The cardiology community rounded out a historic year with multiple pieces of headline news in December 2023. To celebrate the end of the year, HCPLive Cardiology has composed a recap of the top 5 most viewed pieces of content from December 2023. Our list of top content includes topline data from a next-generation cardiac myosin inhibitor, a study on public knowledge of risk associated with diabetes, data detailing the impact of structural racism on overall health, and a feature from our This Year in Medicine series.

Want to know more about the year in cardiology? Check out our feature titled “Experts' Perspectives: Top News in Cardiology for 2023”, which details the opinions of 13 leading experts on the biggest piece of news in cardiology from the past year.

Top Stories in Cardiology for December 2023

Cytokinetics Announces Positive Topline Data for Aficamten in SEQUOIA-HCM

On the morning of December 27, 2023, Cytokinetics Inc. hosted a conference call where it announced positive topline results from the phase 3 SEQUOIA-HCM trial, which examined aficamten in patients with symptomatic obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Results of the trial indicate use of aficamten, a next-generation selective cardiac myosin inhibitor, was associated with significantly improved exercise capacity compared to placebo as well as statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements were also observed in all 10 prespecified secondary endpoints.

Report: Most Adults Fail to Recognize Diabetes as Cardiovascular Risk Factor

In mid-December, a report published in Diabetes Care brought forth data with concerning public health implications. According to the report, which was an analysis of an online survey from the American Heart Association, 2 out of 3 adults from middle- and high-income countries across the globe did not recognize diabetes as a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including more than 50% of US adults included in the survey.

Structural Racism Linked to Increased Prevalence of Kidney Disease, Diabetes, & Cardiovascular Disease

The aforementioned report was not the only study from December raising the alarm on public health crises to be featured in our most popular content. A JAMA Network Open study from aDuke University-led team provided evidence of associations between multiple indicators of structural racism with increased prevalence of chronic health conditions. The study, which leveraged data from the Durham Neighborhood Compass, found factors such as prevalence of violent crimes, median household income, and election participation were associated with increased risk for chronic kidney disease, diabetes, and hypertension in residential neighborhoods.

Female Patients with HCM Experience Worse Outcomes, Greater Symptom Burden

A systematic review and meta-analysis of nearly 30 observational studies with more than 44,000 patients with HCM offered insight into sex-based differences in outcomes. Results of the study demonstrated female patients with HCM experienced an increased risk of all-cause mortality and increased likelihood of carrying the myosin heavy chain beta 7 mutation among female patients compared to their male counterparts.

The 6 Biggest Stories in Medicine in 2023

Part of our annual recap series, this article features perspectives from HCPLive’s advisory board members on the stories that defined medicine in 2023. Among the headlines spotlighted in this feature is the SELECT trial and implications of obesity as a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease.