Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to share the peer-reviewed highlights of The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) 2015 Scientific Sessions, held in San Diego, California, from May 6 to 9, 2015.

MD Conference Express® provides practice-changing highlights that have been rigorously peer-reviewed and validated against primary sources to ensure each article is neutral and accurate.

The articles in this issue of MD Conference Express represent the most compelling topics of relevance to a broad array of practitioners in interventional cardiology.

Among the clinical trial highlights presented at SCAI 2015 was a prospective, open-label pharmacodynamics study that showed that ticagrelor compared with clopidogrel produced greater reductions in platelet reactivity and increases in inhibition of platelet aggregation when compared with clopidogrel in low-risk patients with troponin-negative acute coronary syndromes. A retrospective analysis of patients with at least one paclitaxel-eluting stent who required surgery during the first 6 to 12 months after stenting showed that the majority of patients could be successfully bridged through surgery with cilostazol. In the OUTSIDE START Cilostazol Bridge Study, there were no major cardiac events in patients who received a sufficient dose of cilostazol and resumed dual antiplatelet therapy within 24 to 48 hours after surgery.

The selected update articles include a review of hot topics related to transcatheter aortic valve replacements, current issues with mitral valve disease, and a focus on pharmacology and devices for the treatment of STEMI.

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