Here in Stockholm, the ESC conference is finally underway. It's being billed as the largest conference for cardiology in the world and I can believe that. The lines were brutal and many sessions (satellite symposia) were standing room only. I guess this is a good thing and means that the economy hasn't stopped people travelling to these meetings. The first 2 random cardiologists I spoke to were from Buenos Aires and the Philippines - this is truly an international meeting.

I attended an excellent imaging symposium sponsored by Toshiba. There was a focus on echo, particularly speckle tracking of LV and RV function. This was particularly useful in helping to interpret stress echo studies, where subtle wall motion abnormalities can be picked up more easily than with the eye. One great example was to use speckle tracking echo as a gatekeeper to coronary angiography in patients referred for 'cardiac clearance' prior to major non-cardiac surgery.

David Newby from Edinburgh, UK discussed the use of CT as a one-stop shop for coronary angiography, scar and perfusion imaging. This seemed possible, although at 40 minutes the study times are long - approaching a cardiac MR study. The issue of radiation is also a concern, although studies are possible with under 4mSv using the Toshiba 320 detector machine.

After this, food was called for - see below - any help much appreciated with translating what I actually ate!