CME - Cardiology Update in Primary Care Medicine: An Evidence-Based Approach

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES FOR THIS COURSE: DAY 1 - HYPERTENSION – Define hypertension for the general population and various subgroups. Importance of isolated systolic hypertension. Recognize that low diastolic pressure may be prognostically good or bad. CHEST PAIN AND NON-INVASIVE TESTING FOR CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE – Differentiate life-threatening from more benign chest pain. Approach to chest pain, with the use of probability analysis. Diagnostic tests for coronary artery disease. RISK FACTORS – Risk factors for coronary artery disease. Modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors. How emerging risk factors affect cardiovascular risk. Causes and consequences of obesity. RISK STRATIFICATION – Framingham Model for assessment of absolute risk. Limitations of the Framingham Model. Assessment of absolute risk to guide therapy. DAY 2 - RISK REDUCTION – National guidelines for primary and secondary risk reduction. Treatment of lipid disorders. How major trials affect decisions on pharmacologic reduction of risk. ATRIAL FIBRILLATION – Importance of anticoagulation in the management of atrial fibrillation. Pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical methods of normalizing ventricular rate. Strategies for cardioversion in atrial fibrillation. Potential benefit and harm of antiarrhythmic therapies. AORTIC VALVE DISEASE – Identify aortic valve disease through history and physical examination. Role of non-invasive and invasive testing in diagnosis and management. Medical therapy and indications for aortic valve replacement. MITRAL VALVE DISEASE – Identify mitral valve disease through history and physical examination. Role of non-invasive and invasive testing in diagnosis and management. Medical therapy and indications for mitral valve replacement and repair. Symptoms and adverse outcomes that do and do not result from mitral valve prolapse. DAY 3 - CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE – Cardiac etiologies of pulmonary congestion. Ejection fraction and stroke volume. Causes of systolic heart failure. Standard-of-care therapies, treatments which reduce mortality and those that improve symptoms. DIASTOLIC HEART FAILURE AND HYPERTROPHIC CARDIOMYOPATHY – Prevalence and pathophysiology of diastolic heart failure. Treatment strategies for diastolic heart failure. Prognosis in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Treatment strategies in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. DISEASES OF THE AORTA – ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM, ACUTE AORTIC SYNDROMES – Lethality of aortic rupture and dissection. Screening for and management of aortic aneurysms. Acute aortic dissection and those at risk. CARDIAC EMERGENCIES – ACUTE PULMONARY EDEMA, SHOCK – Differentiate cardiac from non-cardiac pulmonary edema. Chronic and acute heart failure. Therapies for acute pulmonary edema. Cardiogenic shock in hemodynamic and clinical terms. Differential diagnosis for shock. Importance of revascularization in the patient with shock due to acute myocardial infarction. DAY 4 - PERIOPERATIVE CARDIAC EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT – What the surgical team wants to know. Cardiovascular effects of anesthesia and surgery. Elements of preoperative evaluation, including the role of non-invasive testing for coronary artery disease, using national guidelines. Perioperative measures which may reduce the risk of cardiac complications. SYNCOPE – Common underlying pathophysiology for all causes. Benign and life-threatening causes. Work-up of syncope. Use clinical history to help focus the work-up for syncope. SUDDEN CARDIAC DEATH, BRADYCARDIA AND ATRIOVENTRICULAR BLOCK – Which patients need additional evaluation and treatment of ventricular arrhythmias. Which patients need additional evaluation and treatment of cardiac conduction abnormalities. Indications for permanent electronic pacemakers. PALPITATIONS AND SUPRAVENTRICULAR TACHYCARDIA – Diagnostic algorithm for differentiating various supraventricular tachycardias. How to acutely treat and chronically manage reentrant supraventricular tachycardias. Diagnostic approach for palpitations. Recognize benign from potentially life-threatening causes of palpitations. DAY 5 - ACUTE ST- ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION – Differences in plaque morphology to the differences between stable angina and acute coronary syndromes. Identify acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction, including the use of newer markers of cardiac injury. Treatment strategies that reduce mortality; the importance of minimizing time delay. Complications of acute infarction. Post-infarction risk. UNSTABLE ANGINA PECTORIS/NON ST-ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION AND STABLE ANGINA – Recognize unstable angina or non ST-elevation infarction and tailor therapy to the degree of risk. Who benefits from revascularization. Determinants of myocardial oxygen demand and supply, and the effects of medications on these determinants. Treatment of stable angina. INTERESTING CLINICAL CASES – Clinical aspects in diagnosis, evaluation and management of cardiac risk factors. Clinical aspects in diagnosis, evaluation and management of cardiac symptoms. Clinical aspects in diagnosis, evaluation and management of known cardiac diseases. When to refer complex patients for subspecialty care. WOMEN AND CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE – How coronary risk factors affect women. Strategy for evaluating chest pain in women. Clinical profiles of men and women with acute myocardial infarction. Risks and benefits of therapeutic modalities in women with coronary disease.
Physician Fees
$745.00 Regular Registration (30 days prior to seminar start date)
$795.00 Late Registration
Non Physician/Resident* Fees
$645.00 Regular Registration (30 days prior to seminar start date)
$695.00 Late Registration