It’s ESC time again!
And the focus is heart failure
Given the exponential increase in the patients presenting with heart failure in recent years, a total of 53 sessions have been dedicated to the topic of heart failure. The sessions include clinical updates and state-of-the-art lectures, but also the newest on diagnosis and therapy will be presented. In their welcoming address, Kim Fox and Jeroen Bax highlight some of the lures of this important and notable event for cardiologists worldwide
1–5 September and the Vienna venue for the annual Congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) will engross about 22,000 people, arriving from all over the world to attend Europe’s biggest cardiology meeting. 351 sessions are planned to take place in 28 rooms, and there will be many presentations of original scientific work. Kim Fox, President of the European Society of Cardiology Jeroen Bax, Chairman of the Congress Programme Committee
- The William Harvey Lecture on Basic Science will be presented by Professor P Carmeliet
- The Geoffrey Rose Lecture on Population Science by Professor P Puska
- The Rene Laennec Lecture on Clinical Cardiology by Professor W McKenna
- The Andreas Gruentzig Lecture on Interventional Cardiology by Professor T Luescher.
The Focus sessions
These consist of live transmissions from European locations – Katowice, Berlin, Bad Nauheim, Bern and Vienna – to demonstrate practical skills in imaging and intervention. Clinical Practice sessions will encourage interactive discussions between an expert panel and audience. Two of the session will focus on mild heart failure (HF) and end-stage HF.
Joint sessions
The American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology, as well as societies representing subspecialties such as hypertension, atherosclerosis and diabetes, etc. will present joint sessions. 
These will be packed with important clinical topics, e.g. the relation between anaemia and heart failure, or the role of BNP in heart failure.
The safety of drug-eluting stents will be another hotly discussed subject, as will the increasing role of non-invasive imaging using different modalities, and the development of percutaneous valve therapy.
New ESC guidelines
Five new ESC guidelines are to be released on acute coronary syndromes without ST elevation, valve disease, cardiac pacing, hypertension and prevention of cardiovascular disease. In addition, the new Universal Definition of Myocardial Infarction (endorsed by the AHA, ACC and ESC) will be presented.
The EHSP
Lessons from the Euro Heart Survey Programme – an extensive questionnaire involving many hospitals in ESC countries across Europe – will be the focus of four other sessions.
Annual meetings
The five ESC Associations will report on their annual meetings or present their news in 90-minute sessions organised in the Association Corner. The five include subspecialisations – echocardiography, heart rhythm, prevention, percutaneous coronary intervention, and heart failure.
Working lunch
Participants can also fill their lunch periods with attendance at nine practical sessions under the banners Meet the Expert; Read with the Expert, and How to.
Three Hotlines – Two Clinical – Trial Updates
Late-breaking trials and the most recent updates on published trials will be presented. These sessions frequently include large, randomised clinical trials that have major impact on patient management.
Basic Science
The Council for Basic Cardiovascular Science will present sessions in a bench-to-bedside format, focusing on the translational aspect of basic science, but also highly specific basic science research will be presented.
Abstracts and posters
Submitted abstracts: almost 10,000. Reviewers to grade abstracts: Acceptance rate: 37%.
New for 2007: the State-of-the-Art and Featured Research Track. Sessions will include a keynote lecture by an expert, combined with four oral presentations of the highest ranked abstracts on a specific top.
This article was published on 09/01/2007
