Welcome to the December 2017 issue of European Cardiology Review.
In this issue, we present a section on heart failure and cardiomyopathies featuring articles from A. Bayes-Genis and A. Malhotra and S. Sharma. Professor Bayes-Genis highlights the latest changes introduced to the European Society of Cardiology guidelines on the management of heart failure, whereas Dr Malhotra and Sharma’s manuscript focuses on findings that help differentiating athletes’ hearts from those in subjects affected by hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Dr Shanmugan further contributes to the field with a timely critical editorial on current heart failure guidelines.
Also in this issue, in a section devoted to hormones and the heart, C. Webb and P. Collins contribute their expertise by reviewing another important topic, namely the role that testosterone may play in the pathogenesis of ischaemic heart disease and coronary artery disease progression.
I am also very pleased to report that the partnership between European Cardiology Review, Radcliffe Cardiology and the International Society of Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy (ISCP) is going from strength to strength. Our ongoing special section on Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy features a guest editorial by Prof Koji Hasegawa, ISCP President Elect, on the role of inflammation in ischaemic heart disease. Professor Koenig also addresses specific aspects of this important topic in an article that discusses whether and how the results of the recently published CANTOS study could change medical practice. This section also features some of the best posters presented at the ISCP Annual Scientific Sessions that took place in Barcelona in August of this year. Three of these posters have received ISCP scientific awards.
The final two review articles in this issue look at both arrhythmias and vascular imaging, with Dr Dilaveris discussing QT prolongation and malignant arrhythmias and Professor Shimokawa presenting novel data on intracoronary imaging of adventitial vasa vasorum. Both articles are likely to attract the attention of the readership given their novelty and scholarly character.
In our ongoing series — Cardiology Masters — that highlights the contributions of clinicians, academics and researchers who have become ‘legendary figures’ in the field of cardiovascular medicine, I am delighted that Dr Peter Libby has given his permission for ECR to profile him in this December issue. It is our hope that ECR’s Cardiology Masters section will stimulate younger members of the cardiovascular community worldwide to pursue excellence in the field of cardiovascular disease, guided by the quality of the work and the personality of the brilliant figures we portray in the section.
In summary, all articles in the current issue tackle extremely important topics in cardiovascular medicine and provide expert views regarding the diagnosis and practical management of important cardiovascular disease, as well as highlighting future research avenues that may lead to a better understanding of diverse cardiovascular conditions. As in previous issues, I extend my gratitude to the European Cardiology Review Editorial Board, the Steering Committee, the excellent reviewers and all the featured authors for their contributions to this issue of the journal. I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed editing it.
I would like to finish by wishing you all a healthy, peaceful and productive year in 2018.