We have plenty of sophisticated gear to understand heart problems. For COVID-19, we’ve seen Troponin blood tests, cardiac MRIs and echo. For example, cardiac injury was associated with a higher risk of death in hospitalized patients. And yet, we have no answers to the questions that matter for clinical practice.
Darrel Francis Interview with Milton Packer : the EMPEROR-Reduced Trial, the Patients and the Endpoints
How do triallists decide the two key features of a trial: which patients and what endpoints? And what is the future for SGLT2 inhibitors in…
Darrel Francis Interview with Toby Richards : the PREVENTT Trial Journey
On 4th September 2020, the PREVENTT trial was published in the Lancet. This was a rigorously designed and conducted double-blind trial of pre-operative intravenous iron with surprising results. Darrel…
Can Personalized Medicine And An Adaptive Trial Design Salvage This Hard Luck Drug?
Arca Biopharma today announced that it had received FDA clearance to start a phase 2B/3 trial of its novel beta-blocker, Gencaro (bucindolol) for the prevention of atrial fibrillation…
TACT Principal Investigator Reflects On A Long And Contentious Journey
In a fascinating and important blog post, Gervasio Lamas offers a deeply personal perspective on the long and contentious journey of the Trial to Assess…
Flu Vaccine May Help Prevent Cardiovascular Events
A new meta-analysis published in JAMA offers the best evidence yet that the flu vaccine may help prevent cardiovascular events. Jacob Udell and colleagues analyzed data from…
New Questions Raised About Italian Cardiologists Already Under Cloud Of Suspicion
(This story was updated on Friday, October 4 with a response from Dr. Modena.) New questions are being raised about the integrity and reliability of…
Realistic Expectations For New ‘Breakthrough’ Blood Pressure Technology
Early trials of renal denervation, the innovative new catheter-based blood pressure lowering technology, have resulted in extremely impressive drops in systolic blood pressure in the…
New Actelion Drug Found Safe And Effective In Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension– But Does It Save Lives?
Macitentan, a new drug for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), appears to be safe and effective, but it is unclear whether it offers any significant advantages over…
American Heart Association Announces Late-Breaking Clinical Trials
There are still a few days left in August and the European Society of Cardiology meeting doesn’t start until this weekend in Amsterdam. Nevertheless, the American…