Science News from ACC.17

March 17 – 19, 2017 | Washington, D.C.
Welcome to AHA Science News coverage of ACC.17 in Washington, D.C. Below, you'll find a selection of important science from the meeting, along with results and some exclusive data summaries. Science News also provides insightful in-depth interviews and other video analysis. Check each day for updates.
Jump to one day's coverage: Friday | Saturday | Sunday

Selected science from Friday, March 17



FOURIER: Adding PCSK9 to Statin Therapy Reduces CV Events

Sidney C. Smith, Jr., MD, past president of the American Heart Association, comments on the results of the FOURIER trial. Watch Dr. Smith's take on the global impacts here.



SPIRE 1 and 2 PCSK9 Shows Potential Benefit for High Risk Patients

Sidney C. Smith, Jr. MD, past president of the American Heart Association, discusses the results of SPIRE 1 and 2.

FOURIER – Primary Results of the Further Cardiovascular Outcomes Research With PCSK9 Inhibition in Subjects With Elevated Risk (FOURIER) Trial
Marc Steven Sabatine | TIMI Study Group, Boston, MA

SPIRE 1 and SPIRE 2 – Safety and Cardiovascular Event Efficacy of Bococizumab Among 27,000 High Risk Patients
Paul M. Ridker on behalf of the SPIRE Investigators | Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA



SURTAVI Expands the Treatment Options Available for More Patients

John Warner, MD, president elect of the American Heart Association and Timothy J. Gardner, MD, past president, discuss the results of the SURTAVI trial and what they suggest for the care of patients at varying levels of risk going forward.



Be sure to visit AHA's Scientific Publications booth in the Expo Hall for products and publications designed to help busy cardiovascular professionals and researchers.

SURTAVI – Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement With a Self-Expanding Bioprosthesis Compared With Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients at Intermediate Surgical Risk: First Results From the SURTAVI Clinical Trial
Michael J. Reardon, on behalf of the SURTAVI investigators | Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center, Houston, TX

Selected science from Saturday, March 18



EINSTEIN CHOICE and GEMINI ACS 1

Mark Creager, MD, past president of the American Heart Association, and Elliott Antman, MD, also a past president, discuss the outcomes of EINSTEIN CHOICE and GEMINI-ACS-1, which compared rivaroxaban to aspirin in different clinical applications.



ABSORB III Results

John Warner, MD, president elect of the American Heart Association, reports on the results of the ABSORB III trial. See a data summary of the trial.

EINSTEIN-CHOICE – Rivaroxaban or Aspirin for Extended Treatment of Venous Thromboembolism
Philip S. Wells | Bayer AG, Wuppertal, Germany

GEMINI-ACS-1 – A Randomized Trial Evaluating Clinically Significant Bleeding With Low-Dose Rivaroxaban Versus Aspirin, in Addition to P2Y12 Inhibition, for Patients After Acute Coronary Syndromes
Erik Magnus Ohman | Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA

REACH: e-Counseling for Self-Care Adherence Adds Therapeutic Benefit for Hypertension: The REACH Trial
Rob Nolan | University Health Network, Toronto, Canada

  • RESULTS: Online behavioral counseling reduces systolic BP.

CARAT – Effect of Serial Infusions of CER-001, a Pre-Beta High-Density Lipoprotein Mimetic on Coronary Atherosclerosis: Results of the CARAT Study
Stephen J. Nicholls | South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, Australia

  • RESULTS: Coronary artery plaque not reduced with synthetic HDL-C drug.

EBBINGHAUS – Primary Results of EBBINGHAUS, a Cognitive Study of Patients Enrolled in the FOURIER Trial
Robert P. Giugliano | Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA

  • RESULTS: PCSK9 inhibitor did not demonstrate cognitive issues.

COMPARE-ACUTE – FFR Guided Acute Complete Revascularization Versus Culprit Lesion Only Treatment in Patients Presenting With ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction and Multi Vessel Disease
Pieter Smits for the COMPARE-ACUTE investigators | Department of Cardiology Maasstad Ziekenhuis, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

DEFINE-FLAIR – Primary Results of DEFINE-FLAIR: A Multi-Centre, Prospective, International, Randomized, Blinded Comparison of Clinical Outcomes and Cost Efficiencies of iFR and FFR Decision-Making for Physiological Guided Coronary Revascularization
Justin E. Davies | Imperial College, London, United Kingdom

IFR-SWEDEHEART – Instantaneous Wave-Free Ratio Versus Fractional Flow Reserve Guided Intervention (IFR-SWEDEHEART): A Multicenter, Prospective, Registry-Based Randomized Clinical Trial
Matthias Götberg | Department of Cardiology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

DECISION CTO – Drug-Eluting Stent Versus Optimal Medical Therapy in Patients With Coronary Chronic Total Occlusion: DECISION CTO Randomized Trial
Marc Steven Sabatine | TIMI Study Group, Boston, MA

  • RESULTS: OMT and PCI outcomes similar.

ABSORB III – Everolimus-Eluting Bioresorbable Vascular Scaffolds in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease: Two-Year Outcomes From the ABSORB III Trial
Stephen Ellis | Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH

Selected science for Sunday, March 19



LEVO-CTS: Primary Outcomes for Cardiac Surgery with Levosimendan

Patrick O'Gara, MD, Brigham and Women's Hospital, provides context for the results of the LEVO-CTS trial.



VISION: Post Non-cardiac Surgery Troponin Levels May Identify Heart Damage

Patrick O'Gara, MD, interviews Mark Creager, MD, immediate past president of the American Heart Association, about the results of the VISION trial.

LEVO-CTS – Levosimendan in Patients With Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction Undergoing Cardiac Surgery With Cardiopulmonary Bypass: Primary Results of the LEVO-CTS Trial
John H. Alexander | Duke Clinical Research Institute, Durham, NC

VISION Study – Relationship Between High Sensitive Troponin T Measurements and 30-Day Mortality After Noncardiac Surgery
P.J. Devereaux, Population Health Research Institute, Hamilton, Canada

  • RESULTS: Post-surgery high-sensitivity troponin levels after non-cardiac surgery may identify unrecognized heart damage.
     
  • VISION data summary slide (PDF)

Silent Cerebral Microbleeds During TAVR: Insight From a Prospective Cerebral MRI Cohort
Eric Van Belle | Centre Hospitalier Régional Universitaire de Lille, Lille, France

  • RESULTS: Over 20% of older patients found to have new cerebral microbleeds after TAVR.

RESOLVE and SAVORY – Subclinical Leaflet Thrombosis in Transcatheter and Surgical Bioprosthetic Aortic Valves: Results From RESOLVE and SAVORY Registries
Raj R. Makkar | Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, Los Angeles, CA

  • RESULTS: Subclinical leaflet thrombosis not uncommon with bioprosthetic aortic valves.

Cerebral Embolic Protection Devices During Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement: A Randomized Trial From the Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network
Michael Mack | For the CTSN Investigators, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY

  • RESULTS: Number of cerebral infarcts not reduced with embolic protection devices.

SPAIN Study – Randomized Placebo Controlled Trial of Closed Loop Stimulation in Recurrent Reflex Vasovagal Syncope
Gonzalo Baron Esquivas, Agencia de Investigación de la Sociedad Española de Cardiologia, Madrid, Spain

  • RESULTS: Arrhythmia detection and pacing reduced fainting episodes.

RE-CIRCUIT – Safety and Efficacy of Uninterrupted Anticoagulation With Dabigatran Etexilate Versus Warfarin in Patients Undergoing Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: The RE-CIRCUIT Study
Hugh Calkins on behalf of the RE-CIRCUIT Investigators | Boehringer Ingelheim, Ingelheim am Rhein, Germany

ARISTOTLE – Digoxin and Mortality in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation With and Without Heart Failure: Does Serum Digoxin Concentration Matter?
Renato D. Lopes | Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC

  • RESULTS: Digoxin in AF patients may increase the risk of mortality in a dose-dependent manner.

Comparative Effectiveness of Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion Among Atrial Fibrillation Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgery: A Report From the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database
Daniel J. Friedman | Washington University, St. Louis, MO

  • RESULTS: Left atrial appendage occlusion in AF patients during cardiac surgery reduced the risk for thromboembolism.

GIFT of Warfarin: Benefit of Pharmacogenetic Dosing
Brian F. Gage | Washington University, St. Louis, MO

  • RESULTS: Risk for adverse events may be lowered using personalized pharmacogenetic warfarin dosing.