Program Overview
Areas of North America and Western Europe have struggled with repeated waves and emerging variants of SARS CoV-2 infection. Even as some countries and regions strive to return to pre-pandemic behavior, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to exert many deleterious effects on the delivery of continuing healthcare for many vulnerable populations. Those affected include patients who would be expected to benefit from evidence-based dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) in the management of their acute coronary syndrome. Affected groups also include patients undergoing a percutaneous coronary intervention procedure, or others at increased risk due to their underlying coronary artery disease. A number of perturbations in the routine care of those patients are known to have happened to extents that vary depending on local/national conditions. Here our international panel of experts examines the effects of the pandemic on the management of CAD and consider both “lessons learned” and new or different approaches that might benefit clinicians and patients in the next major health crisis.
Target Audience
Interventional cardiologists, general cardiologists, primary care providers, hospital and health-system pharmacists
Learning Objectives
- Describe the impact of the COVID pandemic in varied geographical settings on scheduled follow-up of patients prescribed DAPT for CAD/ACS/PCI for up to one year on clinical follow-up and medication adherence
- Discuss the various challenges faced during the pandemic on the ongoing guidelines- based care of these patients and strategies implemented to address those challenges
- Describe from multiple clinical perspectives the “learnings” from this pandemic experience—what worked and what did not, for which groups of patients
- Discuss the benefits and shortcomings of telehealth management/follow-up of this group of patients during their prescribed course of DAPT
- Outline appropriate preparation for the management of patients whose lifestyle changes and therapy adherence may have changed their risk profile for secondary coronary vascular events
Faculty
Marc Bonaca, MD, MPH
Cardiology and Vascular Medicine, University of Colorado
Boulder, Colorado, United States
Stefan James, MD
Cardiologist, Uppsala University
Uppsala, Sweden
Sanjit Jolly, MD, MSc
Cardiologist, McMaster University
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Mikhail Kosiborod, MD
Cardiologist, Saint Lukes MidAmerica Heart Institute
Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Charles Pollack, MD
Emergency Medicine, University of Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi, United States
Gabriel Steg, MD
Cardiologist, University of Paris
Paris, France
Disclosures of Relevant Financial Relationships
It is the policy of AcademicCME that all faculty, instructors, and planners disclose relevant financial relationships relating to the topics of this educational activity. Any relevant financial relationships are mitigated via a content review by planning committee members and faculty with no relevant financial relationships.
The faculty reported the following financial relationships or relationships to products or devices they or their spouse/life partner have with commercial interests related to the content of this CE activity:
| Faculty | Relationship Identified With: |
| Marc Bonaca, MD, MPH
|
Research/Grant Support: Amgen Inc.; ARCA Biopharma; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Bayer AG; Better Therapeutics, Inc.; CellResearch Corporation; Everlywell; HDL Therapeutics, Inc.; Janssen Global Services, LLC; MedImmune; Novo Nordisk A/G; Osiris Therapeutics; Regen BioPharma, Inc.; Virta Health; WraSer Pharmaceuticals |
| Stefan James, MD | Consultant/Advisor: Medtronic
Research/Grant Support: AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Bayer AG; Elixir Pharmaceuticals Inc; Janssen Global Services, LLC |
| Sanjit Jolly, MD, MSc | Consultant/Advisor: Medtronic
Research/Grant Support: Boston Scientific Corporation |
| Mikhail Kosiborod, MD | Consultant/Advisor: Amgen Inc.; Applied Therapeutics; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Bayer AG; Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH; Eli Lilly and Company; Esperion Therapeutics, Inc.; Janssen Global Services, LLC; Merck & Co., Inc.; Novo Nordisk A/G; Sanofi; Vifor Pharma
Research/Grant Support: AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH |
| Charles Pollack, MD | Consultant/Advisor: AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; eXIthera Pharmaceuticals; Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, Ltd.; Milestone Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; VERO Biotech |
| Gabriel Steg, MD | Consultant/Advisor: Amarin Pharmaceuticals; Amgen Inc.; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Bayer AG; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company; Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, Ltd.; Merck & Co., Inc.; Novartis; Novo Nordisk A/G; PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Pfizer Inc.; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Sanofi; Servier Pharmaceuticals LLC
Research/Grant Support: Amarin Pharmaceuticals; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals; Bayer AG; Sanofi; Servier Pharmaceuticals LLC |
Planners and Peer Reviewers
Timothy Hayes, MD, PhD; Kim Cheramie, MSN, RN-BC; Nicole McMenamin; Chelsey Benedek and Emma Boring hereby state that they or their spouse/life partner do not have any relevant financial relationships to products or devices with any commercial interests related to the content of this activity of any amount during the past 12 months.
Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, AcademicCME is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council forPharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
Credit Designation Statements
AcademicCME designates this enduring material for a maximum of 2.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM.
Through an agreement between the American Medical Association and the Union Européenne des Médecins Spécialistes, physicians may convert AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ to an equivalent number of European CME Credits® (ECMECs®). These credits will be recognized by all National Accreditation Authorities in Europe with which the UEMS has a signed agreement of recognition of credits.
Clinicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation.
Financial Support
This activity has been supported by an independent educational grant from AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals.
Disclosure of Unlabeled Use
This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. AcademicCME and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications.
Disclaimer
Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications on dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.
Method of Participation
In order to claim credit, participants must complete the following:
- Read the learning objectives, accreditation information and faculty disclosures at the beginning of this activity.
- Complete the Pre-Activity Questions
- Read or Review the activity content.
- Complete the Post-Activity Test Questions and Evaluation.
- Learners who receive a grade of 50% or better on the Post-Activity Test Questions and complete the Evaluation will receive appropriate credit as indicated (CME, CNE, and/or CPE credit).
- CPE credit will be posted to the learner’s CPE Monitor profile within 60 days of completion.
- CME and CNE credit will be issued appropriate certificate of completion.
- Others may request a “certificate of completion”.
- Learners should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
CE Inquiries/Special Needs
For all CE inquiries or special needs, please contact [email protected].
