ESC Guidelines—Contributing to Quality in Clinical Practice

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) has dedicated itself to the publication and dissemination of clinical practice guidelines. This is regarded one of the core products generated within the ESC, and is intended to reflect updated, topic-related clinical evidence, which should be accessible to any physician free of charge. ESC Guidelines are highly visible and are used worldwide. Quality remains the primary feature of each guideline. Regular updates are required for every topic covered. Guidelines assist physicians in decision-making; however, they do not replace individual clinical judgement, and – importantly – guidelines are not meant to be the law. Electronic aids for smartphones to enable use of guidelines actively in a clinical situation, for example score calculators or decision algorithms, are an important innovation and are available free of charge via the App Store, Google Play and Amazon.