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Download the the Pulse of CRF Summer 2009 Newsletter (670 KB, PDF) |
Message from the Faculty
Gregg W. Stone, MD
Welcome to the Cardiovascular Research Foundation’s Summer Newsletter. The past few months have seen several milestones for both CRF and the field of interventional cardiovascular medicine. One-year results from HORIZONS AMI, the largest study to focus on the optimal use of stents and anticoagulation therapy in patients with severe heart attacks, were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (see story, page 1). The study, which will set the standard of care for these patients, is a testament to all the hard work put in by CRF staff and faculty who helped make HORIZONS AMI such a successful endeavor.
CRF’s Left Main and Bifurcation Summit in early June in New York, NY, was another important event, where the latest data were presented and issues including the proper role of angioplasty and bypass surgery in left main coronary artery disease were debated (see story, page 1). Another CRF workshop, Transcatheter Valve Therapies, held in late June in Seattle, WA, provided attendees with an in-depth review of the diagnostic and therapeutic options for treatment of valvular heart disease.
Just prior to these meetings, the annual EuroPCR symposium, held this year in Barcelona, Spain, presented a wealth of late breaking trial information on issues ranging from next-generation stents to the optimal treatment for patients suffering a heart attack (see story, page 3). At a special session during EuroPCR, two of our own faculty members, Greg L. Kaluza, MD, PhD, and Juan F. Granada, MD, were honored for contributing one of the top five papers to the journal EuroIntervention over the past year (see story below). Congratulations!
As we continue our work through the summer months, all eyes turn to TCT 2009, just weeks away (September 21-25) in San Francisco, CA. Planning is well underway and reaching a fever pitch. This year’s meeting will feature courses that have been successful year in and year out—such as the annual Cardiovascular Nurse and Technologist Symposium—as well as more recent additions—such as the Emerging Directions for Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeons course (see stories, pages 2 and 4). With these and other exciting sessions and features, we’re confident that TCT will again prove an invigorating and invaluable learning experience for the interventional cardiovascular community.
Sincerely,
Gregg W. Stone, MD
Cardiovascular Research Foundation
