Coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) first presented in Wuhan, Hubei province, China in December 2019. Since then, it has rapidly spread across the world, and is now formally considered a pandemic. The disease does not discriminate but increasing age and the presence of comorbidities are associated with severe form of the disease and poor outcomes. Although the prevalence of COVID‐19 in patients with cardiovascular disease is under‐reported, there is evidence that pre‐existing cardiac disease can render individuals vulnerable. It is thought that COVID‐19 may have both a direct and indirect effect on the cardiovascular system; however, the primary mechanism of underlying cardiovascular involvement is still uncertain. Of particular interest is the role of angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2, which is well known for its cardiovascular effects and is also considered to be important in the pathogenesis of COVID‐19. With a range of different drug candidates being suggested, effective anti‐virals and vaccines are an area of on‐going research. While our knowledge of COVID‐19 continues to rapidly expand, this review highlights recent advances in our understanding of the interaction between COVID‐19 and the cardiovascular system.

Over the decades, the Frozen Elephant Trunk (FET) technique has gained immense popularity allowing simplified treatment of complex aortic pathologies. FET is frequently used to treat aortic conditions involving the distal aortic arch and the proximal descending aorta in a single stage. Surgical preference has recently changed from FET procedures being performed at Zone 3 to Zone 2. There are several advantages of Zone 2 FET over Zone 3 FET including reduction in spinal cord injury, visceral ischemia, neurological and cardiovascular sequelae. In addition, Zone 2 FET is a technically less complicated procedure. Literature on the comparison between Zone 3 and Zone 2 FET is scarce and primarily observational and anecdotal. Therefore, further research is warranted in this paradigm to substantiate current surgical treatment options for complex aortic pathologies. In this review, we explore literature surrounding FET and the reasons for the shift in surgical preference from Zone 3 to Zone 2.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) (Yuki, Fujiogi, & Koutsogiannaki, 2020). Since the introduction of COVID-19 to the human population in the Chinese city of Wuhan, it has spread rapidly across the globe and was officially considered a pandemic in March

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the availability of cardiology services and management of cardiac conditions. Elective surgeries, outpatient appointments and cardiac imaging have been largely cancelled across the world due to the risk of infection transmission and the need for reallocation of resources to deal with the increasing number of COVID-19 patients. The impact on patients with cardiac co-morbidities during these times may be drastic. However, cardiologists and hospitals across the world have implemented measures to ensure on-going monitoring and care of patients remotely. In this review, we discuss the impact of COVID-19 on cardiac services including interventional cardiology services, cardiac imaging and outpatient appointments. In addition, implications for future research and clinical practice are also discussed.

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Coronary artery dissection is a serious, life-threatening heart condition. It can occur spontaneously or due to traumatic or iatrogenic causes. Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is often misdiagnosed as most patients present with symptoms resembling those of an acute coronary syndrome. Clinical sequelae of SCAD include debilitating morbidities such as myocardial infarction, myocardial ischaemia, sudden cardiac death, ventricular arrhythmias amongst many other myocardial ischaemia associated complications. There are two main methods of managing patients with SCAD; conservative management with medical therapy or revascularisation by percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary artery bypass grafting.

A successful packaging technique demands certain barriers for microbes, achieved through controlled conditions to indicate microbial growth, levels of oxygen, harmful bacterial and fungal toxins, moisture levels, and the indicators for temperature and time. Active food packaging is greatly being applied these days for food safety against harmful microbes. Food is protected from biological, physical, and chemical damages caused by pathogenic microbes through different technologies of packaging including modified atmosphere packaging and controlled atmospheric packaging through antimicrobial films. Moreover, it is essential to use selective materials suitable for different food stuffs for the maintenance of nutritional value of foods. Use of various gas scavengers and bio-based package designing are also greatly helpful towards enhanced shelf life of food products.