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Context: Laboratory studies suggest that in the setting of cardiac ischemia, immediate intravenous glucose-insulin-potassium (GIK) reduces ischemia-related arrhythmias and myocardial injury. Clinical trials have not consistently shown these benefits, possibly due to delayed administration.Objective: To test out-of hospital emergency medical service (EMS) administration of GIK in the first hours of suspected acute coronary syndromes (ACS).Design, Setting, and Participants: Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind effectiveness trial in 13 US cities (36 EMS agencies), from December 2006 through July 31, 2011, in which paramedics, aided by electrocardiograph (ECG)-based decision support, randomized 911 (871 enrolled) patients (mean age, 63.6 years; 71.0% men) with high probability of ACS.Intervention: Intravenous GIK solution (n = 411) or identical-appearing 5% glucose placebo (n = 460) administered by paramedics in the out-of-hospital setting and continued for 12 hours.Main Outcome Measures: The prespecified primary end point was progression of ACS to myocardial infarction (MI) within 24 hours, as assessed by biomarkers and ECG evidence. Prespecified secondary end points included survival at 30 days and a composite of prehospital or in-hospital cardiac arrest or in-hospital mortality, analyzed by intent-to-treat and by presentation with ST-segment elevation.Results: There was no significant difference in the rate of progression to MI among patients who received GIK (n = 200; 48.7%) vs those who received placebo (n = 242; 52.6%) (odds ratio [OR], 0.88; 95% CI, 0.66-1.13; P = .28). Thirty-day mortality was 4.4% with GIK vs 6.1% with placebo (hazard ratio [HR], 0.72; 95% CI, 0.40-1.29; P = .27). The composite of cardiac arrest or in-hospital mortality occurred in 4.4% with GIK vs 8.7% with placebo (OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.27-0.85; P = .01). Among patients with ST-segment elevation (163 with GIK and 194 with placebo), progression to MI was 85.3% with GIK vs 88.7% with placebo (OR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.40-1.38; P = .34); 30-day mortality was 4.9% with GIK vs 7.7% with placebo (HR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.27-1.49; P = .29). The composite outcome of cardiac arrest or in-hospital mortality was 6.1% with GIK vs 14.4% with placebo (OR, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.18-0.82; P = .01). Serious adverse events occurred in 6.8% (n = 28) with GIK vs 8.9% (n = 41) with placebo (P = .26).Conclusions: Among patients with suspected ACS, out-of-hospital administration of intravenous GIK, compared with glucose placebo, did not reduce progression to MI. Compared with placebo, GIK administration was not associated with improvement in 30-day survival but was associated with lower rates of the composite outcome of cardiac arrest or in-hospital mortality.Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00091507. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: In patients with heart failure (HF) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) equal to or greater than 40%, a transcatheter interatrial shunt device (IASD; Corvia Medical) reduces exercise pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) and is safe compared with sham control treatment at 1 month of follow-up. The longer-term safety and patency of the IASD has not yet been demonstrated in the setting of a randomized clinical trial (RCT)., Objective: To evaluate the 1-year safety and clinical outcomes of the IASD compared with a sham control treatment., Design, Setting, and Participants: This phase 2, double-blind, 1-to-1 sham-controlled multicenter RCT of IASD implantation vs a sham procedure (femoral venous access and imaging of the interatrial septum without IASD) was conducted in 22 centers in the United States, Europe, and Australia on patients with New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III or ambulatory class IV HF, LVEF equal to or greater than 40%, exercise PCWP equal to or greater than 25 mm Hg, and PCWP-right atrial pressure gradient equal to or greater than 5 mm Hg., Main Outcomes and Measures: Safety was assessed by major adverse cardiac, cerebrovascular, or renal events (MACCRE). Exploratory outcomes evaluated at 1 year were hospitalizations for HF, NYHA class, quality of life, a 6-minute walk test, and device patency., Results: After 1 year, shunts were patent in all IASD-treated patients; MACCRE did not differ significantly in the IASD arm (2 of 21 [9.5%]) vs the control arm (5 of 22 [22.7%]; P = .41), and no strokes occurred. The yearly rate of hospitalizations for HF was 0.22 in the IASD arm and 0.63 in the control arm (P = .06). Median improvement in NYHA class was 1 class in the IASD arm (IQR, -1 to 0) vs 0 in the control arm (IQR, -1 to 0; P = .08). Quality of life and 6-minute walk test distance were similar in both groups. At 6 months, there was an increase in right ventricular size in the IASD arm (mean [SD], 7.9 [8.0] mL/m2) vs the control arm (-1.8 [9.6] mL/m2; P = .002), consistent with left-to-right shunting through the device; no further increase occurred in the IASD arm at 12 months., Conclusions and Relevance: The REDUCE LAP-HF I phase 2, sham-controlled RCT confirms the longer-term patency of the IASD. Through 1 year of follow-up, IASD treatment appears safe, with no significant differences in MACCRE in patients receiving IASD compared with those who received sham control treatment., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02600234.

Importance: Gamification, the application of game design elements such as points and levels in nongame contexts, is often used in digital health interventions, but evidence on its effectiveness is limited., Objective: To test the effectiveness of a gamification intervention designed using insights from behavioral economics to enhance social incentives within families to increase physical activity., Design, Setting, and Participants: The Behavioral Economics Framingham Incentive Trial (BE FIT) was a randomized clinical trial with a 12-week intervention period and a 12-week follow-up period. The investigation was a community-based study between December 7, 2015, and August 14, 2016. Participants in the modified intent-to-treat analysis were adults enrolled in the Framingham Heart Study, a long-standing cohort of families., Interventions: All participants tracked daily step counts using a wearable device or a smartphone, established a baseline, selected a step goal increase, and received daily individual feedback on goal performance by text message or email for 24 weeks. Families in the gamification arm could earn points and progress through levels based on physical activity goal achievement during the 12-week intervention. The game design was meant to enhance collaboration, accountability, and peer support., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was the proportion of participant-days that step goals were achieved during the intervention period. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of participant-days that step goals were achieved during the follow-up period and the change in the mean daily steps during the intervention and follow-up periods., Results: Among 200 adults comprising 94 families, the mean age was 55.4 years, and 56.0% (n = 112) were female. During the intervention period, participants in the gamification arm achieved step goals on a significantly greater proportion of participant-days (0.53 vs 0.32; adjusted difference, 0.27; 95% CI, 0.20-0.33; P < .001) and had a significantly greater increase in the mean daily steps compared with baseline (1661 vs 636; adjusted difference, 953; 95% CI, 505-1401; P < .001) than the control arm. During the follow-up period, physical activity in the gamification arm declined but remained significantly greater than that in the control arm for the proportion of participant-days achieving step goals (0.44 vs 0.33; adjusted difference, 0.12; 95% CI, 0.05-0.19; P < .001) and the mean daily steps compared with baseline (1385 vs 798; adjusted difference, 494; 95% CI, 170-818; P < .01)., Conclusions and Relevance: Gamification designed to leverage insights from behavioral economics to enhance social incentives significantly increased physical activity among families in the community., Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT02531763.

Importance: Increased ability to quantify anatomical phenotypes across multiple organs provides the opportunity to assess their cumulative ability to identify individuals at greatest susceptibility for adverse outcomes., Objective: To apply unsupervised machine learning to define the distribution and prognostic importance of computed tomography-based multiorgan phenotypes associated with adverse health outcomes., Design, Setting, and Participants: This asymptomatic community-based cohort study included 2924 Framingham Heart Study participants between July 2002 and April 2005 undergoing computed tomographic imaging of the chest and abdomen. Participants are from the offspring and third-generation cohorts., Exposures: Eleven computed tomography-based measures of valvular/vascular calcification, adiposity, and muscle attenuation., Main Outcomes and Measures: All-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (myocardial infarction, stroke, or cardiovascular death)., Results: The median age of the participants was 50 years (interquartile range, 43-60 years), and 1422 (48.6%) were men. Principal component analysis identified 3 major anatomic axes: (1) global calcification (defined by aortic, thoracic, coronary, and valvular calcification); (2) adiposity (defined by pericardial, visceral, hepatic, and intrathoracic fat); and (3) muscle attenuation that explained 65.7% of the population variation. Principal components showed different evolution with age (continuous increase in global calcification, decrease in muscle attenuation, and U-shaped association with adiposity) but similar patterns in men and women. Using unsupervised clustering approaches in the offspring cohort (n = 1150), we identified a cohort (n = 232; 20.2%) with an unfavorable multiorgan phenotype across all 3 anatomic axes as compared with a favorable multiorgan phenotype. Membership in the unfavorable phenotypic cluster was associated with a greater prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk factors and with increased all-cause mortality (hazard ratio, 2.61; 95% CI, 1.74-3.92; P < .001), independent of coronary artery calcium score, visceral adipose tissue, and 10-year global cardiovascular disease Framingham risk, and it provided improvement in metrics of discrimination and reclassification., Conclusions and Relevance: This proof-of-concept analysis demonstrates that unsupervised machine learning, in an asymptomatic community cohort, identifies an unfavorable multiorgan phenotype associated with adverse health outcomes, especially in elderly American adults. Future investigations in larger populations are required not only to validate the present results, but also to harness clinical, biochemical, imaging, and genetic markers to increase our understanding of healthy cardiovascular aging.

Importance: Besides age, other discriminators of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk are needed in older adults., Objectives: To examine the predictive ability of coronary artery calcium (CAC) score vs age for incident ASCVD and how risk prediction changes by adding CAC score and removing only age from prediction models., Design, Setting, and Participants: We conducted an analysis of pooled US population-based studies, including the Framingham Heart Study, the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, and the Cardiovascular Health Study. Results were compared with 2 European cohorts, the Rotterdam Study and the Heinz Nixdorf Recall Study. Participants underwent CAC scoring between 1998 and 2006 using cardiac computed tomography. The participants included adults older than 60 years without known ASCVD at baseline., Exposures: Coronary artery calcium scores., Main Outcomes and Measures: Incident ASCVD events including coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke., Results: The study included 4778 participants from 3 US cohorts, with a mean age of 70.1 years; 2582 (54.0%) were women, and 2431 (50.9%) were nonwhite. Over 11 years of follow-up (44 152 person-years), 405 CHD and 228 stroke events occurred. Coronary artery calcium score (vs age) had a greater association with incident CHD (C statistic, 0.733 vs 0.690; C statistics difference, 0.043; 95% CI of difference, 0.009-0.075) and modestly improved prediction of incident stroke (C statistic, 0.695 vs 0.670; C statistics difference, 0.025; 95% CI of difference, -0.015 to 0.064). Adding CAC score to models including traditional cardiovascular risk factors, with only age being removed, provided improved discrimination for incident CHD (C statistic, 0.735 vs 0.703; C statistics difference, 0.032; 95% CI of difference, 0.002-0.062) but not for stroke. Coronary artery calcium score was more likely than age to provide higher category-free net reclassification improvement among participants who experienced an ASCVD event (0.390; 95% CI, 0.312-0.467 vs 0.08; 95% CI -0.001 to 0.181) and to result in more accurate reclassification of risk for ASCVD events among these individuals. The findings were similar in the 2 European cohorts (n = 4990)., Conclusions and Relevance: Coronary artery calcium may be an alternative marker besides age to better discriminate between lower and higher CHD risk in older adults. Whether CAC score can assist in guiding the decision to initiate statin treatment for primary prevention in older adults requires further investigation.

Importance: Early cardiovascular and bleeding events after coronary stenting are associated with high risk of morbidity and mortality., Objective: To assess the prognosis of cardiovascular and bleeding events occurring beyond 1 year after coronary stenting., Design, Setting, and Participants: This secondary analysis is derived from data from the Dual Antiplatelet Therapy (DAPT) Study, a multicenter trial involving 220 US and international clinical sites from 11 countries. The study dates were August 2009 to May 2014. Individuals who underwent coronary stenting and completed 12 months of thienopyridine plus aspirin therapy without ischemic or bleeding events remained on an aspirin regimen and were randomized to continued thienopyridine therapy vs placebo for 18 additional months. Individuals were then followed up for 3 additional months while receiving aspirin therapy alone. The analysis began in August 2015., Exposures: Ischemic events (myocardial infarction not related to stent thrombosis, stent thrombosis, and ischemic stroke) and bleeding events (Global Utilization of Streptokinase and Tissue Plasminogen Activator for Occluded Arteries [GUSTO] classification moderate or severe bleeding)., Main Outcomes and Measures: Ischemic events (myocardial infarction not related to stent thrombosis, stent thrombosis, and ischemic stroke) and bleeding events (GUSTO classification moderate or severe bleeding). Death at 21 months after randomization (33 months after coronary stenting)., Results: In total, 25 682 individuals older than 18 years with an indication for coronary stenting were enrolled, and 11 648 (mean age, 61.3 years; 25.1% female) were randomized. After randomization, 478 individuals (4.1%) had 502 ischemic events (306 with myocardial infarction, 113 with stent thrombosis, and 83 with ischemic stroke), and 232 individuals (2.0%) had 235 bleeding events (155 with moderate and 80 with severe bleeding). Among individuals with ischemic events, 52 (10.9%) died. The annualized mortality rate after an ischemic event was 27.2 (95% CI, 20.3-35.7) per 100 person-years. The cumulative incidence of death after an ischemic event among the total randomized study population was 0.5% (0.3% with myocardial infarction, 0.1% with stent thrombosis, and 0.1% with ischemic stroke). Among individuals with bleeding events, 41 (17.7%) died. The annualized mortality rate after a bleeding event was 21.5 (95% CI, 15.4-29.1) per 100 person-years. The cumulative incidence of death after a bleeding event among the total randomized study population was 0.3% (0.1% with moderate and 0.2% with severe bleeding)., Conclusions and Relevance: In patients treated with dual antiplatelet therapy for at least 1 year after coronary stenting, ischemic events were more frequent than bleeding events, and both events were associated with high risk of mortality., Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00977938.

Importance: The role of coronary artery calcium (CAC) testing for guiding preventive strategies among women at low cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk based on the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association CVD prevention guidelines is unclear., Objective: To assess the potential utility of CAC testing for CVD risk estimation and stratification among low-risk women., Design, Setting, and Participants: Women with 10-year atherosclerotic CVD (ASCVD) risk lower than 7.5% from 5 large population-based cohorts: the Dallas Heart Study (United States), the Framingham Heart Study (United States), the Heinz Nixdorf Recall study (Germany), the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (United States), and the Rotterdam Study (the Netherlands). The 5 cohorts were selected based on the availability of CAC data in a sizable group of low-risk women from the general population together with the long detailed follow-up data. Across the cohorts, events were assessed from the date of CAC scan (performed from 1998 through 2006) until January 1, 2012; January 1, 2014; or March 6, 2015. Fixed-effects meta-analysis was conducted to combine the results of the 5 studies., Exposures: CAC score by computed tomography., Main Outcomes and Measures: Main outcome was incident ASCVD, including nonfatal myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease (CHD) death, and stroke. Association of CAC with ASCVD was examined using Cox proportional hazards models. To assess whether CAC was associated with improved ASCVD risk predictions beyond the traditional risk factors, the C statistic and the continuous net reclassification improvement (cNRI) index were calculated., Results: Among 6739 women with low ASCVD risk from the 5 studies, mean age ranged from 44 to 63 years and CAC was present in 36.1%. Across the cohorts, median follow-up ranged from 7.0 to 11.6 years. A total of 165 ASCVD events occurred (64 nonfatal myocardial infarctions, 29 CHD deaths, and 72 strokes), with the ASCVD incidence rates ranging from 1.5 to 6.0 per 1000 person-years. Compared with the absence of CAC (CAC = 0), presence of CAC (CAC >0) was associated with an increased risk of ASCVD (incidence rates per 1000 person-years, 1.41 for CAC absence vs 4.33 for CAC presence; difference, 2.92 [95% CI, 2.02-3.83]; multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio, 2.04 [95% CI, 1.44-2.90]). The addition of CAC to traditional risk factors improved the C statistic from 0.73 (95% CI, 0.69-0.77) to 0.77 (95% CI, 0.74-0.81) and provided a cNRI of 0.20 (95% CI, 0.09-0.31) for ASCVD prediction., Conclusions and Relevance: Among women at low ASCVD risk, CAC was present in approximately one-third and was associated with an increased risk of ASCVD and modest improvement in prognostic accuracy compared with traditional risk factors. Further research is needed to assess the clinical utility and cost-effectiveness of this additional accuracy.

Importance: Dual antiplatelet therapy after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) reduces ischemia but increases bleeding., Objective: To develop a clinical decision tool to identify patients expected to derive benefit vs harm from continuing thienopyridine beyond 1 year after PCI., Design, Setting, and Participants: Among 11,648 randomized DAPT Study patients from 11 countries (August 2009-May 2014), a prediction rule was derived stratifying patients into groups to distinguish ischemic and bleeding risk 12 to 30 months after PCI. Validation was internal via bootstrap resampling and external among 8136 patients from 36 countries randomized in the PROTECT trial (June 2007-July 2014)., Exposures: Twelve months of open-label thienopyridine plus aspirin, then randomized to 18 months of continued thienopyridine plus aspirin vs placebo plus aspirin., Main Outcomes and Measures: Ischemia (myocardial infarction or stent thrombosis) and bleeding (moderate or severe) 12 to 30 months after PCI., Results: Among DAPT Study patients (derivation cohort; mean age, 61.3 years; women, 25.1%), ischemia occurred in 348 patients (3.0%) and bleeding in 215 (1.8%). Derivation cohort models predicting ischemia and bleeding had c statistics of 0.70 and 0.68, respectively. The prediction rule assigned 1 point each for myocardial infarction at presentation, prior myocardial infarction or PCI, diabetes, stent diameter less than 3 mm, smoking, and paclitaxel-eluting stent; 2 points each for history of congestive heart failure/low ejection fraction and vein graft intervention; -1 point for age 65 to younger than 75 years; and -2 points for age 75 years or older. Among the high score group (score ≥2, n = 5917), continued thienopyridine vs placebo was associated with reduced ischemic events (2.7% vs 5.7%; risk difference [RD], -3.0% [95% CI, -4.1% to -2.0%], P < .001) compared with the low score group (score <2, n = 5731; 1.7% vs 2.3%; RD, -0.7% [95% CI, -1.4% to 0.09%], P = .07; interaction P < .001). Conversely, continued thienopyridine was associated with smaller increases in bleeding among the high score group (1.8% vs 1.4%; RD, 0.4% [95% CI, -0.3% to 1.0%], P = .26) compared with the low score group (3.0% vs 1.4%; RD, 1.5% [95% CI, 0.8% to 2.3%], P < .001; interaction P = .02). Among PROTECT patients (validation cohort; mean age, 62 years; women, 23.7%), ischemia occurred in 79 patients (1.0%) and bleeding in 37 (0.5%), with a c statistic of 0.64 for ischemia and 0.64 for bleeding. In this cohort, the high-score patients (n = 2848) had increased ischemic events compared with the low-score patients and no significant difference in bleeding., Conclusion and Relevance: Among patients not sustaining major bleeding or ischemic events 1 year after PCI, a prediction rule assessing late ischemic and bleeding risks to inform dual antiplatelet therapy duration showed modest accuracy in derivation and validation cohorts. This rule requires further prospective evaluation to assess potential effects on patient care, as well as validation in other cohorts., Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00977938.

Importance: Delay in administration of the first epinephrine dose is associated with decreased survival among adults after in-hospital, nonshockable cardiac arrest. Whether this association is true in the pediatric in-hospital cardiac arrest population remains unknown., Objective: To determine whether time to first epinephrine dose is associated with outcomes in pediatric in-hospital cardiac arrest., Design, Setting and Participants: We performed an analysis of data from the Get With the Guidelines-Resuscitation registry. We included US pediatric patients (age <18 years) with an in-hospital cardiac arrest and an initial nonshockable rhythm who received at least 1 dose of epinephrine. A total of 1558 patients (median age, 9 months [interquartile range [IQR], 13 days-5 years]) were included in the final cohort., Exposure: Time to epinephrine, defined as time in minutes from recognition of loss of pulse to the first dose of epinephrine., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge. Secondary outcomes included return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), survival at 24 hours, and neurological outcome. A favorable neurological outcome was defined as a score of 1 to 2 on the Pediatric Cerebral Performance Category scale., Results: Among the 1558 patients, 487 (31.3%) survived to hospital discharge. The median time to first epinephrine dose was 1 minute (IQR, 0-4; range, 0-20; mean [SD], 2.6 [3.4] minutes). Longer time to epinephrine administration was associated with lower risk of survival to discharge in multivariable analysis (multivariable-adjusted risk ratio [RR] per minute delay, 0.95 [95% CI, 0.93-0.98]). Longer time to epinephrine administration was also associated with decreased risk of ROSC (multivariable-adjusted RR per minute delay, 0.97 [95% CI, 0.96-0.99]), decreased risk of survival at 24 hours (multivariable-adjusted RR per minute delay, 0.97 [95% CI, 0.95-0.99]), and decreased risk of survival with favorable neurological outcome (multivariable-adjusted RR per minute delay, 0.95 [95% CI, 0.91-0.99]). Patients with time to epinephrine administration of longer than 5 minutes (233/1558) compared with those with time to epinephrine of 5 minutes or less (1325/1558) had lower risk of in-hospital survival to discharge (21.0% [49/233] vs 33.1% [438/1325]; multivariable-adjusted RR, 0.75 [95% CI, 0.60-0.93]; P = .01)., Conclusions and Relevance: Among children with in-hospital cardiac arrest with an initial nonshockable rhythm who received epinephrine, delay in administration of epinephrine was associated with decreased chance of survival to hospital discharge, ROSC, 24-hour survival, and survival to hospital discharge with a favorable neurological outcome.

Importance: The 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guidelines for cholesterol management defined new eligibility criteria for statin therapy. However, it is unclear whether this approach improves identification of adults at higher risk of cardiovascular events., Objective: To determine whether the ACC/AHA guidelines improve identification of individuals who develop incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) and/or have coronary artery calcification (CAC) compared with the National Cholesterol Education Program's 2004 Updated Third Report of the Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (ATP III) guidelines., Design, Setting, and Participants: Longitudinal community-based cohort study, with participants for this investigation drawn from the offspring and third-generation cohorts of the Framingham Heart Study. Participants underwent multidetector computed tomography for CAC between 2002 and 2005 and were followed up for a median of 9.4 years for incident CVD., Exposures: Statin eligibility was determined based on Framingham risk factors and low-density lipoprotein thresholds for ATP III, whereas the pooled cohort calculator was used for ACC/AHA., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was incident CVD (myocardial infarction, death due to coronary heart disease [CHD], or ischemic stroke). Secondary outcomes were CHD and CAC (as measured by the Agatston score)., Results: Among 2435 statin-naive participants (mean age, 51.3 [SD, 8.6] years; 56% female), 39% (941/2435) were statin eligible by ACC/AHA compared with 14% (348/2435) by ATP III (P < .001). There were 74 incident CVD events (40 nonfatal myocardial infarctions, 31 nonfatal ischemic strokes, and 3 fatal CHD events). Participants who were statin eligible by ACC/AHA had increased hazard ratios for incident CVD compared with those eligible by ATP III: 6.8 (95% CI, 3.8-11.9) vs 3.1 (95% CI, 1.9-5.0), respectively (P<.001). Similar results were seen for CVD in participants with intermediate Framingham Risk Scores and for CHD. Participants who were newly statin eligible (n = 593 [24%]) had an incident CVD rate of 5.7%, yielding a number needed to treat of 39 to 58. Participants with CAC were more likely to be statin eligible by ACC/AHA than by ATP III: CAC score >0 (n = 1015): 63% vs 23%; CAC score >100 (n = 376): 80% vs 32%; and CAC score >300 (n = 186): 85% vs 34% (all P < .001). A CAC score of 0 identified a low-risk group among ACC/AHA statin-eligible participants (306/941 [33%]) with a CVD rate of 1.6%., Conclusions and Relevance: In this community-based primary prevention cohort, the ACC/AHA guidelines for determining statin eligibility, compared with the ATP III, were associated with greater accuracy and efficiency in identifying increased risk of incident CVD and subclinical coronary artery disease, particularly in intermediate-risk participants.

Importance: Despite antirestenotic efficacy of coronary drug-eluting stents (DES) compared with bare metal stents (BMS), the relative risk of stent thrombosis and adverse cardiovascular events is unclear. Although dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) beyond 1 year provides ischemic event protection after DES, ischemic event risk is perceived to be less after BMS, and the appropriate duration of DAPT after BMS is unknown., Objective: To compare (1) rates of stent thrombosis and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE; composite of death, myocardial infarction, or stroke) after 30 vs 12 months of thienopyridine in patients treated with BMS taking aspirin and (2) treatment duration effect within the combined cohorts of randomized patients treated with DES or BMS as prespecified secondary analyses., Design, Setting, and Participants: International, multicenter, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial comparing extended (30-months) thienopyridine vs placebo in patients taking aspirin who completed 12 months of DAPT without bleeding or ischemic events after receiving stents. The study was initiated in August 2009 with the last follow-up visit in May 2014., Interventions: Continued thienopyridine or placebo at months 12 through 30 after stent placement, in 11,648 randomized patients treated with aspirin, of whom 1687 received BMS and 9961 DES., Main Outcomes and Measures: Stent thrombosis, MACCE, and moderate or severe bleeding., Results: Among 1687 patients treated with BMS who were randomized to continued thienopyridine vs placebo, rates of stent thrombosis were 0.5% vs 1.11% (n = 4 vs 9; hazard ratio [HR], 0.49; 95% CI, 0.15-1.64; P = .24), rates of MACCE were 4.04% vs 4.69% (n = 33 vs 38; HR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.57-1.47; P = .72), and rates of moderate/severe bleeding were 2.03% vs 0.90% (n = 16 vs 7; P = .07), respectively. Among all 11,648 randomized patients (both BMS and DES), stent thrombosis rates were 0.41% vs 1.32% (n = 23 vs 74; HR, 0.31; 95% CI, 0.19-0.50; P < .001), rates of MACCE were 4.29% vs 5.74% (n = 244 vs 323; HR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.62-0.87; P < .001), and rates of moderate/severe bleeding were 2.45% vs 1.47% (n = 135 vs 80; P < .001)., Conclusions and Relevance: Among patients undergoing coronary stent placement with BMS and who tolerated 12 months of thienopyridine, continuing thienopyridine for an additional 18 months compared with placebo did not result in statistically significant differences in rates of stent thrombosis, MACCE, or moderate or severe bleeding. However, the BMS subset may have been underpowered to identify such differences, and further trials are suggested., Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00977938.

Context: Clinicians and trialists have difficulty with identifying which patients are highest risk for cardiovascular events. Prior ischemic events, polyvascular disease, and diabetes mellitus have all been identified as predictors of ischemic events, but their comparative contributions to future risk remain unclear., Objective: To categorize the risk of cardiovascular events in stable outpatients with various initial manifestations of atherothrombosis using simple clinical descriptors., Design, Setting, and Patients: Outpatients with coronary artery disease, cerebrovascular disease, or peripheral arterial disease or with multiple risk factors for atherothrombosis were enrolled in the global Reduction of Atherothrombosis for Continued Health (REACH) Registry and were followed up for as long as 4 years. Patients from 3647 centers in 29 countries were enrolled between 2003 and 2004 and followed up until 2008. Final database lock was in April 2009., Main Outcome Measures: Rates of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and stroke., Results: A total of 45,227 patients with baseline data were included in this 4-year analysis. During the follow-up period, a total of 5481 patients experienced at least 1 event, including 2315 with cardiovascular death, 1228 with myocardial infarction, 1898 with stroke, and 40 with both a myocardial infarction and stroke on the same day. Among patients with atherothrombosis, those with a prior history of ischemic events at baseline (n = 21,890) had the highest rate of subsequent ischemic events (18.3%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 17.4%-19.1%); patients with stable coronary, cerebrovascular, or peripheral artery disease (n = 15,264) had a lower risk (12.2%; 95% CI, 11.4%-12.9%); and patients without established atherothrombosis but with risk factors only (n = 8073) had the lowest risk (9.1%; 95% CI, 8.3%-9.9%) (P < .001 for all comparisons). In addition, in multivariable modeling, the presence of diabetes (hazard ratio [HR], 1.44; 95% CI, 1.36-1.53; P < .001), an ischemic event in the previous year (HR, 1.71; 95% CI, 1.57-1.85; P < .001), and polyvascular disease (HR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.78-2.24; P < .001) each were associated with a significantly higher risk of the primary end point., Conclusion: Clinical descriptors can assist clinicians in identifying high-risk patients within the broad range of risk for outpatients with atherothrombosis.

Context: Prior risk stratification schemes for atrial fibrillation (AF) have been based on randomized trial cohorts or Medicare administrative databases, have included patients with established AF, and have focused on stroke as the principal outcome., Objective: To derive risk scores for stroke alone and stroke or death in community-based individuals with new-onset AF., Design, Setting, and Participants: Prospective, community-based, observational cohort in Framingham, Mass. We identified 868 participants with new-onset AF, 705 of whom were not treated with warfarin at baseline. Risk scores for stroke (ischemic or hemorrhagic) and stroke or death were developed with censoring when warfarin initiation occurred during follow-up. Event rates were examined in low-risk individuals, as defined by the risk score and 4 previously published risk schemes., Main Outcome Measures: Stroke and the combination of stroke or death., Results: During a mean follow-up of 4.0 years free of warfarin use, stroke alone occurred in 83 participants and stroke or death occurred in 382 participants. A risk score for stroke was derived that included the following risk predictors: advancing age, female sex, increasing systolic blood pressure, prior stroke or transient ischemic attack, and diabetes. With the risk score, 14.3% of the cohort had a predicted 5-year stroke rate < or =7.5% (average annual rate < or =1.5%), and 30.6% of the cohort had a predicted 5-year stroke rate < or =10% (average annual rate < or =2%). Actual stroke rates in these low-risk groups were 1.1 and 1.5 per 100 person-years, respectively. Previous risk schemes classified 6.4% to 17.3% of subjects as low risk, with actual stroke rates of 0.9 to 2.3 per 100 person-years. A risk score for stroke or death is also presented., Conclusion: These risk scores can be used to estimate the absolute risk of an adverse event in individuals with AF, which may be helpful in counseling patients and making treatment decisions.