This Week in Cardiology

Mar 13 2026 This Week in Cardiology

Beta-blocker in non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a head-to-head apixaban vs rivaroxaban RCT, diltiazem vs metoprolol combined with DOAC, and the accuracy of smart watches for AF are the topics John Mandrola, MD, discusses in this week's podcast. This podcast is intended for healthcare professionals only. To read a partial transcript or to comment, visit: https://www.medscape.com/twic I Listener Feedback * EMPATICC trial https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/article/47/9/1034/8242490 II Beta-blocker in Non-obstructive HCM * BB vs Calcium Channel Blocker in Non-obstructive HCM https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2025.11.028 * RCT of Metoprolol in Patients With Obstructive HCM https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2021.07.065 III Apixaban vs Rivaroxaban for Bleeding Risk * COBRRA Trial https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2510703 * AMPLIFY Trial (Apixaban) https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa1302507 * EINSTEIN Trial (Rivaroxaban) https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1007903 IV Diltiazem vs Metoprolol When Combined with DOAC * Risk for Bleeding in AF Patients Using Apixaban or Rivaroxaban With Diltiazem https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/ANNALS-25-01408 V Actual Clinical Use of Smart Watches * CIRCA-DOSE Original Trial https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.119.042622 * Wearable Smartwatches for AF Detection After Ablation https://doi.org/10.1093/europace/euaf280 You may also like: The Bob Harrington Show with the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, Robert A. Harrington, MD. https://www.medscape.com/author/bob-harrington Questions or feedback, please contact news@medscape.net

Mar 06 2026 This Week in Cardiology

Listener feedback, urgent AF ablation, AF ablation as a stroke-reducing therapy, implantable loop recorder accuracy, and HF management in the setting of serious disease are the topics John Mandrola, MD, discusses in this week's podcast. This podcast is intended for healthcare professionals only. To read a partial transcript or to comment, visit: https://www.medscape.com/twic I Urgent AF ablations * Urgent vs Elective AF Ablation in the US https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacep.2025.12.030 II AF Ablation Is Not Likely a Good Therapy for Stroke Reduction * STABLED Trial https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/fullarticle/2845745 * Catheter Ablation for AF Associated With Lower Incidence of Stroke https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehw087 III Loop Recorders * ILR Accuracy - Multicenter, Multidevice Comparison https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacep.2025.12.039 IV Heart Failure Therapy when there is Cancer * EMPATICC Trial https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf705 You may also like: The Bob Harrington Show with the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, Robert A. Harrington, MD. https://www.medscape.com/author/bob-harrington Questions or feedback, please contact news@medscape.net

Feb 27 2026 This Week in Cardiology

A superb note on CPR and DNR orders, patients' vs doctors' preferences for statins, more on GLP-1s, another LAAC story, and some closing cautionary notes on PFA are the topics John Mandrola, MD, discusses in this week's podcast. This podcast is intended for healthcare professionals only. To read a partial transcript or to comment, visit: https://www.medscape.com/twic I Listener Feedback * Addressing Inadequate Documentation of Unilateral DNR https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2829203 * Video: Can We Talk About CPR? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTCRfY3ETvI * Personal Reminiscences of CPR's Origin https://www.ajconline.org/article/S0002-9149(03)00977-9/pdf II Public Preferences for Statin Therapy * Measuring Public Preferences for Statin Therapy https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2844660 III GLP-1 RA News * ACHIEVE Trial https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(26)00202-3 IV New Trial in GLP-1 for Patients with AF * Seminal-AF Trial https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06499857 V Relationship between Spontaneous Echo Contrast and LAAC Outcomes * OCEAN-LAAC Trial https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacep.2025.09.028 * News Release on Upcoming LAAOS-4 trial https://www.phri.ca/watchman/ * Reading the "Smoke" -- Editorial on OCEAN-LAAC https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacep.2025.10.029 VI Concluding Remarks on My Talk at Western AF * Delayed Myocardial Ischemia and Malignant Arrhythmias After PFA https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.125.077983 You may also like: The Bob Harrington Show with the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, Robert A. Harrington, MD. https://www.medscape.com/author/bob-harrington

Feb 20 2026 This Week in Cardiology

EVOLUT Low Risk data, a provocative meta-analysis, DNR orders, targeted hypothermia, good news in HFpEF evidence, and GLP-1s as AF drugs are the topics John Mandrola, MD, discusses in this week's podcast. This podcast is intended for healthcare professionals only. To read a partial transcript or to comment, visit: https://www.medscape.com/twic I EVOLUT Low Risk 6-year Results and a 5-year Meta-Analysis of TAVR vs SAVR * 6-Year Outcomes of TAVR vs SAVR https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2026.02.5063 * EVOLUT Low Risk Trial at 2 years https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1816885 * EVOLUT Low Risk Trial at 3 years https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2023.02.017 * EVOLUT Low Risk Trial at 4 years https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2023.09.813 * Nonproportional Hazards for Time-to-Event Outcomes in Clinical Trials https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2019.08.1034 * TAVR vs SAVR 5-Year Outcomes - Systematic Review https://heart.bmj.com/content/early/2026/02/11/heartjnl-2025-327092 * TAVR vs SAVR Updated Meta-Analysis of RCTs https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2024.12.031 * UK TAVI Trial https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2792251 * Dr David Cohen on X https://x.com/djc795/status/2023556582030852172?s=46&t=zXMCUoVjSsdyemzWlzeBjA II DNR in the Hospital * Inadequate Documentation of Unilateral DNR Orders https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2829203 * GeriPal Blog Unilateral DNR Orders https://geripal.org/unilateral-dnr-gina-piscitello-erin-demartino-will-parker/ III Yet another failure of Targeted Hypothermia * 2-Year Follow-Up of TTM2 Trial https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/fullarticle/2845193 * TTM2 Trial https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2100591 IV Good news in HFpEF Evidence * ALT-FLOW II Trial https://doi.org/10.1093/ejhf/xuaf016 V GLP-1 as AF drugs * Semaglutide as Adjunctive Therapy in Obesity-Related PAF https://doi.org/10.1093/europace/euag018 You may also like: The Bob Harrington Show with the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, Robert A. Harrington, MD. https://www.medscape.com/author/bob-harrington Questions or feedback, please contact news@medscape.net

Feb 13 2026 This Week in Cardiology

Ticagrelor vs prasugrel, a new LAAC device, pulsed field ablation AF results, lifestyle intervention in AF, the term "provider" vs "doctor," and coffee are the topics John Mandrola, MD, discusses in this week's podcast. This podcast is intended for healthcare professionals only. To read a partial transcript or to comment, visit: https://www.medscape.com/twic I TUXEDO-2 Trial * TUXEDO-2 Trial https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamacardiology/fullarticle/2844869 * ISAR-REACT 5 Trial https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1908973 II VERITAS Study of Dual-Seal LAAO * VERITAS Study https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacep.2026.01.021 III PFA vs RF over 4 years * Advent-LTO study https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-026-04246-4 * ADVENT Study https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2307291 * SPHERE PER-AF Study https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03022-6 SINGLE SHOT CHAMPION Study https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2502280 * BEAT PAROX-AF Trial https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/advance-article/doi/10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf1115/8436829 IV What's in a Name — Use of the Term "Provider" * Physicians Are Not Providers: The Ethical Significance of Names https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/ANNALS-25-03852 V Coffee and Dementia Risk * Coffee/Tea Intake and Dementia Risk https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2844764 * Mandrola Commentary: Enough With the Coffee Research and Other Distractions https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/883709 VI Lifestyle interventions Post AF ablation * Improving Outcomes of AF by Lifestyle Interventions https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/article/47/6/669/8243674 You may also like: The Bob Harrington Show with the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, Robert A. Harrington, MD. https://www.medscape.com/author/bob-harrington Questions or feedback, please contact news@medscape.net