Houston Methodist to Showcase Cardiovascular Expertise at ACC

More than a dozen Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center experts will present research and lead discussions at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Sessions in Chicago March 29-31.

ACC 2025 will mark the 75th anniversary of the conference, which brings together many of the biggest names in cardiology to discuss transformative advancements in patient care.

Houston Methodist's significant presence at ACC 2025 highlights its commitment to pioneering advancements in imaging, big data analysis and cutting-edge treatments for cardiovascular disease.

Late-breaking clinical trial 

Joint American College of Cardiology/New England Journal of Medicine Clinical Trials V

• Dr. Michael J. Reardon, an internationally recognized leader in transcatheter aortic valve replacement, will present results from the 5 Year Outcomes After Transcatheter or Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement in Low-Risk Patients with Aortic Stenosis trial (March 30, 10:30 a.m.).

Advancing risk assessment

Houston Methodist experts will lead sessions exploring innovations in diagnostic imaging, data analysis and environmental cardiology — and their impact on patient risk assessment.

• Dr. Mouaz Al-Mallah, a leader in cardiac imaging, will present on PET-derived coronary flow reserve (March 30, 3:30 p.m.) and innovations in nuclear cardiology (March 31, 9 a.m.). Additionally, he will lead a rapid-fire cardiac imaging session (March 29, 2:30 p.m.).
• Dr. Khurram Nasir, a national leader in preventive cardiology research, will discuss the expanding role of cardiovascular CT (March 29, 3:30 p.m.) and coronary artery calcium scoring (March 29, 8 a.m.) in guiding preventive care. He will present findings from the Spring 2025 Lancet Commission on Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (March 31, 2:30 p.m.).
• Dr. Sadeer Al-Kindi, an emerging authority on environmental cardiology, will present his team's latest insights on how ambient temperature affects heart attack risk (March 29, 2 p.m.) and showcase an integrated socio-environmental risk model for individuals with diabetes (March 30, 3 p.m.). Additionally, Dr. Al-Kindi will compete in the prestigious Young Investigator Awards Competition (March 30, 1 p.m.).

Breakthroughs in valvular heart disease

Houston Methodist imaging and valve function experts will discuss the future of assessing and treating valvular heart disease.

• Dr. Stephen Little, a leading expert in structural heart disease, will guide a fireside chat on the future of valvular heart disease (March 29, 3:30 p.m.) and provide opening remarks for a key session on valve regurgitation and ventricular failure (March 30, 11:30 a.m.). He will also lead a session on tricuspid regurgitation management (March 31, 9 a.m.) and emcee an interactive debate session on high-acuity valve disease (March 31, 1 p.m.), featuring top experts in the field.
• Dr. Dipan Shah, director of Cardiovascular Imaging and the Cardiovascular MRI Laboratory at Houston Methodist, will join Dr. Little and other luminaries for the fireside chat focused on artificial intelligence and the future of valve repair (March 29, 3:30 p.m.).

Young investigators showcase

Houston Methodist physicians, cardiology fellows and post-doctoral researchers will present poster sessions on a diverse range of research interests and areas of expertise.

March 29

• Cardiac Remodeling and Outcomes of Patients with Combined Aortic Stenosis and Regurgitation, Dr. Maan Malahfii, Moderated Poster Presentation #8 at 1:24 p.m.
• Drug-Coated Balloon Versus Drug-Eluted Stents for Treatment of De Novo Severe Coronary Artery Disease: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials, Dr. Hassaan Arshad, Moderated Poster Presentation #3 at 1:24 p.m.
• Disaggregating Proportional Mortality from Concurrent Diabetes Mellitus and Cardiovascular Disease Among Asian American Subgroups in the United States, Izza Shahid, Ph.D., Moderated Poster Presentation #2 at 3:30 p.m.
• Short-Term Associations Between Ambient Temperature and Incident Myocardial Infarction: Insights from Houston Methodist Cardiovascular Learning Health System Registry (HM-CV-LHS), Dr. Sadeer Al-Kindi, 2-3 p.m.

March 30

• Social Determinants of Health and Incident Type 2 Diabetes Risk: Real-World Evidence from the HM-CV-LHS, Dr. Zulqarnain Javed, Moderated Poster Presentation at 9 a.m.
• Breaking the Cycle: A Rare Case of Pulmonary Veno-Occlusive Disease, Dr. Gina Lazzara, 9-10 a.m.
• Comparative Efficacy of Third-Generation Self-Expanding Transcatheter Heart Valves: A Network Meta-Analysis, Sahar Samimi, Ph.D., 9-10 a.m.
• GP IIB/IIIA Inhibitors or Cangrelor Vs. Thrombectomy in Patients with ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction and Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention, Dr. Samarthkumar Thakkar, 12-1 p.m.
• Climate Vulnerability Index and Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events in a Large Integrated Health Care System: Insights from the HM-CV-LHS, Izza Shahid, Ph.D., 3-4 p.m.
• Development and Validation of Personalized Risk Estimation with Clinical and Integrated Socio-Environmental Data for Diabetes Mellitus (Precise-DM): A Multi-Modal Prediction Tool from the HM-CV-LHS, Dr. Sadeer Al-Kindi, 3-4 p.m.
• Anticoagulation with Warfarin in a Carcinoid Heart Disease Patient Population: Between Scylla and Charybdis, Dr. Kevin Honan, 3-4 p.m.

March 31

• A Rare Case of Iatrogenic Ventricular Septal Defect After Biventricular Para-Hisian Ablation, Dr. Madiha Khan, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
• Demographic and Regional Trends in Cardiovascular Kidney Metabolic Disease-Related Mortality Among Young Adults in the United States: 1999 to 2019, Izza Shahid, Ph.D., 12-1 p.m.
• Validating the San Antonio Diabetes Risk Prediction Model on Real-World HER Data to Predict Type 2 Diabetes: Insights from the HM-CV-LHS, Rakesh Gullapelli, 12-1 p.m.