Bringing new heart to patients with CAD

Abstract

An international faculty of cardiologists reviewed the latest preventative, diagnostic and therapeutic evidence in coronary artery disease (CAD) at the first Recent Advances in Cardiology International Meeting held recently in Sardinia. ^* CAD remains one of the major causes of death in the developed world. While diagnostic and surgical procedures are progressing rapidly, drug therapy represents the major advance of recent years. The results of large clinical trials and a growing understanding of the pathophysiology of CAD suggest that lipid-lowering therapy with HMG CoA reductase inhibitors [statins] will make a major contribution to the management of the disease. In addition, the calcium antagonist amlodipine appears to have atheroprotective effects, which translate into a substantial reduction in cardiovascular events.