Two studies presented at AHA 2024 Scientific Sessions describe the efficacy and safety of left atrial appendage closure after catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation and the 5-year outcomes of the largest randomized left atrial appendage closure trial to date comparing the safety and efficacy of two devices.

Population studies have reported that proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) increase cardiovascular mortality, at least in part owing to an increased propensity for life-threatening arrhythmias, but these findings have largely been ignored. We propose a series of recommendations for prescribers of PPIs to ensure a balance of the benefits against the potential arrhythmic risks.

This call to action aims to increase awareness of inclusive language in medicine to enhance the experiences of patients and staff and improve health outcomes. Recognizing that terms change, we urge all health-care professionals to advocate for their colleagues and patients. This responsibility to educate the community should not fall exclusively onto marginalized communities.

English has long been the dominant language in scientific communication. Although having a universal language for scientific communication is beneficial, this standard imposes a considerable barrier for researchers who do not speak English fluently. However, the current generation of scientists is overcoming this barrier through the use of artificial intelligence-based language tools.

After myocardial infarction, monocytes are actively recruited to the brain to augment sleep power and abundance, which in turn helps to limit cardiac inflammation and promotes recovery.

A review of Robin Choudhury’s book The Beating Heart: The Art & Science of Our Most Vital Organ, which explores depictions and perceptions of the heart across millennia.

In this Tools of the Trade article, Bodagh and Williams highlight the utility of OpenEP, an open-source platform that offers standardized solutions for storage and analysis of electroanatomic mapping data.

In contrast to the ABYSS investigators’ interpretation of the primary results of their trial, we believe that β-blockers can be safely discontinued in the majority of patients after an uncomplicated myocardial infarction. However, in individuals developing symptoms of angina or heart failure, β-blocker treatment remains one of several guideline-recommended therapies.

Elsa Lawrence and Catherine Wilson discuss the study that reported the existence of a transient regenerative window in mammals.

John C. Lin and colleagues explore the history of racial disparities in cardiovascular outcomes and discuss the landmark findings of the CARDIA study and its contribution to the minority stress model.

The 20th anniversary of Nature Reviews Cardiology comes at a time of exciting innovation for cardiovascular research and clinical cardiology, with the advent of nucleic acid-targeted therapeutics, applications of artificial intelligence, promotion of a healthy cardiovascular exposome, personalization of medicine, and recognition of the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion in health care.

In this Tools of the Trade article, Li and Bonnin describe the use of cryo-X-ray phase contrast imaging to assess frozen myocardial biopsy samples.

Data from the HELIOS-B trial show that RNA interference with vutrisiran reduces the risk of death and recurrent cardiovascular events in patients with transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy.

In patients with heart failure and secondary mitral valve regurgitation, transcatheter edge-to-edge repair is non-inferior to mitral valve surgery with respect to a composite of death, hospitalization for heart failure, reintervention, implantation of an assist device or stroke at 1 year after the procedure, according to findings from the MATTERHORN trial.

In the NOTION-3 trial, percutaneous coronary intervention reduced the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events compared with conservative treatment in patients who were undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation for severe aortic stenosis and who had stable coronary artery disease.

The non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist finerenone reduces the risk of adverse outcomes in patients with heart failure with mildly reduced ejection fraction or with preserved ejection fraction, according to findings presented at the ESC Congress 2024.

A single combined measurement of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, LDL-cholesterol and lipoprotein(a) levels in plasma predicts incident cardiovascular events among women over a 30-year follow-up period, according to a new study.

Cardiomyocytes can activate the type I interferon response in the infarct border zone after myocardial infarction, indicating that the type I interferon pathway, in addition to its well-established role in antiviral responses, is also involved in cardiac injury.

New research suggests that the presence of clonal haematopoiesis is unidirectionally associated with the development of atherosclerosis and that colchicine holds potential therapeutic value.

Acute ischaemic stroke induces persistent innate immune memory through epigenetic changes in myeloid progenitors in the bone marrow, and this innate immune training contributes to cardiac remodelling and dysfunction in the long term, according to a new study.

A new small-molecule inhibitor of vasohibins reduces myocardial stiffness and improves diastolic relaxation in a rat model of HFpEF.

A new study indicates that proteins in the sarcomere complex are stochastically removed and degraded and are replaced by newly translated proteins. Sarcomere turnover occurs at a similar rate within cardiomyocytes and across the heart and slows with ageing.

The advent of pulsed-field ablation — a series of ultra-rapid, high-energy pulses that result in non-thermal cell death via electroporation — is revolutionizing the field of atrial fibrillation ablation. Data on first iterations of the technology indicate that safety and efficacy are at least similar to that of thermal ablation but with meaningfully shorter procedure duration.

In this Tools of the Trade article, Jablonska describes the use of proximity-based labelling for the proteomic profiling of novel protein–protein interactions.

In this Tools of the Trade article, Berkeley and Thomson describe the use of a minimally invasive strategy to standardize the induction of myocardial infarction in mice.

Findings from a new study published in Science Immunology suggest that epigenetic changes in haematopoietic stem cells promote the production of pro-inflammatory macrophages and influence their capacity to generate protective macrophage subsets.