Sophia Antipolis, 29 April 2013. The Heart Failure Congress 2013 promises more science than ever this year, with a record number of abstracts submitted. The congress takes place 25-28 May at the Centro de Congressos de Lisboa in Lisbon, Portugal.
Scientific chairperson Professor Burkert Pieske (Austria), said: "The congress of the Heart Failure Association (HFA) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) is the leading specialty event in the world. One of the highlights will be the late breaking clinical trials sessions with state of the art, unpublished, large multicentre trials in the field of heart failure."
More than 1,500 scientific abstracts from around the globe will be presented. The top ranking abstracts will be presented orally and a large area will be dedicated to poster presentations. Flash presentations with research highlights will be followed by animated discussions led by international leaders in heart failure, providing topical ideas for news stories.
More than 100 scientific sessions on hot topics in heart failure will be presented by global experts and supply a rich source of news stories for journalists. They include:
- Early diagnosis and risk prediction including novel and emerging biomarkers and imaging modalities such as cardiac MRI
- Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF), which affects more than 50% of all heart failure patients
- New pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches in patients with acute heart failure or hospitalised for chronic heart failure, both of whom have a poor prognosis
- Device therapy in heart failure, with the latest updates on ICDs, defibrillators and CRT, including the novel subcutaneous implantable ICD for young patients and the new mini pumps for improving circulatory failure
- Cardiac surgery such as volume reduction therapies and heart transplantation
- Basic and translational science which pave the way for novel therapeutic targets and biomarkers for early detection of disease
- Intervention in heart failure.
Intervention in heart failure is a new topic this year and will provide journalists with the latest information on promising treatments. Artificial shunt creation between the left and right atrium is improving signs and symptoms in HFPEF, renal denervation to treat resistant arterial hypertension is emerging as a powerful intervention to prevent and treat heart failure, and ablation of atrial fibrillation holds promise for improving symptomatic heart failure.
Intervention is now at the core of heart failure management programmes and this shift is reflected in the main theme of the congress, "The heart failure specialist of tomorrow - from diagnosis to intervention". Professor Pieske said: "The heart failure specialist of tomorrow needs a broad understanding of the therapeutic spectrum that we can offer in modern cardiology. This ranges from early detection and risk stratification, pharmacological and non-pharmacological management, intervention, devices, and heart transplantation."
Joint sessions will be held with the local host, the Portuguese Society of Cardiology, as well as the Brazilian Society of Cardiology and the Spanish Society of Cardiology. A local track focuses on heart failure management problems in the Iberian Peninsula and South America.
Attended by more than 4,000 heart failure specialists, the Heart Failure Congress is the top event in the field for journalists, cardiologists, interventional heart failure specialists, cardiac surgeons, internists, general physicians, basic scientists, epidemiologists, cardiac nurses and industry.
HFA president Professor Stefan Anker (Germany) said: "This year's Heart Failure Congress promises four days of the latest science in heart failure and is an event not to be missed."