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.

Large language models represent a transformative leap in artificial intelligence and natural language processing, offering exciting potential across cardiology, from clinical care to education and research. However, several crucial challenges limit the practical implementation of large language models in cardiology. Interdisciplinary research is imperative to overcome these barriers.

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.

Debate exists regarding the best terminology for common presentations of heart diseases caused by epicardial and/or microvascular coronary artery disease with or without myocardial ischaemia. In this Comment, we discuss the pros and cons of a new proposal to replace the vessel-based nomenclature of acute and chronic coronary syndromes with the myocardial-oriented nomenclature of acute and non-acute myocardial ischaemic syndromes.

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.

The burden of atrial fibrillation (AF) is increasing worldwide; however, most existing data on AF epidemiology are from Western regions. According to our analyses, the estimated absolute prevalence of AF in the Asia–Pacific region in 2023 was approximately 80 million, which is much higher than has been calculated for other global regions.

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 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.

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.

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.