CMO Perspectives

Is now the moment when we begin to improve the prevention of advanced CAD faster than its treatment?

The central role of CTA + FFR_CT in patient care is clear in the new ACC/AHA Chest Pain guidelines.

Expanding coronary CTA + FFR_CT in the emergency department will be vital as clinicians work to efficiently identify and care for patients with suspected cardiac issues.

Dr. Derek Connolly, investigator and clinical leader, provides perspective on the trials shaping cardiology today.

SCCT 2021 reinforced how coronary CTA will play a central role in identifying and caring for patients with CAD.

The next breakthroughs in cardiovascular care are coming clearly into view.

Actions without an end in mind will lead to something, but probably not what is needed.

How do we find better solutions for our patients when we are so busy caring for them? Both time and change are needed for innovation.

Mortality data in 2020 looked quite different from prior years. How do we ensure that they are an outlier when compared to future years as well?

We know that there are situations when foregoing action is the right decision, but how do we know when that moment for inaction has arrived?

Addressing the drastic inequity in health care begins with a recognition of both the true cause of the problem and our responsibility to act.

The ACC is helping clinicians to standardize when patients can avoid an overnight stay after PCI. What impacts will this shift have on how and where PCI are done?

A recent publication determines that both clinical outcomes and cost effectiveness can be improved for patients with stable chest pain through a coronary CTA-first pathway. What now?

If we had the opportunity to gain a better understanding of the specific challenges our patients face and to minimize the uncertainty regarding how to help them, we would choose that, right? A new publication reinforces that this opportunity for clarity is already available.

In this issue, Dr. Campbell Rogers reviews the FORECAST trial, a randomized, controlled trial presented at TCT 2020 that assesses the real-world impact of a CT+HeartFlow pathway.

This article explores how commercial insurance providers impact the US healthcare system structure and reviews the recent "nudges" toward using coronary CTA to evaluate stable chest pain.

In this issue, Dr. Campbell Rogers shares his perspective on the ACC statement recommendations that indicates with strong rationale that the US should adopt a coronary CTA-first strategy for diagnosing CAD and that FFR_CT should be a core component of this pathway.

This issue reviews key data presented at the SCCT 2020 conference and physician perspectives that suggest rapid expansion of CCTA in mainstream clinical care.

In 2016, the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) released clinical guidance prioritizing a CCTA-first pathway for stable chest pain patients. This article explores the role of the guidance in better preparing UK hospitals for COVID-19.

There has been much debate on when to prescribe statins for LDL management. This issue focuses on a new publication that indicates how CCTA can inform clinicians about LDL treatment decisions.

A review of the disconnect between coronary anatomy and physiology with a summary of data presented by Professor Nick Curzen and Dr. Jonathon Leipsic.

Although cardiologists may know the importance of understanding coronary physiologic information in making treatment decisions, why don't they use it more often? This article explores the disconnect.

Hospitals worldwide have seen a reduction in acute cardiac patients due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This article reviews the effects and guidance for hospitals issued by societies.

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are likely to experience more aggressive cardiovascular disease development and progression than are patients with other comorbidities. This article reviews the role of CCTA in diagnosing CAD in patients with T2DM.

The usual care pathway for diagnosing heart disease does not serve women well. This article reviews the gender differences in cardiovascular disease and global data that suggests how the broader use of CCTA can help bridge the gap.

A review of the ESC guidance stating, “CT angiography should be preferred to non-invasive functional testing during [the] COVID-19 pandemic”.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, cardiologists convened to determine how best to care for cardiac patients during this changing environment. This article summarizes learnings from a panel of cardiologists across the US.

A review of the ISCHEMIA trial findings presented at the AHA 2019 meeting and the implications this trial will have on conventional non-invasive cardiac ischemia testing.

A review of key HeartFlow highlights presented at TCT 2019 including a cost-effectiveness analysis and the introduction of HeartFlow Planner, a non-invasive, real-time virtual modeling tool for CAD.

In the release of ESC’s new guidelines, coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) is now Class I (B) and recognized as a first line test, on par with all other non-invasive functional tests.

A review of the BOWIE study presented at EuroPCR, highlighting the potential benefit of the use of HeartFlow Planner pre-angiography to help inform revascularization decision making for CAD patients.

A review of the ADVANCE Registry one-year outcomes presented at ACC 2019, showing that the HeartFlow Analysis helped physicians more precisely stratify their patients and deliver more personalized care.