Battling the Second Wave of COVID…

Dhanunjaya Lakkireddy


Dear colleagues

Our sincere condolences to those who lost their loved ones to the second wave of COVID sweeping across the world. Just about as the world was about to get a break from ayearlong carnage that this tricky microbe has caused, we are seeing incredibly discouraging news from India and other places. We cannot underestimate the ability of this virus to mutate and continue to infect humanity. As the vaccination program gets a solid footing, we should continue our efforts to enforce appropriate social distancing, masking, and disinfection practices. The Center for Disease Control should exert some restrain in lifting the masking requirements in public places. There is a significant misinformation prevalent that is deterring people from embracing the COVID vaccination. Please educate your patients, family, friends, and neighbors to get vaccinated and change the course of this deadly pestilence.

In this issue of the journal, we have a wide range of manuscripts covering the value head up tilt table tests in determining the need for pacemakers to understanding device embolization during left atrial appendage occlusion. Another interesting paper on using myocardial strain indices using intracardiac echocardiography opens several opportunities to study the intraprocedural aspects of myocardial strain and arrhythmic conditions. The impact of exercise on atrial fibrillation in elderly patients and the accompanying editorial are a must read.

We have now adopted a new manuscript management system, and this has significantly improved the workflow and the review process. We want to thank you for your continued support of the journal. Very soon I will be stepping down as the Editor-in-Chief of the journal and my replacement will be announced soon. I once again thank you all for the opportunity to work with many of you on the editorial board. Thank you.

Sincerely




Dhanunjaya (DJ)Lakkireddy MD, FACC, FHRS Editor-in-Chief JAFIB