Prof. Jonathan Kalman discusses the rapid uptake of pulsed field ablation, its potential advantages over thermal ablation, and how the role of AF ablation may continue to expand.

At EHRA 2026, Pierre Jais presented results from the BEAT-PERS AF trial suggesting pulsed field ablation may offer a safer, effective alternative to radiofrequency ablation in persistent AF, prompting renewed focus on optimizing ablation strategies for this high-risk group.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) remains a major clinical challenge in Europe, with ongoing needs for greater precision, safety, and long-term durability in ablation. The recent CE Mark approval of the TactiFlex™ Duo Ablation Catheter, combining high-resolution mapping with emerging pulsed-field ablation (PFA) technology, offers a new option to help address these gaps. Dr John Silberbauer explores how the device may enhance AF treatment, reviews the supporting clinical evidence, and considers what this milestone means for physicians and patients across Europe.

Cardiovascular medicine in 2025 has been marked by rapid innovation and meaningful shifts in clinical practice. In this year-in-review, touchCARDIO brings together expert reflections highlighting paradigm-changing trial data, the emergence of pulsed field ablation and conduction system pacing, advances in imaging and prevention, and the accelerating integration of artificial intelligence. Collectively, these perspectives underscore a field evolving toward more precise, technology-enabled and preventive cardiovascular care, while emphasising the need to translate scientific progress into improved outcomes for patients worldwide.

Between 29 August and 1 September 2025, Madrid hosted one of the most globally ambitious gatherings in cardiovascular medicine: ESC Congress 2025, held alongside the World Congress of Cardiology. Under the unifying theme “Cardiology Beyond Borders,” the meeting spotlighted how cardiovascular disease is woven into broader global health challenges — from disparities in care access to climate, pandemics and social determinants of health. With over 33,000 participants from 169 countries, the Congress set new attendance records and featured more than 190 studies released in tandem with leading journals.

New perspectives from ESC 2025 point to cryoablation as a streamlined and safer option for managing atrial fibrillation in heart failure, offering the potential for earlier treatment and broader access in busy healthcare systems.

The Ground-BrEAking Electroporation-based inTervention for Atrial Fibrillation (BEAT-AF) treatment project is an initiative funded by the European Commission from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, and managed under the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (grant number 945125).1,2 The ...

Highlights The autonomic nervous system plays a critical role in the aetiopathogenesis of atrial fibrillation (AF). Neuromodulation of the autonomic nervous system has been a topic of increased interest in the management of AF. Ablation of ganglionated plexi, ethanol ablation ...

Highlights Failure to target and deliver durable radiofrequency lesions to all functionally critical areas has been identified as an important cause of ventricular tachycardia recurrence and is particularly challenging in deep midmyocardial or very extensive substrate where point-by-point radiofrequency ablation ...