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Background: Hypertension is the most prevalent cardiovascular risk factor, with several detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system. Contrasting results have been reported so far on its prognostic role in patients admitted for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Therefore, we investigated the impact of hypertension on short-term mortality in a large multicenter contemporary registry of STEMI patients, including patients treated during COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: The ISACS-STEMI COVID-19 was a retrospective registry that included STEMI patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between March and June of 2019 and 2020 in 109 high-volume primary PCI centers from 4 continents. We collected data on baseline, clinical and procedural characteristics, in-hospital outcome and 30-day mortality. For this analysis patients were grouped according to history of hypertension at admission., Results: A total of 16083 patients were assessed, including 8813 (54.8%) with history of hypertension. These patients were more often elderly, with a worse cardiovascular risk profile, but were less frequently active smoker. Some procedural differences were observed between the two groups, including lower rate of thrombectomy and use of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors or cangrelor but more extensive coronary disease in patients with hypertension. Between patients with and without hypertension, there was no significant difference in SARS-CoV-2 positivity. Hypertensive patients had a significantly higher in-hospital and 30-day mortality, similarly observed in both pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 era, and confirmed after adjustment for main baseline differences and propensity score (in-hospital mortality: adjusted odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] =1.673 [1.389-2.014], P < 0.001; 30-day mortality: adjusted hazard ratio (HR) [95% CI] = 1.418 [1.230-1.636], P < 0.001)., Conclusion: This is one of the largest and contemporary study assessing the impact of hypertension in STEMI patients undergoing primary angioplasty, including also the COVID-19 pandemic period. Hypertension was independently associated with significantly higher rates of in-hospital and 30-day mortality., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging is a valuable tool for complex coronary interventions. While complications are rare, the occurrence of ventricular arrhythmias during its use is one of the most feared. Unfortunately, the mechanism by which these arrhythmias arise remains unclear. We describe the case of a patient under continuous electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring who experienced ventricular fibrillation during an OCT procedure. A detailed analysis of the ECG event sequence was performed, from the administration of the contrast medium to the onset of ventricular fibrillation. Utilizing the collected data, we examined potential precipitating factors based on the observed alterations in the electrocardiogram. A comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms underlying these arrhythmias is crucial for the development of preventive measures that avoid such incidents in the future.

Introduction and Objectives: This article presents the annual activity report of the Interventional Cardiology Association of the Spanish Society of Cardiology (ACI-SEC) for the year 2022., Methods: All Spanish centers with catheterization laboratories were invited to participate. Data were collected online and were analyzed by an external company in collaboration with the members of the board of the ACI-SEC., Results: A total of 111 centers participated. The number of diagnostic studies increased by 4.8% compared with 2021, while that of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) remained stable. PCIs on the left main coronary artery increased by 22%. The radial approach continued to be preferred for PCI (94.9%). There was an upsurge in the use of drug-eluting balloons, as well as in intracoronary imaging techniques, which were used in 14.7% of PCIs. The use of pressure wires also increased (6.3% vs 2021) as did plaque modification techniques. Primary PCI continued to grow and was the most frequent treatment (97%) in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Most noncoronary procedures maintained their upward trend, particularly percutaneous aortic valve implantation, atrial appendage closure, mitral/tricuspid edge-to-edge therapy, renal denervation, and percutaneous treatment of pulmonary arterial disease., Conclusions: The Spanish cardiac catheterization and coronary intervention registry for 2022 reveals a rise in the complexity of coronary disease, along with a notable growth in procedures for valvular and nonvalvular structural heart disease., (Copyright © 2023 Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

SARS-Cov-2 has been suggested to promote thrombotic complications and higher mortality. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the impact of SARS-CoV-2 positivity on in-hospital outcome and 30-day mortality in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) enrolled in the International Survey on Acute Coronary Syndromes ST-segment elevation Myocardial Infarction (ISACS-STEMI COVID-19 registry. The 109 SARS-CoV-2 positive patients were compared with 2005 SARS-CoV-2 negative patients. Positive patients were older ( P = .002), less often active smokers ( P = .002), and hypercholesterolemic ( P = .006), they presented more often later than 12 h ( P = .037), more often to the hub and were more often in cardiogenic shock ( P = .02), or requiring rescue percutaneous coronary intervention after failed thrombolysis (P < .0001). Lower postprocedural Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction 3 flow ( P = .029) and more thrombectomy ( P = .046) were observed. SARS-CoV-2 was associated with a significantly higher in-hospital mortality (25.7 vs 7%, adjusted Odds Ratio (OR) [95% Confidence Interval] = 3.2 [1.71-5.99], P < .001) in-hospital definite in-stent thrombosis (6.4 vs 1.1%, adjusted Odds Ratio [95% CI] = 6.26 [2.41-16.25], P < .001) and 30-day mortality (34.4 vs 8.5%, adjusted Hazard Ratio [95% CI] = 2.16 [1.45-3.23], P < .001), confirming that SARS-CoV-2 positivity is associated with impaired reperfusion, with negative prognostic consequences., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Background: The constraints in the management of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) during the COVID-19 pandemic have been suggested to have severely impacted mortality levels. The aim of the current analysis is to evaluate the age-related effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mechanical reperfusion and 30-day mortality for STEMI within the registry ISACS-STEMI COVID-19., Methods: This retrospective multicenter registry was performed in high-volume PPCI centers on four continents and included STEMI patients undergoing PPCI in March-June 2019 and 2020. Patients were divided according to age (< or ≥75 years). The main outcomes were the incidence and timing of PPCI, (ischemia time longer than 12 h and door-to-balloon longer than 30 min), and in-hospital or 30-day mortality., Results: We included 16,683 patients undergoing PPCI in 109 centers. In 2020, during the pandemic, there was a significant reduction in PPCI as compared to 2019 (IRR 0.843 (95%-CI: 0.825-0.861, p < 0.0001). We found a significant age-related reduction (7%, p = 0.015), with a larger effect on elderly than on younger patients. Furthermore, we observed significantly higher 30-day mortality during the pandemic period, especially among the elderly (13.6% vs. 17.9%, adjusted HR (95% CI) = 1.55 [1.24-1.93], p < 0.001) as compared to younger patients (4.8% vs. 5.7%; adjusted HR (95% CI) = 1.25 [1.05-1.49], p = 0.013), as a potential consequence of the significantly longer ischemia time observed during the pandemic., Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the treatment of patients with STEMI, with a 16% reduction in PPCI procedures, with a larger reduction and a longer delay to treatment among elderly patients, which may have contributed to increase in-hospital and 30-day mortality during the pandemic.

Background: Several reports have demonstrated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management and outcome of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). The aim of the current analysis is to investigate the potential gender difference in the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mechanical reperfusion and 30-day mortality for STEMI patients within the ISACS-STEMI COVID-19 Registry., Methods: This retrospective multicenter registry was performed in high-volume primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) centers on four continents and included STEMI patients undergoing PPCIs in March-June 2019 and 2020. Patients were divided according to gender. The main outcomes were the incidence and timing of the PPCI, (ischemia time ≥ 12 h and door-to-balloon ≥ 30 min) and in-hospital or 30-day mortality., Results: We included 16683 STEMI patients undergoing PPCIs in 109 centers. In 2020 during the pandemic, there was a significant reduction in PPCIs compared to 2019 (IRR 0.843 (95% CI: 0.825-0.861, p < 0.0001). We did not find a significant gender difference in the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the numbers of STEMI patients, which were similarly reduced from 2019 to 2020 in both groups, or in the mortality rates. Compared to prepandemia, 30-day mortality was significantly higher during the pandemic period among female (12.1% vs. 8.7%; adjusted HR [95% CI] = 1.66 [1.31-2.11], p < 0.001) but not male patients (5.8% vs. 6.7%; adjusted HR [95% CI] = 1.14 [0.96-1.34], p = 0.12)., Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the treatment of patients with STEMI, with a 16% reduction in PPCI procedures similarly observed in both genders. Furthermore, we observed significantly increased in-hospital and 30-day mortality rates during the pandemic only among females. Trial registration number: NCT 04412655.

Background: Infective endocarditis (IE) is a feared complication after surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR)/transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). It is not certain which procedure carries a higher risk. Our aim was to assess the risk of IE after SAVR/TAVI. Methods: We conducted an observational study of a prospective cohort, including patients with TAVI/SAVR, from March 2015 to December 2020. IE was defined according to the modified Duke’s criteria. IE occurring during the first 12 months of the procedure was considered early IE, and an episode occurring after 12 months was considered late IE. The propensity score was designed to include variables previously associated with TAVI/SAVR and IE. An inverse probability of treatment weight was generated. Results: In total, 355 SAVR and 278 TAVI were included. Median follow-up, 38 vs. 41 months, p = 0.550. IE occurred in 5 SAVR (1.41%, 95% CI 0.2−2.6) vs. 13 TAVI (4.65%, 95% CI 2.2−7.2), p = 0.016. TAVI patients had more frequent early IE (3.2% vs. 0.3%, p = 0.006). In the PS analyses, IE risk did not differ: OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.32−1.32. Factors associated with TAVI IE included younger age (74y vs. 83y, p = 0.030), complicated diabetes mellitus (38.5% vs. 6.8%, p = 0.002), COPD (46.2% vs. 16.3%, p = 0.015), advanced heart failure (100% vs. 52.9%, p < 0.001), and peripheral arteriopathy (61.5% vs. 26.7%, p = 0.011). Conclusions: Early IE was higher with TAVI, but in the PS analyses, the risk attributable to each procedure was similar. Studies are needed to identify and optimize the risk factors of IE prior to TAVI.

Background: Coronary endothelial dysfunction and vasospasm are potential causes of ischemia in patients without obstructive coronary stenoses (INOCA)., Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of endothelial dysfunction and the clinical profile of patients with INOCA in Spain, as well as to identify the predictors and the prognostic impact of endothelial dysfunction in this scenario., Methods: A total of 438 consecutive patients with INOCA in whom the acetylcholine test was performed were prospectively enrolled. Patients were followed up at 1 and 2 years., Results: Mean age was 62 ± 11 years with 60% female. Clinical presentation comprised 52.6% angina at rest, 61.2% exertional angina, and 31.7% dyspnea. There were no major complications of the acetylcholine test. Endothelial dysfunction was observed in 198 (45%) of patients, with severe vasoconstriction (defined as over 70% constriction), being observed in 101 (23%). Multivariable regression analysis showed that endothelial dysfunction was predicted by the presence of exertional angina (OR 2.2; CI95%1.01-2.55; p = 0.02), prior coronary disease (OR 2.46; CI95% 1.57-3.89; p < 0.01), and coronary intramyocardial bridging (2.35; CI95% 1.02-5.60; p = 0.04). Patients with endothelial dysfunction presented with worsening angina compared to those without endothelial dysfunction (25.6% vs. 12.8%) and also presented with increased levels of minimal effort angina (40% vs. 26,7%, p = 0.03) more frequently during the follow up than those without endothelial dysfunction. Endothelial dysfunction was also an independent predictor of the occurrence of myocardial infarction or unstable angina at one year (OR 2.85, CI 95% 1.01-9.25; p = 0.03)., Conclusions: Endothelial dysfunction is present in almost half of patients with INOCA and is associated with worsening symptoms, as well as with a higher rate of adverse events., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The so-called “smoking paradox”, conditioning lower mortality in smokers among STEMI patients, has seldom been addressed in the settings of modern primary PCI protocols. The ISACS−STEMI COVID-19 is a large-scale retrospective multicenter registry addressing in-hospital mortality, reperfusion, and 30-day mortality among primary PCI patients in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the 16,083 STEMI patients, 6819 (42.3%) patients were active smokers, 2099 (13.1%) previous smokers, and 7165 (44.6%) non-smokers. Despite the impaired preprocedural recanalization (p < 0.001), active smokers had a significantly better postprocedural TIMI flow compared with non-smokers (p < 0.001); this was confirmed after adjustment for all baseline and procedural confounders, and the propensity score. Active smokers had a significantly lower in-hospital (p < 0.001) and 30-day (p < 0.001) mortality compared with non-smokers and previous smokers; this was confirmed after adjustment for all baseline and procedural confounders, and the propensity score. In conclusion, in our population, active smoking was significantly associated with improved epicardial recanalization and lower in-hospital and 30-day mortality compared with previous and non-smoking history.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is projected to become the third cause of mortality worldwide. COPD shares several pathophysiological mechanisms with cardiovascular disease, especially atherosclerosis. However, no definite answers are available on the prognostic role of COPD in the setting of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), especially during COVID-19 pandemic, among patients undergoing primary angioplasty, that is therefore the aim of the current study., Methods: In the ISACS-STEMI COVID-19 registry we included retrospectively patients with STEMI treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between March and June of 2019 and 2020 from 109 high-volume primary PCI centers in 4 continents., Results: A total of 15,686 patients were included in this analysis. Of them, 810 (5.2%) subjects had a COPD diagnosis. They were more often elderly and with a more pronounced cardiovascular risk profile. No preminent procedural dissimilarities were noticed except for a lower proportion of dual antiplatelet therapy at discharge among COPD patients (98.9% vs. 98.1%, P = 0.038). With regards to short-term fatal outcomes, both in-hospital and 30-days mortality occurred more frequently among COPD patients, similarly in pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 era. However, after adjustment for main baseline differences, COPD did not result as independent predictor for in-hospital death (adjusted OR [95% CI] = 0.913[0.658-1.266], P = 0.585) nor for 30-days mortality (adjusted OR [95% CI] = 0.850 [0.620-1.164], P = 0.310). No significant differences were detected in terms of SARS-CoV-2 positivity between the two groups., Conclusion: This is one of the largest studies investigating characteristics and outcome of COPD patients with STEMI undergoing primary angioplasty, especially during COVID pandemic. COPD was associated with significantly higher rates of in-hospital and 30-days mortality. However, this association disappeared after adjustment for baseline characteristics. Furthermore, COPD did not significantly affect SARS-CoV-2 positivity., Trial Registration Number: NCT04412655 (2nd June 2020)., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Morbidly obese (MO) patients are increasingly undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) for severe aortic stenosis (AS). However, the best therapeutic strategy for these patients remains a matter for debate., Aims: Our aim was to compare the periprocedural and mid-term outcomes in MO patients undergoing TAVR versus SAVR., Methods: A multicentre retrospective study including consecutive MO patients (body mass index ≥40 kg/m 2 , or ≥35 kg/m 2 with obesity-related comorbidities) from 18 centres undergoing either TAVR (n=860) or biological SAVR (n=696) for severe AS was performed. Propensity score matching resulted in 362 pairs., Results: After matching, periprocedural complications, including blood transfusion (14.1% versus 48.1%; p<0.001), stage 2-3 acute kidney injury (3.99% versus 10.1%; p=0.002), hospital-acquired pneumonia (1.7% versus 5.8%; p=0.005) and access site infection (1.5% versus 5.5%; p=0.013), were more common in the SAVR group, as was moderate to severe patient-prosthesis mismatch (PPM; 9.9% versus 39.4%; p<0.001). TAVR patients more frequently required permanent pacemaker implantation (14.4% versus 5.6%; p<0.001) and had higher rates of ≥moderate residual aortic regurgitation (3.3% versus 0%; p=0.001). SAVR was an independent predictor of moderate to severe PPM (hazard ratio [HR] 1.80, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.25-2.59; p=0.002), while TAVR was not. In-hospital mortality was not different between groups (3.9% for TAVR versus 6.1% for SAVR; p=0.171). Two-year outcomes (including all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, and readmissions) were similar in both groups (log-rank p>0.05 for all comparisons). Predictors of all-cause 2-year mortality differed between the groups; moderate to severe PPM was a predictor following SAVR (HR 1.78, 95% CI: 1.10-2.88; p=0.018) but not following TAVR (p=0.737)., Conclusions: SAVR and TAVR offer similar mid-term outcomes in MO patients with severe AS, however, TAVR offers some advantages in terms of periprocedural morbidity.

Background: Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality among long-term heart transplant recipients. There is an unmet need for a non-invasive biomarker of CAV that could obviate the need to perform surveillance coronary angiograms in these patients. Our aim was to evaluate the performance of Donor-derived Cell Free DNA (dd-cfDNA) as a biomarker of CAV., Methods: We prospectively measured dd-cfDNA levels in all patients undergoing routine coronary angiography >1 year after heart transplant at a single center. Endpoints included the association between dd-cfDNA levels and the presence CAV, according to several prespecified criteria., Results: We included 94 heart transplant recipients, a median of 10.9 years after transplant. Coronary angiogram revealed CAV 0 , CAV 1 , CAV 2 , and CAV 3 in 61, 19, 14, and 6% of patients, respectively. Comparison of dd-cfDNA levels in patients with CAV 0 and CAV 1-2-3 (primary end-point) did not show significant differences (0.92%, IQR 0.46-2.0 vs. 0.46%, IQR 0.075-1.5, p = 0.059), nor did the comparison between patients with stable CAV (no new coronary lesions since previous angiogram, n = 77) and progressive CAV ( n = 17); dd-cfDNA values 0.735% (IQR 0.195-2.0) vs. 0.9% (IQR 0.12-1.8), p = 0.76. However, we found an association between NTproBNP levels and CAV degree ( p = 0.017). Dd-cfDNA levels did not correlate with NTproBNP (ρ = -0.095)., Conclusion: In this study, dd-cfDNA did not perform as a useful biomarker to avoid surveillance coronary angiograms for CAV diagnosis., Clinical Trial Notation: Potential Role of Donor-derived Cell Free DNA as a Biomarker in Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy, NCT04791852., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Jiménez-Blanco Bravo, Pérez-Gómez, Hernández-Pérez, Arellano-Serrano, Torres-Sanabria, Gómez-Bueno, Oteo-Domínguez, Mingo-Santos and Segovia-Cubero.)

Background: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, concerns have been arisen on the use of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASI) due to the potentially increased expression of Angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE)2 and patient's susceptibility to SARS-CoV2 infection. Diabetes mellitus have been recognized favoring the coronavirus infection with consequent increase mortality in COVID-19. No data have been so far reported in diabetic patients suffering from ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), a very high-risk population deserving of RASI treatment., Methods: The ISACS-STEMI COVID-19 registry retrospectively assessed STEMI patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) in March/June 2019 and 2020 in 109 European high-volume primary PCI centers. This subanalysis assessed the prognostic impact of chronic RASI therapy at admission on mortality and SARS-CoV2 infection among diabetic patients., Results: Our population is represented by 3812 diabetic STEMI patients undergoing mechanical reperfusion, 2038 in 2019 and 1774 in 2020. Among 3761 patients with available data on chronic RASI therapy, between those ones with and without treatment there were several differences in baseline characteristics, (similar in both periods) but no difference in the prevalence of SARS-CoV2 infection (1.6% vs 1.3%, respectively, p  = 0.786). Considering in-hospital medication, RASI therapy was overall associated with a significantly lower in-hospital mortality (3.3% vs 15.8%, p  < 0.0001), consistently both in 2019 and in 2010., Conclusions: This is first study to investigate the impact of RASI therapy on prognosis and SARS-CoV2 infection of diabetic patients experiencing STEMI and undergoing PPCI during the COVID-19 pandemic. Both pre-admission chronic RASI therapy and in-hospital RASI did not negatively affected patients' survival during the hospitalization, neither increased the risk of SARS-CoV2 infection., Trial Registration Number: NCT04412655., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2021 Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.)

Significant mitral regurgitation (MR) may be present in up to half of patients with heart failure (HF) and it is associated with adverse cardiac remodeling and myocardial stretch. These are potential triggers for ventricular arrhythmias (VA) in patients with HF, and therefore MR may enhance electrical ventricular vulnerability. Our aim was to evaluate VA burden before and after percutaneous mitral valve repair (PMVR) in patients with implantable cardiac devices. We conducted a prospective registry of all consecutive patients (n = 34, age 69.0 ± 12.2 years, 77% male) with significant functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) who underwent MitraClip implantation in 2 centers between June 2014 and July 2018. VA burden was defined as the total number of events during device follow-up before and after PMVR. Among patients presenting VA during follow-up before or after PMVR, device success at hospital discharge was related to a significant reduction in the incidence of Nonsustained ventricular tachycardia (VT, p = 0.002) and any sustained VT or rapid VT/ventricular fibrillation (p = 0.034). Regarding implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD) therapies, successful PMVR was related to a reduction in incidence of either antitachycardia pacing or appropriate shocks (p = 0.045) and in the occurrence of any defibrillation shocks (p = 0.045). Overall, effective repair lead to a significant reduction in the VA burden, with a significant decrease in the occurrence of any VA (p = 0.004) and any ICD therapies (p = 0.045). In conclusion, device success after PMVR was related to a reduction in overall arrhythmic burden and ICD therapies in our cohort., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

LAA closure and MitraClip implantation in the tricuspid position in the same procedure is a feasible and safe option in patients with a high surgical risk suffering from severe symptomatic tricuspid regurgitation and bleeding complications under anticoagulant therapy.