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We are delighted to welcome a new sponsor to Arrhythmia Watch. In April 2007 Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb formed an alliance to combine expertise, knowledge and resources to expand treatment possibilities. “Both have a long history of commitment in supporting the management of cardiovascular disease and are proud to extend this support to Arrhythmia Watch,” said a spokesperson.

The number one medical specialty to appear on the New Year’s Honours list in the last decade is public health medicine, according to research published recently in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.¹ However, like other doctors, they will have to work for over 30 years before being recognised.

Consultant physicians are increasingly working above and beyond their contracted hours, while the amount of time consultants have to spend with trainees is decreasing and some specialties are experiencing low levels of growth in consultant numbers, according to a census¹ conducted by the Federation of Royal Colleges of Physicians.

Rivaroxaban (Xarelto®) has become the first once-daily, fixed-dose preventative treatment for UK patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) at risk of stroke, without the need for routine coagulation monitoring.

Up to 24,000 people with diabetes are dying each year from causes that could be avoided through better management of their condition, according to the first ever report on mortality from the National Diabetes Audit.¹

The health of European men is changing, with a reduction of 24 million men of working age (15-64) and an increase of 32 million men aged 65 and over across Europe by 2060, according to a report¹ on the health of men in Europe recently debated at Leeds Metropolitan University.

Dronedarone increases rates of serious vascular events in patients with permanent atrial fibrillation (AF) and additional cardiovascular risk factors, according to the PALLAS (Permanent Atrial Fibrillation Outcome Study Using Dronedarone on Top of Standard Therapy) trial¹ published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The British Heart Valve Society will host a specialist valve clinic symposium, held at Governors’ Hall, St Thomas’ Hospital, London, on the February 13th 2012. It is designed for those from all disciplines involved in heart valve disease including cardiology, sonography, cardiac physiology, cardiac nursing, primary care, public health, commissioning, and NHS management.

For more information, visit www.bhvs.org.uk.

Ambulatory external electrocardiogram (AECG) monitoring technology plays an important role in patients with known atrial fibrillation (AF) to guide ventricular rate control and anticoagulation therapy, and assess the efficacy of antiarrhythmic drug therapy and/or ablation procedures, according to a review published recently in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.¹

The state of genetic testing for potentially heritable channelopathies and cardiomyopathies is the focus of an international consensus statement published recently in Europace.¹