Book excerpt: We are now entering the third decade of the 21st century and, especially in the last few years, the achievements made by researchers have been exceptional. This rapid development has led to major advancements in the fast-growing field of intensive care cardiovascular medicine. Frontiers have organised a series of Research Topics to highlight the latest advancements in research across the field of cardiovascular medicine. This Research Topic is led by Prof Fabio Guarracino, Specialty Chief Editor of intensive care cardiovascular medicine. Together with Dr Marija Vavlukis, this Research Topic will focus on new insights, novel developments, current challenges, the latest discoveries, and future perspectives.