What’s Going to Be Hot at AHA 2025?

It is the last major general cardiology meeting of 2025, but there are big plans in place for the upcoming American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions.

The annual meeting is returning once again to New Orleans, LA, and the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on the banks of the Mississippi River, with sessions kicking off Friday, November 7, 2025, and running until Monday afternoon.

There will be no shortage of new data, with 27 late-breaking science (LBS) presentations scheduled over seven sessions. These include everything from a first-in-human phase I clinical trial of CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing therapy targeting ANGPTL3, a which plays a key role in lipid metabolism, to the POLY-HF trial testing a polypill strategy in patients with heart failure (HF).  

“This meeting is going to be kind of a mix of some of the old classics,” said Brahmajee Nallamothu, MD (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), vice chair of the AHA Scientific Sessions, during a recent interview on the Rox Heart Radio podcast. “We have some wonderful late-breaking science and late-breaking clinical trials.  We’ve also got a lot of new types of programming we’re super excited about. We’ve been very receptive to our membership and our participants.”   

Even beyond the top-line data, Nallamothu believes there is something important gained by attending meetings in person. He hopes this year’s AHA is no exception.

“You don’t need to be in the room to see the event curves. You can get that on your own,” he previously told TCTMD. It’s the discussion after the presentation that’s invaluable to physicians, particularly for studies with a complex design or mixed results. The discussions help people process the data and understand at a practical level how they’ll take the results back home, he said.

When it comes to late-breaking science, one trial Nallamothu is most intrigued about is OCEAN, a study investigating the optimal antithrombotic strategy in higher-risk patients who have undergone successful catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF). The primary endpoint is a composite of stroke, systemic embolism, and covert stroke detected by cerebral MRI at 3 years in patients randomized to rivaroxaban (Xarelto; Janssen/Bayer) or aspirin alone. 

Additionally, there are several studies looking into the role of other interventions after successful AF ablation, including metformin (META-AF) and sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors (DARE-AF). Another interesting trial, said Nallamothu, is testing whether quitting coffee reduces the risk of recurrent AF in patients who have undergone successful cardioversion (DECAF).

“There are a lot of different ways in which the science is going to interact with practical, real-world questions,” said Nallamothu.

‘Short, Punchy Talks’

There are three LBS sessions on Saturday (8:30 AM, 1:30 PM, and 3:15 PM), including one devoted to “cutting-edge valve and coronary trials.” The final results of RECOVERY, a trial testing early surgery versus conservative medical management for asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis, and the FAVOR IV-QVAS trial, which is investigating whether fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided CABG improves clinical outcomes in patients with concomitant CAD undergoing valve surgery, will be part of the session.

Full data from the CORALreef Lipids study, which is evaluating the oral PCSK9 inhibitor enlicitide decanoate, will also be presented on Saturday in a session dedicated to changing paradigms for lipid management (manufacturer Merck previously announced the study met its primary endpoint).

On Sunday, there are two LBS sessions (8:00 AM and 3:30 PM), including one dedicated to cardiometabolic and lifestyle interventions after AF. The afternoon session is devoted to blood pressure control and includes the SSTT study looking into whether oral potassium chloride supplementation could reduce sodium surplus and blood pressure in patients with arterial hypertension. There also are several studies—BETTER-BP, GoFresh, and Healthy Family Program—looking at different dietary or lifestyle strategies to effectively lower blood pressure.

There are a lot of different ways in which the science is going to interact with practical, real-world questions. Brahmajee Nallamothu

Monday sees the final two LBS sessions (8:00 AM and 9:45 AM), with studies involving prehospital treatment with zalunfiban (Disaggpro; CeleCor Therapeutics) in STEMI patients undergoing PCI (CELEBRATE), noninvasive endotyping in patients with angina without obstructive coronary disease (CorCMR), and use of a PCSK9 inhibitor to inhibit cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAVIAR), among others. The full results of the SURPASS-CVOT trial, which is comparing the impact of tirzepatide versus dulaglutide on HF outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, and a history of HF, also will be presented.

In addition to the clinical LBS, there are five late-breaking basic science sessions that involve oral abstract presentations, moderated digital poster discussions, and traditional posters.

“I think we still have a real showcase for basic science,” said Nallamothu. “We’re trying to integrate that into the overall programming. That speaks to how we are thinking about a couple of new sessions. One is something we call special sessions, which are short, punchy talks—almost like TED talks—where folks are focused on really sharing one kind of takeaway, oftentimes from years and years of complex science, that’s accessible and interesting to a general cardiology audience.”

These special sessions include talks on genetics, coagulation research, lipid research, bioartificial organs, pregnancy-related hypertensive disorders, and artificial intelligence, among others.

The Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Medical Society also will host their program as part of the AHA, with sessions running all day Saturday, and there are numerous plenary sessions hosted by TCT, including those dedicated to intravascular imaging, hemodynamic support, coronary physiology, and renal denervation. The Resuscitation Science Symposium runs concurrently November 8 and 9.

Ardem Patapoutian, PhD (Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA), who won the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering receptors that respond to mechanical stimuli such as touch and temperature, is delivering the Nobel Laureate lecture, while Susan R. Davis, MBBS, PhD (Monash University, Melbourne, Australia), is the Paul Dudley White lecturer. Davis is speaking about the role of sex hormones in cardiometabolic health.