Several news-worthy developments in cardiovascular medicine are outlined here for those who are interested:
1. New European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guidelines on atrial fibrillation
The new guidelines put in place advances in management of AF since the last update in 2006. These include:
A. An expanded guide to assessment of the risk of stroke. The new score is now known as CHA2DS2VASc which stands for
| Condition | Point (s) |
| C ongestive heart failure | 1 |
| H ypertension | 1 |
| A ge > 75 years | 2 |
| D iabetes | 1 |
| S troke/TIA | 2 |
| V ascular disease | 1 |
| A ge between 65-74 years | 1 |
| S ex criterion (male/female) | 1 |
| Total | 10 |
2. Shift: Ivabradine cuts hospitalization and mortality when added to standard heart failure therapy
3. New anti-thrombotic agents abound – Ticagrelor etc.
4. Colchine (Colgout) halve the incidence of post-pericardiotomy syndrome
5. New anti-thrombotic drugs poised to replace warfarin for prevention of stroke in atrial fibrillation – Dabigatran, Apixaban etc.
6. Amazing developments in the field of cardiovascular medicine continues to astound cardiologists!!
Physiome, SPECT-CT, Telemedicine, Bone marrow stem cell in ischaemic heart disease…