As I prepare to leave the land of Rembrandt, Van Gogh, canals, windmills, tulips, wooden shoes – and for the last five days the global hub for all things cardiology – I can’t help but feel proud of our profession and the continued strides were are making to improve the cardiovascular health of the global population.

I’m always impressed by the annual European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress and this year didn’t disappoint. The late-breaking clinical science broke new ground in a number of areas, and in some cases could change the way we manage care or even run clinical trials. I even had the honor of chairing the “Late Breaking Trials on Risk Factors and Diabetes” on Monday. You can read about all the trials and watch video interviews with lead investigators and ACC leaders here.

The theme of this year's meeting, chaired by Keith Fox, MB, ChB, FACC, is the heart interacting with the systemic organs. In addition to the latest research, ESC also offered hundreds of educational sessions for the nearly 30,000 attendees. This year, the ACC partnered with ESC on two joint sessions focused on controversies in atrial fibrillation and individualizing treatment. I was joined by ACC President-Elect Patrick O’Gara, MD, FACC, Vice President Kim Allan Williams, Sr., MD, FACC, Immediate Past President William Zoghbi, MD, MACC, and ACC CEO Shal Jacobovitz for these sessions which featured Incoming JACC Editor-in-Chief, Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, MACC, and ESC Vice President Fausto Pinto, MD, PhD, FACC.

ESC is also an incredible mecca for networking with cardiovascular professionals around the globe. As a result, ACC leaders and staff were able to meet with cardiovascular leaders from the World Health Federation, the ESC and more than 15 different countries over the course of the meeting to discuss cardiovascular disease prevention, country-specific needs and more.

The ACC presidential team was honored to be hosted by ESC leadership at the President’s Dinner which was held in view of Rembrandt’s Night Watch at the newly renovated Rijksmuseum following a 10-year closure. I extended special kudo’s to ESC President Panos Vardas, MD, PhD, for his outstanding leadership and collaborative spirit. As Dr. O’Gara mentioned in a previous post, we were also able to meet with the College’s Assembly of International Governors to get their input on the College’s global strategy.

Henry Ford said: “Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.” These last five days brought the cardiovascular world together and on an ACC front, we have made clear plans working with ESC, the American Heart Association, International societies and our International Chapters, to build on the relationships fostered in Amsterdam to make real progress in the areas of science, education and advocacy.  I have no doubt in the end our work together will bring success!

Check out the ESC Meeting Coverage page on CardioSource.org for full coverage from Amsterdam, including news, trial summaries, and video and audio interviews. Also, don’t forget to mark your calendars for ACC.14 in Washington, DC. Registration opens this month!

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