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A multidisciplinary approach to improve treatment and reduce patient cardiovascular risk
The 4th VAM meeting (Vascular Disease: A Multidisciplinary Approach) is to be held on 12 and 13 February in Barcelona
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Over 400 specialist internists, nephrologists, cardiologists and endocrinologists from across Spain come together at this pioneering meeting
Barcelona, 12 February 2010 – The VAM ALMIRALL 2010 (Vascular Disease: A Multidisciplinary Approach) gets underway today in Barcelona, bringing together more than 400 specialists from all over Spain. It is the fourth year of this important Spanish project during which specialists are able to exchange information about vascular disease.
According to Prof. José Ramón González Juanatey from the Cardiology Unit at the University Clinic Hospital in Santiago de Compostela and member of the Scientific Committee, “this meeting is a benefit to us as health professionals as it steers us towards a global approach. We quite often tend to see the patient as the focus of our speciality and yet this systemic perspective provides advantages for the patient by offering a more complete treatment and more effectively reducing cardiovascular risk”.
“Working meetings will also be organised during the event to discuss care issues not resolved by scientific evidence, which very much helps in clinical practice”, he adds.
Diabetes, a focal point of vascular disease
“80% of times that diabetes requires hospitalisation it is because of vascular complications. This is why diabetes nowadays is seen as a prominently vascular disease”, says Dr. Pedro Conthe Gutiérrez, from the University General Hospital Gregorio Marañón in Madrid, president of the Spanish Society for Internal Medicine (SEMI) and also a member of the meeting’s Scientific Committee.
This year the meeting will be attended by two prestigious world experts in type 2 diabetes: Stefano del Prato, from the University of Pisa, and Anthony Barnett, from the Heart of England, NHS Foundation Trust in London, who will provide updates of therapeutic opinions and studies on type 2 diabetes, as well diabetes registration data in Europe and risk factors.
Dr. Conthe states, “the important thing is to treat type 2 diabetes early and intensively, especially in its initial phase to avoid having to deal with long-term vascular damage (in 15-20 years). This is also what encourages specialists to treat the disease more rigorously –and also convey this to patients– right from the start, even if there may not be any complications at the time”.
Priorities in cardiovascular prevention in high risk hypertensive patients
Blood pressure control in high risk hypertensive patients is one of the key factors for reducing the risk of cardiovascular events. This risk increases with the presence of other risk factors such as diabetes, smoking, cholesterol and obesity. This year’s meeting will be attended by Prof. Neil Poulter from the National Heart and Lung Institute in London, one of the most recognised world experts in cardiovascular prevention 1. Prof. Poulter will also discuss the focus of the recent European Guidelines on Arterial Hypertension that encourage starting fixed combinations of anti-hypertensive patients to achieve optimum control and correct therapeutic compliance in high risk hypertensive patients.
Cardiorenal syndrome: a new heart and kidney clinical interrelation perspective
The clinical interrelation between heart and kidney is one of the highlights of this meeting as very frequently patients with coronary disease also suffer from kidney diseases. “It is possible that 30% of cardiac patients have kidney damage and this kidney disease is sometimes underestimated and unknown. Vascular experts should evaluate these highly interrelated fields” says Prof. Javier Díez from the University Clinic in Navarre and member of the meeting’s scientific committee.
Dr. Claudio Ronco, from the Nephrology Department at the San Bortolo Hospital in Vicenza, will explain how the harmful effects of both pathologies are exacerbated in cardiorenal syndrome and will provide guidelines on how to appropriately manage patients.
Cognitive deterioration and dementia, secondary to cerebrovascular diseases: the need to take action
In society today the loss of cognitive faculties and the onset of possible dementia in people over seventy-five could be prevented through correct treatment of all factors that may lead to the risk of suffering a cerebrovascular event. Dr. Leonardo Pantoni, from the Department of Neurological and Psychiatric Sciences at the University of Florence, will explain measures that have been proven effective in the prevention of cognitive deterioration and the need for active and early implementation.
Atrial fibrillation: new data with clinical implications
In Europe around 4.5 million people suffer from atrial fibrillation. "Without anticoagulant treatment these patients are at considerable risk of suffering from stroke, about 5 times more likely than the population’s average". Current anticoagulants, such as heparins and vitamin K antagonists have been shown to be effective. However, use of these treatments, especially vitamin K antagonists, is limited as they need to be closely monitored due to interactions (with other medicines and with food) and the high risk of bleeding.
"There is an urgent need for new and better oral treatment for dealing with atrial fibrillation". Dr. Hocini, from the Hôpital Cardiologique du Haut–Lévêque, Bordeaux will be talking about this pathology.
About Almirall
Almirall, an international pharmaceutical company based on innovation and committed to health. Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, researches, develops, manufactures and commercialises its own R&D and licensed drugs with the aim of improving people’s health and wellbeing.
The therapeutic areas on which Almirall focuses its research resources are related to the treatment of asthma, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and other dermatological conditions.
Almirall’s products are currently present in over 70 countries while it has direct presence in Europe and Latin America through 11 affiliates.
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1 Dr. Neil Poulter is the author of essential reports such as the ASCOT study, which switched the approach to cardiovascular prevention by showing that combining a fixed dose of an association of amlodipine and atorvastatin could effectively prevent cardiovascular events for a broad spectrum of hypertensive patients (Sever PS et al. Potencial synergy between lipid-lowering and blood pressure-lowering in the Anglo-Scandinavian Cardiac Outcomes trial. Eur Heart J 2006;27:2982-2988)
More information:
VAM Meeting press office
Carolina Rodríguez-Solano
Tfno. 91 788 32 00
Press release