Heart Matters exists to give patients, families and carers the knowledge they need to ask better questions and take an active role in their care.
Heart Matters was founded by Professor Peter Barlis, an interventional cardiologist and Professor of Medicine with over two decades of clinical experience.
As more people turned to the internet for answers about their heart health, it became increasingly clear that much of the information available was incomplete, difficult to interpret, or not grounded in clinical expertise. Heart Matters was created to address this gap, a place where patients and their families can access reliable, evidence-based cardiovascular information they can genuinely trust.
At its core, Heart Matters is built on a simple belief: informed patients are better equipped to understand their condition, engage in meaningful discussions with their healthcare team, and make confident decisions about their care.
This is more than an information resource. Heart Matters is a clinically informed guide designed to explain complex topics clearly, remove unnecessary jargon, and empower individuals with the knowledge and confidence to better understand their heart health.
Every article on Heart Matters is written or reviewed by clinicians with direct patient care experience. Our editorial team brings together interventional cardiology, nursing, and clinical nutrition, ensuring content that is both medically accurate and genuinely useful for patients and families.
Prof. Peter Barlis
Founding EditorProfessor Barlis is an interventional cardiologist and Professor of Medicine with over two decades of clinical and academic experience. He has published more than 150 peer-reviewed research papers, authored five textbooks, and is internationally recognised as a leader in interventional cardiology and cardiac imaging. He founded Heart Matters to bring the same clarity he offers patients in clinic to anyone seeking to understand their heart health.
Kathy Marinias RN
Associate Editor & Women's Health EditorKathy Marinias is a Registered Nurse with more than 25 years of experience in cardiovascular health, nursing, and healthcare administration. With a deep commitment to person-centred care and health promotion, she brings a compassionate and practical perspective to Heart Matters — translating complex medical information into guidance that is meaningful, accessible, and empowering for patients and their families.
Prof. Jai Raman
Surgical EditorProf. Jai Raman is Surgical Editor of Heart Matters and Director of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Townsville University Hospital. An internationally recognised cardiothoracic surgeon, innovator, educator and active researcher, he is a pioneer in the development of new surgical techniques to improve patient outcomes. He holds professorial appointments at the Universities of Melbourne, Deakin, James Cook University and RMIT, and is a Research Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA. His work spans clinical surgery, research, and education across three continents.
Heart Matters is guided by an International Advisory Board of leading clinicians from around the world, bringing the depth of expertise that our readers deserve.
Prof. Patrick W. Serruys
Chair, International Advisory BoardProfessor Serruys is Emeritus Professor of Interventional Cardiology at Erasmus University Rotterdam and Professor at the University of Galway, where he leads the CORRIB Research Centre for Advanced Imaging and Core Lab. Principal investigator of the landmark SYNTAX trial, he has published more than 4,000 peer-reviewed scientific papers and is one of the most cited cardiologists in the world. Professor Barlis completed his PhD under Professor Serruys' supervision, and their two-decade collaboration reflects a shared belief that patients deserve access to the same quality of knowledge that shapes the best clinical decisions in the world.
Prof. George D. Dangas
International Advisory BoardProfessor Dangas is Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, and a senior interventional cardiologist at the Zena and Michael A. Wiener Cardiovascular Institute. One of the world's foremost authorities on antiplatelet therapy, he has defined the clinical evidence base on bleeding risk and dual antiplatelet therapy after coronary intervention, shaping treatment guidelines used by cardiologists worldwide. His long-standing collaboration with Professor Barlis, rooted in their co-authored Interventional Cardiology textbook, reflects a shared commitment to bringing reliable cardiovascular knowledge to patients and their families.
Dr Nieves Gonzalo
International Advisory BoardDr Nieves Gonzalo is a Consultant Interventional Cardiologist at Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, and Course Director of EuroPCR, the world's leading interventional cardiology congress. A specialist in intracoronary imaging, coronary physiology, and complex coronary intervention, she is Deputy Editor of EuroIntervention and one of Europe's most respected voices in interventional cardiology. As a member of the Heart Matters International Advisory Board, she brings a conviction that reliable, expert-led patient information has never been more important, at a time when patients face an overwhelming and often misleading abundance of health information online.
Heart disease affects millions of people and their families. Too often, the information available is either too technical, too vague, or simply hard to find. Our mission is to change that and make world-class cardiovascular knowledge accessible to everyone, regardless of their medical background. We believe that an informed patient is a better patient, and that knowledge is one of the most powerful tools in managing heart health.
Every article is grounded in current clinical evidence and reviewed for accuracy. We don't publish speculation, only information you can rely on.
Medical language can be a barrier. We translate complex cardiology into plain English, clear enough to understand, accurate enough to trust.
Everything we create is designed with the patient in mind, the person sitting with a new diagnosis, preparing for a procedure, or simply wanting to take better care of their heart.
Professor Peter Barlis draws on extensive interventional cardiology experience to guide patients and families through every stage of the heart stent journey, from understanding why a stent is needed, through to the procedure itself and recovery. Written in plain language with clinical depth, this book fills the gap between what doctors say and what patients need to understand.
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