Latest treatments for cardiac emergencies to be revealed at ESC Acute CardioVascular Care 2023

The latest insights into treating urgent heart problems will be presented at ESC Acute CardioVascular Care 2023, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

Acute cardiovascular care focuses on patients with life-threatening conditions such as myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest, acute heart failure, and cardiogenic shock. The Annual Congress of the Association for Acute CardioVascular Care (ACVC), a branch of the ESC, will take place from March 24th to 26th at the Marseille Parc Chanot Exhibition and Convention Center in Marseille, France. Discover the scientific program.

New scientific findings are presented in the abstracts. Below:

• Experience in the emergency cardiology department in Ukraine during the war.
• Mental health after cardiac arrest – are women and men affected differently?
• Should people 90 and older with acute coronary syndrome receive stents?
• Impact of COVID-19 on patients with acute coronary syndrome.
• Do heart attack symptoms differ between men and women?

Stay tuned for lively scientific sessions on the hottest topics in acute cardiovascular care. Not to be missed: care for patients with acute chest pain in the emergency department. Should the diagnostic process vary by gender? Professor Ingo Ahrens, Chair of the Congress, said: “Women and men present different clinical symptoms and whether diagnosis and treatment should be individualized is a major topic of discussion. Randomized clinical trials investigating this topic underlying severe acute cardiovascular disease can be misinterpreted if the gender specific clinical picture is not taken into account.”

Also on the agenda: artificial intelligence (AI) in acute cardiology. Learn how AI is currently being used and what’s on the horizon.

In acute cardiology, AI is mainly used in imaging techniques, such as echocardiography, and for electrocardiogram (ECG) analysis. In the future, AI will likely use the ECG and other measurements to predict the prognosis of individual patients, including the likelihood of dying in hospital from acute heart disease and the risk of having another event after discharge. Hopefully this will allow us to offer personalized treatment to avoid unwanted consequences.”

Professor Ingo Ahrens, Chairman of the Congress

Time is of the essence in cardiac arrest, and the first few minutes have a significant impact on survival and brain function. Hear international experts share the latest insights on how to achieve the best possible recovery and engage the public to help victims. “Cardiac arrest occurs suddenly and means that the heart stops pumping blood,” says Professor Ahrens. “People who witness cardiac arrest can save lives by performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and using an automated external defibrillator (AED). Rapidly restoring blood flow to the brain and heart gives patients the best chance of full recovery.”

Also of interest: Controlling cholesterol to prevent second heart attacks. Professor Ahrens said: “Following an acute coronary syndrome, patients are at high risk of recurrent cardiovascular events, particularly within the first year after discharge from the hospital. This should be kept as low as possible to reduce the likelihood of further events. Waiting for optimal cholesterol-lowering measures to be implemented puts patients at risk, and key opinion leaders will set out why we should “act early and boldly” to lower LDL.”

The meeting brings together cardiologists, critical care physicians, anesthesiologists, internists, heart surgeons, nurses, paramedics and other related professionals who care for acutely ill heart patients.