News & Comment

Near-infrared spectroscopy–intravascular ultrasonography of mildly or non-obstructive coronary arteries in patients with suspected coronary artery disease undergoing catheterization and possible percutaneous coronary intervention is safe and can detect both patients and non-culprit vulnerable plaques at high risk of secondary coronary events

The TWILIGHT trial indicates that switching to ticagrelor monotherapy after 3 months of dual antiplatelet therapy lowers the incidence of bleeding without increasing ischaemic events compared with continuation of ticagrelor plus aspirin therapy in patients who have undergone percutaneous coronary intervention and are at high risk of bleeding or ischaemic events

Artificial intelligence (AI) holds promise for cardiovascular medicine but is limited by a lack of large, heterogeneous and granular data sets. Blockchain provides secure interoperability between siloed stakeholders and centralized data sources. We discuss integration of blockchain with AI for data-centric analysis and information flow, its current limitations and potential cardiovascular applications.

In a socioeconomically vulnerable community in Alabama, USA, the use of a polypill containing four low-dose drugs produced greater reductions in blood pressure and LDL-cholesterol level than usual care.

Results from the DAPA-HF trial demonstrate that dapagliflozin therapy is associated with lower risk of worsening heart failure or cardiovascular death than placebo, regardless of the presence or absence of diabetes.

As Nature Reviews Cardiology marks its 15th anniversary, we are entering a new era of precision cardiology, driven by drug development, technological innovation and artificial intelligence.

Engineered chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells can be applied to reduce cardiac fibrosis and restore function in a mouse model of hypertensive heart failure, according to a new study published in Nature.

Africa is witnessing an epidemic of cardiovascular disease (CVD), with staggering morbidity and mortality. The spectrum of CVD includes hypertension, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy, atherosclerotic disease, congenital heart disease and tuberculous pericarditis. Opportunities exist to alter the trajectory of CVD epidemiology but require committed policy makers, functional health systems and an engaged citizenry.

Addition of ticagrelor to the treatment regimen of patients with stable coronary artery disease and diabetes with or without previous percutaneous coronary intervention significantly improved outcomes.

Two studies reveal new details of the mechanisms underlying the benefits of the angiotensin receptor–neprilysin inhibitor sacubitril–valsartan in patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, suggesting that sacubitril–valsartan induces reverse cardiac remodelling but has no effect in reducing central aortic stiffness.

In patients with STEMI and multivessel coronary artery disease, a strategy of revascularizing both the culprit lesion and any angiographically significant nonculprit lesions achieves better outcomes than a strategy of revascularizing only the culprit lesion.

A novel machine-learning-derived biomarker that can detect structural changes in perivascular fat improved cardiac risk prediction beyond traditional prediction tools.

Lifelong genetic exposure to lower levels of both LDL cholesterol and systolic blood pressure is associated with an independent, additive and dose-dependent decrease in the risk of major coronary events.

Genotype-guided selection of oral P2Y₁₂ inhibitor therapy (clopidogrel versus prasugrel or ticagrelor) can reduce the incidence of bleeding in patients who have undergone primary percutaneous coronary intervention.