Dear Practitioner,

We are pleased to share with you this special issue with a focus on cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention from presentations at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2015 held in London, United Kingdom.

CVD is the leading cause of death and a major cause of disability worldwide, highlighting a need for increased public awareness with particular focus on disease prevention. The articles in this issue will provide you with information on treatment options for dyslipidemia, the role of personalized medicine in CVD prevention, and other innovations and programs aimed at improving public health by reducing the burden of heart disease.

Statins are the most widely prescribed class of medications used to lower cholesterol, and trials have shown them to be effective in patients with CVD. They are also used extensively in patients without previously diagnosed CVD who have elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and risk factors such as diabetes and hypertension that can increase the risk of CVD. A study featured in this issue analyzed the records of over 45 000 Medicare beneficiaries and revealed that patients who adhere well to high-intensity statins or low-/moderate-intensity statins have fewer recurrences of myocardial infarction, fewer hospitalizations due to CVD, and fewer all-cause mortalities, yet low adherence to therapy or discontinuation is common.

Smartphone apps are increasingly being used to help motivate patients to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle. The SUPPORT trial studied patients with acute myocardial infarction being treated with ticagrelor, and it demonstrated the value of an interactive smartphone app in boosting drug adherence and adopting/continuing healthy cardiovascular lifestyle changes.

Other articles in this issue explore additional options for lipid-lowering therapy in patients for whom statins might not be the best option, recent improvements and innovations that could advance the field of CVD prevention and significantly improve public health, and goals and interventions that aim to achieve the World Heart Federation’s objective to reduce premature deaths from CVD by 25% by the year 2025.

We hope that you find the articles and practical perspectives that are contained in the pages of this focus issue of ESC Congress 2015 in Review helpful in integrating this new information into your clinical practice. For more information, please visit mdce.sagepub.com.