pathology; and highlight promising developments in PET systems and radiotracer synthesis.

    • Alexander Maier
    • , Abraham J. P. Teunissen
    •  & Mandy M. T. van Leent

  • Obituary |

    Gilard and Wijns reflect on the life of Alain Cribier, who revolutionized the management of patients with valvular disease.

    • Martine Gilard
    •  & William Wijns

  • Clinical Outlook |

    In ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, the role of interventional modification of thrombi in the coronary arteries before stenting is controversial. However, innovations in stroke intervention have sparked renewed interest in thrombus modification approaches. We discuss current and emerging techniques to extract or disperse thrombi, aiming to reduce downstream embolization, microvascular obstruction and myocardial injury.

    • Jason L. Walsh
    • , Rafail A. Kotronias
    •  & Giovanni Luigi De Maria

  • Comment |

    Novel cardiovascular therapeutics have the potential to improve health outcomes, but financial toxicity from high out-of-pocket costs can limit the reach of these medications and worsen existing health disparities. Understanding the phenomenon of financial toxicity in treating cardiovascular disease is crucial to achieving health equity.

    • Alexander H. Gunn
    •  & Akshay Pendyal

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Lam and colleagues evaluate the current literature on sex-related differences in treatment responses in patients with heart failure and highlight potential approaches for tailored therapies and the need for sex-specific evaluation of treatment efficacy and safety in future research.

    • Janice Y. Chyou
    • , Hailun Qin
    •  & Carolyn S. P. Lam

  • Clinical Outlook |

    Atrial fibrillation is the most common sustained arrhythmia and imposes a substantial burden on patients and health-care providers. Clinical evidence suggests that antiarrhythmic therapy to restore and maintain sinus rhythm (rhythm control) can reduce adverse cardiovascular outcomes in patients with new-onset atrial fibrillation. As a result, a paradigm shift towards rhythm control over rate control therapy is emerging, increasing the clinical need for effective and safe antiarrhythmic drugs.

    • Felix Wiedmann
    •  & Constanze Schmidt

  • Research Highlight |

    Using a porcine model of cardiogenic shock, Lamberti and colleagues develop a clinically accessible, patient-validated metric to assess pulmonary vascular compliance that can predict tolerance to left-sided ventricular assist device support.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Comment |

    In this Comment, we critically examine the association between the increasing consumption of ultra-processed foods and their negative effect on cardiovascular health. We explore the historical evolution of food processing, the Nova food classification and the epidemiological evidence, and highlight the need for urgent public health interventions.

    • Fernanda Rauber
    •  & Renata Bertazzi Levy

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Sarraju and Nissen summarize the clinical trial evidence for coronary atherosclerotic plaque stabilization and regression with plasma LDL-cholesterol-lowering therapy and other treatments. Invasive and non-invasive imaging modalities used to assess plaque burden and composition are discussed.

    • Ashish Sarraju
    •  & Steven E. Nissen

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Bosworth and colleagues describe the causes of medication non-adherence, discuss interventions that have been clinically shown to improve adherence and identify areas for future research.

    • Adam J. Nelson
    • , Neha J. Pagidipati
    •  & Hayden B. Bosworth

  • Clinical Outlook |

    Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) has been rapidly adopted for stroke prevention in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation and a contraindication to oral anticoagulation. Ongoing and planned clinical trials on LAAO and the development of new devices might expand clinical indications and address the remaining challenges of device-related thrombus and peridevice leak.

    • Jacqueline Saw

  • Research Highlight |

    A method named photoacoustic vector tomography now enables the quantification of haemodynamics in veins at depths of more than 5 mm below the skin surface, outperforming current pure optical modalities for deep haemodynamic imaging.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Clinical Outlook |

    The risk of stroke in patients with atrial high-rate episodes (AHREs) depends on age, comorbidities and AHRE burden. Two randomized clinical trials on the use of oral anticoagulant therapy for stroke prevention in older patients with short and rare AHREs have reported conflicting findings on the efficacy of oral anticoagulation in this patient population, although both trials report a significantly increased risk of major bleeding with oral anticoagulation.

    • Tatjana Potpara
    •  & Carina Blomstrom-Lundqvist

  • Comment |

    Racial and ethnic disparities in cardiovascular health in the USA result in a persistent mortality gap between white and Black individuals, increase health-care costs and compromise an egalitarian society. Solutions to racial inequities require risk factor control and the implementation of evidence-based medicine and anti-racism policies. Overcoming these disparities is not only a practical necessity, but also a moral imperative.

    • Keith C. Ferdinand

  • Research Highlight |

    Aster proteins are involved in the non-vesicular transport of cholesterol derived from dietary lipids in the small intestine from the plasma membrane to the endoplasmic reticulum in enterocytes.

    • Jennifer Harman

  • Research Highlight |

    In the ORBITA-2 trial, percutaneous coronary intervention was associated with a lower angina symptom score compared with a placebo procedure in patients with stable angina who were receiving minimal or no antianginal medication.

    • Gregory B. Lim

  • Research Highlight |

    Treatment with the glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist semaglutide, administered subcutaneously at a dose of 2.4 mg once per week, reduces the risk of major cardiovascular events by 20% compared with placebo in patients who are overweight or obese and with pre-existing cardiovascular disease but without diabetes mellitus, according to findings from the SELECT trial.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    Data from the ARIES-HM3 trial show that excluding aspirin from the antithrombotic regimen in patients with advanced heart failure and a left ventricular assist device reduces the number of bleeding events and does not increase the risk of thromboembolism.

    • Gregory B. Lim

  • Evidence-based Guidelines |

    A panel of experts from the World Heart Federation provide a revised set of guidelines for the echocardiographic detection of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in patients living in RHD-endemic regions. The guidelines provide updated screening and confirmatory criteria, as well as a new stage-based classification of RHD based on risk of disease progression, which will improve the diagnosis and subsequent management of patients with RHD.

    • Joselyn Rwebembera
    • , James Marangou
    •  & Bo Reményi

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Tsimikas and Witztum discuss the role of oxidized phospholipids (OxPLs) in atherosclerosis, describe the methods for measuring OxPLs on apolipoprotein B-containing lipoproteins (OxPL–apoB) and their relationship with lipoprotein(a), and discuss the clinical applications of the OxPL–apoB measurement for improving diagnosis, prognosis, risk reclassification and therapeutic interventions in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

    • Sotirios Tsimikas
    •  & Joseph L. Witztum

  • Review Article |

    The menopausal transition period, which begins with irregular menstrual cycles and ends with the final menstrual period, is associated with an increase in cardiovascular risk. In this Review, Mehta and Manson describe the metabolic and cardiovascular changes that occur during the menopausal transition period and summarize the evidence on the use of targeted interventions to slow the progression of atherosclerosis.

    • Jaya M. Mehta
    •  & JoAnn E. Manson

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Swirski and co-workers discuss how lifestyle factors modulate haematopoiesis and leukocyte migration in the context of cardiovascular homeostasis and disease, with particular focus on the role of the nervous system as the key executor connecting environmental influences to leukocyte behaviour.

    • Henrike Janssen
    • , Laura L. Koekkoek
    •  & Filip K. Swirski

  • Research Highlight |

    In patients with heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction and obesity, treatment with the glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist semaglutide (2.4 mg) leads to large reductions in HF-related symptoms and physical limitations, improves exercise function and decreases body weight compared with placebo, according to the STEP-HFpEF trial.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    The FIRE trial showed that complete revascularization improves outcomes in older patients with myocardial infarction (MI) and multivessel disease compared with culprit-lesion-only revascularization, whereas the MULTISTARS AMI trial reported that immediate multivessel revascularization is non-inferior to staged revascularization in patients with ST-segment elevation MI.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Research Highlight |

    In the CASTLE HTx trial, patients with symptomatic atrial fibrillation and end-stage heart failure who underwent catheter ablation and received medical therapy had improved outcomes compared with patients who received medical therapy only.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Research Highlight |

    New data from the ECLS-SHOCK trial and a meta-analysis indicate that the routine use of venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation does not increase survival in patients with myocardial infarction-related cardiogenic shock.

    • Gregory B. Lim

  • Research Highlight |

    Two clinical trials presented at the ESC Congress 2023 provide conflicting evidence on the use of optical coherence tomography to guide percutaneous coronary intervention.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Clinical Outlook |

    Novel non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) have improved pharmacological properties compared with steroidal MRAs. Among the non-steroidal MRAs, finerenone has been approved for patients with chronic kidney disease who have diabetes mellitus and has demonstrated favourable safety and promising early results in patients with heart failure.

    • Gerasimos Filippatos
    •  & Dimitrios Farmakis

  • Clinical Outlook |

    In patients with an acute myocardial infarction, disrupted circadian rhythms during the initial days in the cardiac intensive care unit, caused by factors such as noise, excessive night-time light and frequent patient–staff interactions, can have devastating effects on cardiac repair and long-term prognosis. Providing care that aligns with the patient’s natural circadian rhythms is critical for optimum long-term recovery. Incorporating ‘circadian medicine’ into clinical practice will provide important health-care benefits.

    • Michael J. Sole
    •  & Tami A. Martino

  • Comment |

    Cardiovascular health is essential to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG3.4. Barriers include inequalities and a lack of political will and prioritization. A comprehensive approach is needed to reduce the global burden of cardiovascular disease and to achieve SDG3.4. The World Heart Federation addresses the determinants of cardiovascular disease and mobilizes the global community through roadmaps, roundtables and advocacy.

    • Daniel J. Piñeiro
    • , Elisa Codato
    •  & Jagat Narula

  • Research Highlight |

    According to two papers from the OPTICO-ACS study, patients with acute coronary syndrome and an intact fibrous cap (plaque erosion), tend to have lower levels of inflammation and better prognosis than patients with rupture of the fibrous cap. In addition, Toll-like receptor 2-mediated neutrophil activation has a key role in plaque erosion.

    • Jennifer Harman

  • Roadmap |

    In this Roadmap, Föllmer et al. summarize the evidence for the application of artificial intelligence (AI) technology to the imaging of vulnerable plaques in coronary arteries and discuss the current and future approaches to addressing the limitations of AI-guided coronary plaque imaging, such as bias, uncertainty and generalizability.

    • Bernhard Föllmer
    • , Michelle C. Williams
    •  & Marc Dewey

  • Review Article |

    Heart transplantation for patients with advanced heart failure is limited by a shortage of donor organs. In this Review, Jou and colleagues explore the options to increase the supply of donor hearts, including transplantation from donors with HCV, HIV or SARS-CoV-2 infection, national opt-out organ donation policies, donation after circulatory death, and xenotransplantation.

    • Stephanie Jou
    • , Sean R. Mendez
    •  & Claudia Gidea

  • Research Highlight |

    In the multicentre, randomized, placebo-controlled RAPID trial, use of symptom-prompted, self-administered, intranasally delivered etripamil was safe and superior to placebo for the conversion of paroxysmal superventricular tachycardia to sinus rhythm.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Evidence-based Guidelines |

    Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is a preventable cause of premature coronary artery disease and death. This guidance article from the International Atherosclerosis Society provides a comprehensive overview of FH care that includes recommendations on the detection and management of patients with FH, as well as strategies to maximize implementation.

    • Gerald F. Watts
    • , Samuel S. Gidding
    •  & Raul D. Santos

Browse broader subjects

Browse narrower subjects

Browse Health care across other nature.com journals