MOLECULAR CARDIOLOGY, BASIC RESEARCH

• Apoptosis in vascular and cardiac remodeling
• Oxidative stress and anti-oxidant therapy
• Genetic determinants of coronary heart disease
• Genetic studies in cardiomyopathy
• Gene transfer and therapy
• The pathogenesis of atherosclerosis
• Extracellular matrix and atherosclerosis
• Immunological principles in coronary artery disease
• Growth control and cytokines in vascular cells
• Neointimal hyperplasia and vascular injury
• Pharmacologic modulation of vascular-endothelial function

DIAGNOSTIC METHODS

• Biochemical markers of acute ischemia
• Transesophageal echocardiography
• Pharmacologic stress testing - echocardiography
• Echocardiography, three-dimensional reconstruction
• Nuclear cardiology - new techniques to assess cardiac perfusion, function and viability
• PET - new insights into myocardial metabolism
• Applications of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging
• CT and coronary calcification
• Percutaneous coronary angioscopy
• Intravascular ultrasound imaging
• Intracoronary flow, doppler measurements

CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE

• The plaque and acute coronary syndromes
• Mechanisms involved in myocardial stunning, hibernation and ischemic preconditioning
• Acute myocardial infarction: thrombolysis and reperfusion
• Angioplasty therapy for acute myocardial infarction
• Stents: new devices/optimal application/multiple stents
• Antithrombotic and antiplatelet adjunctive therapy for PTCA
• Blockade of tissue proliferation after coronary interventions
• Restenosis - use of ionizing radiation
• Nitrates, beta blockers, calcium entry blockers and ACE inhibition for myocardial ischemia/infarction
• Left ventricular remodeling after myocardial infarction
• Assessment of prognosis, post acute myocardial infarction
• Secondary prevention, risk stratification
• Cardiac rehabilitation as secondary prevention: is it worth the effort?
• Can the progress of atherosclerosis be halted?
• Modification of lipoproteins and coronary disease
• Hypertension, new therapeutic approaches
• Diabetes mellitus, obesity, insulin and atherosclerosis
• Mental stress: its effect on cardiovascular health
• Primary prevention of coronary artery disease in the healthy adult
• Hormone therapy in postmenopausal women: does it alter coronary risk?
• Prevention in children

HEART FAILURE

• Neurohumoral, immunologic and cytokine aspects of heart failure
• Nitric oxide and nitric oxide synthase in heart failure
• Myocyte and receptor abnormalities in heart failure
• Natriuretic peptides, endothelin: role in heart failure
• Inflammatory mediators and heart failure
• Dilated cardiomyopathy: various etiologies
• Ischemic cardiomyopathy
• Left ventricular hypertrophy and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
• Role of the pericardium, pericarditis and restrictive cardiomyopathy
• Pathophysiologic and prognostic insights in valvular heart disease
• Pulmonary circulation aspects, pulmonary hypertension
• Predictors and markers of heart failure outcome
• Exercise physiology in heart failure
• Renal aspects - diuretics
• Digoxin and other new inotropic agents in heart failure
• ACE inhibitors and Angiotensin-ll receptor blockers
• Beta-blockers and beta-adrenergic receptors in heart failure
• Calcium channel blockers and promoters in heart failure
• Cardiac pacing strategies in heart failure

ARRHYTHMIAS

• Arrhythmias and antiarrhythmic drug therapy
• Atrial flutter/fibrillation - electrophysiologic concepts and clinical aspects
• Management of cardiac arrhythmias pediatric population
• Heart rate variability and prognostic implications
• QT prolongation/dispersion: pathophysiology and prognostic implications
• Sudden death
• Electrophysiologic techniques of mapping and radiofrequency ablation
• Advances in internal defibrillation and implantable antiarrhythmic devices
• Cardiac Pacing

CARDIAC SURGERY

• Advances in congenital heart disease
• Angioplasty or surgery for multivessel coronary artery disease
• New approaches to surgical revascularization: Minimally invasive surgery, TMLR
• Therapeutic and physiologic issues surrounding heart valve surgery
• Mechanical support left ventricular assist devices
• Surgery for LV dysfunction
• Cardiac transplantation

MISCELLANEOUS

• Practice guidelines, cost containment
• Computers in cardiology