Stockholm – More than 11 million Italians are living with cardiometabolic-kidney syndrome (CKM), many of them unaware of it. The condition affects the heart, kidneys and metabolic system simultaneously, linking obesity, type 2 diabetes, chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease in a complex and self-reinforcing cycle. Until recently, no dedicated clinical guidelines existed for the syndrome. That changed on June 9, when four leading U.S. medical organizations—the American Heart Association (AHA), the American College of Cardiology (ACC), the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the American Society of Nephrology (ASN)—jointly released the first-ever guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis and management of CKM syndrome. The recommendations were published simultaneously in Circulation and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Against this backdrop, the International Symposium on Cardiometabolic Risk and Vascular Disease – From Mechanisms to Treatment opens today in Stockholm. The two-day scientific meeting, held on June 16 and 17 and co-organized by the Menarini Foundation and Karolinska University Hospital, is among the first events in Europe to examine the implications of these historic guidelines. The symposium is chaired by Professor Francesco Cosentino, Director of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Karolinska Institute and Karolinska University Hospital, as well as head of the Molecular Cardiology Laboratory. The scale of the challenge in Italy is significant. According to data from Fondazione Charta, 11.6 million Italians have been diagnosed with CKM syndrome. Among them, 4.7 million patients present an average of 2.5 risk factors simultaneously: 79.6% suffer from hypertension, 67% have type 2 diabetes, 44.4% have hypercholesterolemia and 40% have kidney failure. Most patients also fail to meet recommended treatment targets, with 72% lacking adequate blood pressure control, 47% not achieving recommended glucose levels and 45% remaining above cholesterol targets. “CKM syndrome is becoming the dominant driver of cardiovascular risk in the population, yet many of its components are still not recognized early enough, worsening clinical outcomes,” said Professor Stefano Del Prato, President of the Menarini Foundation. “We can no longer afford to treat the heart, kidneys and metabolism as separate medical territories. These patients should not be passed from one specialist to another. The future of cardio-nephro-metabolic medicine lies in overcoming traditional disciplinary boundaries”. “The symposium brings together international experts in cardiology, nephrology, diabetology and internal medicine to translate the new guidelines into clinical practice,” added Giuseppe Caracciolo, Scientific Director and Director General of the Menarini Foundation. Discussions will focus on disease staging, early screening strategies, the role of innovative therapies and multidisciplinary care models designed to address what the scientific community increasingly describes as a silent pandemic. (9colonne)