2024 EACTS guidelines on perioperative medication in adult cardiac surgery: embracing precision medicine driven by strong evidence-based methodology

Guidelines are pivotal for optimal patient management and should be grounded by evidence-based medicine with accurate methodology.1 The European Association of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery has recently released the “2024 EACTS Guidelines on Perioperative Medication in Adult Cardiac Surgery”,2 which address significant novel advancements in the pharmacological management of adult patients undergoing various types of cardiac surgery, including open-heart surgery (coronary and non-coronary) and transcatheter aortic valve implantation. These guidelines comprise several drug classes and provide recommendations on their use, discontinuation and/or (re)introduction at the different phases surrounding elective, urgent or emergent cardiac interventions: early before, during, and after the operation, both short- and long-term. A substantial portion of the document focuses on antithrombotic agents, and several novel aspects and approaches warrant attention....