Cardiovascular Video Recap—December 4, 2025

This Cardiovascular Video Recap covers mechanistic trial wins, national risk-mapping initiatives, new cardiovascular risk links, practical AI gains in procedural planning and imaging, and advances in stroke prevention and hypertension therapy.

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Transcript

Welcome to the latest edition of Cardiovascular Updates, covering the latest breakthroughs. Brought to you by LucidQuest, this update highlights:

Winrevair, also called sotatercept-csrk, met the primary endpoint in the Phase 2 Cadence trial in adults with combined post- and precapillary pulmonary hypertension due to HFpEF, reducing pulmonary vascular resistance versus placebo at 24 weeks. The study was randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled with three arms and 164 participants, and safety was generally consistent with the known profile.

Portugal is launching PULSAR, the country’s largest study of diabetes and cardiovascular risk, sampling about 25,000 adults across mainland and islands. The protocol includes questionnaires, biometrics, and laboratory testing, including obstetric history, with findings intended to update prevalence and risk profiles.

Observational data link myelodysplastic syndromes to incident cardiovascular disease. In a cohort of roughly 1.14 million individuals without prior CVD and a mean follow-up of 3.5 years, MDS was independently associated with higher risk of ischemic heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation.

A systematic review of 11 randomized trials reports that AI-driven planning improves procedural efficiency and success. Examples include CT-FFR triage that reduces unnecessary invasive angiography, AI-assisted CT planning that raises left atrial appendage closure success with fewer devices and repositioning, and time savings in echocardiography interpretation.

Siemens Healthineers introduced Optiq AI for interventional imaging, bringing real-time denoising and automated parameter control across fluoroscopy, image acquisition, and DSA to maintain diagnostic quality at low radiation dose. Availability spans Artis genio, icono.explore, and icono.vision or pheno.vision platforms.

Syngo.CT Coronary Cockpit on Syngo.via automates segmentation, labeling, and visualization of coronary plaque to support Cad management and the potential for CT-guided PCI. It is designed for dual-source and photon-counting CT and aims to standardize plaque analysis and planning.

Topline results from Oceanic-Stroke show asundexian 50 milligrams reduced ischemic stroke compared with placebo on background antiplatelet therapy, with no increase in ISTH major bleeding. The Phase 3 study enrolled 12,327 adults after noncardioembolic stroke or high-risk TIA, with treatment for up to 31 months and prespecified endpoints.

The FDA accepted the NDA for baxdrostat under Priority Review for hard-to-control hypertension. The submission is supported by BaxHTN Phase 3 results demonstrating significant systolic blood pressure reductions versus placebo on top of standard care, with tolerability aligned with its mechanism.
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Why it matters

New hemodynamic evidence in CpcPH due to HFpEF may open a path to the first targeted therapy in Group 2 PH [1].
National surveillance like PULSAR can reset prevention and screening thresholds for an aging population [2].
Recognising MDS as a CV risk factor could change multidisciplinary management and monitoring [3].
Practical AI wins in cath lab and imaging can cut waste and standardise complex procedures at scale [4][5][6].
FXIa inhibition and aldosterone synthase blockade represent fresh mechanisms in stroke prevention and hypertension control [7][8].

🗓️ Explore weekly details and sources

Week 20–26 November 2025
Week 27 November–3 December 2025

📚 Find your one-stop page for the full Cardiovascular archive.

FAQ

What is WINREVAIR and what did CADENCE show?

WINREVAIR (sotatercept-csrk) is an activin signalling inhibitor. In Phase 2 CADENCE, it reduced PVR vs placebo at 24 weeks in CpcPH due to HFpEF, with safety in line with prior experience; Merck plans Phase 3 [1].

How big is Portugal’s PULSAR study and what will it measure?

About 25,000 adults will undergo questionnaires, biometrics, and labs to quantify diabetes and CV risk, including newer indicators such as obstetric history. Pilot starts Dec 2025, first readouts before end 2026 [2].

How strong is the MDS–CVD link?

In a claims-based cohort of ~1.14M without prior CVD, MDS was associated with higher risk of IHD, stroke, HF, and AF over 3.5 years, independent of age, sex, and anemia status (observational) [3].

What AI gains are most actionable today in CV procedures?

RCTs show fewer unnecessary angiograms with CT-FFR triage, higher LAA closure success with AI CT planning, and faster, more consistent echo reads, suggesting immediate workflow benefits in high-volume centers [4].

What do Siemens’ Optiq AI and Coronary Cockpit add?

Optiq AI brings real-time denoising and automated exposure control for low-dose, high-quality interventional imaging. Coronary Cockpit automates CT plaque characterisation to support therapy selection and potential CT-guided PCI [5][6].

What is the regulatory status of baxdrostat and the latest on asundexian?

Baxdrostat’s NDA has FDA Priority Review for hard-to-control HTN, backed by BaxHTN Phase 3 SBP reductions [8]. Asundexian topline showed reduced ischemic stroke without more ISTH major bleeding in OCEANIC-STROKE; full data pending [7].

Entities / Keywords

WINREVAIR (sotatercept-csrk; Merck); CADENCE; CpcPH due to HFpEF; Portuguese Society of Diabetology (SPD); Portuguese Society of Cardiology (SPC); PULSAR Portugal; Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS); ischemic heart disease; stroke; heart failure; atrial fibrillation; AI planning; CT-FFR; LAA closure; echocardiography; Siemens Healthineers Optiq AI; Syngo.CT Coronary Cockpit; OCEANIC-STROKE; asundexian (FXIa inhibitor; Bayer); baxdrostat (aldosterone synthase inhibitor; AstraZeneca); hard-to-control hypertension.