Darrel Francis speaks to Paul Armstrong, PI of the VICTORIA trial, about the mechanism of new heart failure drug, Vericiguat, and the trial’s unusual power calculation: “The trial was deliberately overpowered on the primary endpoint”.
Charlie and the Medicine Factory (Do we really need to understand mechanisms?)
One of my favorite books growing up was “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”. I revelled in the comeuppance meted out to the likes of Augustus…
CVCT Forum 2020: An Interview with Dan Mark on Patient-Reported Outcomes in Angina
At the Patient-Reported Outcome Session of CVCT Forum 2020, Dan Mark discussed the angina results of ISCHEMIA and ORBITA and the placebo effect.
CVCT Forum 2020 Teaser: Coronary Intervention Trials
The ISCHEMIA trial found no evidence of reduction in MI and death with an initial invasive strategy compared with an initial conservative strategy. However, a…
CVCT Forum Teaser 2020: SGLT2 inhibitor trials in CKD
SGLT2 inhibitors are probably the hottest new drug on the scene in cardiology this year. They were bandied about for lowering glucose in diabetes but…
CVCT Forum 2020 Teaser: Patient Engagement is More Than a Catchphrase
We have been increasingly hearing about the need to include patient representatives in our clinical trials. “Patient engagement” has become the buzz word of the…
CVCT Forum 2020 Teaser: Darrel Francis interview with Faiez Zannad on Meta-Analysis Interpretation
Darrel Francis speaks to Faiez Zannad about his meta-analysis of SGLT2 inhibitors for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction published inThe Lancet. This interview takes you through the key components of the meta-analysis: Forest plots, what to make of the heterogeneity of effect, and subgroup analyses.
CVCT Forum 2020 Teaser: Women as One
A frequently underserved population in cardiovascular medicine is a large one… women. Dedicate Friday afternoon on December 4th to rectifying the knowledge and treatment gaps…
What Happened to Hospital Attendance: A Perception Trap
Hospital admissions for almost everything came to almost a complete halt this year because of the pandemic. In March and April 2020, people stopped coming…
James Stein Interview with SAMSON senior author Darrel Francis: Statin Side Effects – The Symptoms are Real
The SAMSON trial recruited patients who had given up statins for good due to side effects. Why was the trial needed and what do the…