Letter from the Editor in Chief

DOI: 10.19102/icrm.2016.070708

MOUSSA MANSOUR, MD, FHRS, FACC

Editor-in-Chief

Dear Readers,

This issue of the Journal contains many interesting articles. I would like to highlight two that I found very educational. The first is a commentary by Dr. John Day summarizing the most impactful presentations at the annual scientific meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) in May 2016. Dr. Day elegantly discusses five areas that received a high level of attention at HRS, and these are: subcutaneous ICD, leadless pacing, ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT), the relationship between the use of warfarin and dementia, and the dilemma surrounding persistent atrial fibrillation (AF). These areas have generated a lot of interesting research over the past few years, and I believe that they will continue to have a strong presence during this coming year. Many promising therapies are being tested in these respective areas, with the aim of improving the outcome of patients with AF and VT.

The second important article in this issue is by Dr. Bhave and colleagues entitled “Patterns of Dofetilide Use for the Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation”. The authors collected data on patients admitted for dofetilide initiation between 2004 and 2009. They analyzed the rate of discordance with the maintenance of sinus rhythm guidelines, rate of conversion with drug initiation, duration of drug therapy, and rate of discontinuation of the medication. They also compared these outcomes when dofetilide was used as a first and second line of therapy. The findings are very interesting and certainly helpful for the management of patients who are being considered for drug therapy.

As always, I hope that you find this issue of the Journal beneficial to you and your practice. Best wishes for a relaxing summer.

Regards,

Editor-in-Chief

Moussa Mansour, MD, FHRS, FACC
Editor-in-Chief
The Journal of Innovations in Cardiac Rhythm Management
MMansour@InnovationsInCRM.com
Director, Cardiac Electrophysiology Laboratory
Director, Atrial Fibrillation Program
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA