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Introduction: Electronic health record (EHR)-embedded tools are known to improve prescribing of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) for patients with heart failure. However, physicians may perceive EHR tools to be unhelpful and be hesitant to implement these in their practice., Methods: The BETTER CARE-HF trial (NCT05275920) ran from April 28, 2022 to October 26, 2022 at NYU Langone Health outpatient clinics being seen by 180 cardiologists. The trial compared the effectiveness of an Alert during visits, Messages between visits, or usual care with the primary outcome of MRA prescribing. In this study, we sent surveys via electronic mail to cardiologists who either received an Alert or a Message during BETTER CARE-HF (60 cardiologists per survey)., Results: Of the 120 cardiologists who were sent the survey, response rate was 27% in the Alert group and 33% in the Message group. A majority of respondents in both the alert and message groups agreed that EHR tools were easy to use (Alert 79%; Message 69%), served as a reminder to prescribe therapy (Alert 77%; Message 77%;), and that the underlying evidence (Alert 86%; Message 62%) and clinical information (Alert 86%; Message 69%) were trustworthy. Overall, 54% agreed with continued use of the Alert, while 31% agreed with continued use of the Message., Conclusion: Cardiologists perceived the EHR tools to be easy to use, helpful, and improve the overall management of their patients with heart failure., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest There are no conflicts of interest to disclose related to the work in this study., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Recent evidence suggests atrial fibrillation (AF) causes cardiomyopathy due to remodeling driven by both irregular rate and rhythm. Atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation in patients with reduced ejection fraction (EF) ≤ 35% has been shown to improve EF and mortality. It is unknown whether the benefits of AF ablation among patients with reduced EF are affected by the degree of pre-ablation rate control., Objectives: To evaluate AF ablation echocardiographic outcomes for patients who have EF ≤ 35% with varying degrees of pre-ablation rate control., Methods: Single-center, retrospective study of patients with EF ≤ 35% undergoing first-time ablation of persistent AF. Primary analyses evaluated the degree to which pre-ablation rate control impacted echocardiographic outcomes. Rates of EF recovery to > 35% were compared at three different cutoffs: 110 bpm, 90 bpm, and 70 bpm. A linear regression analysis was then performed to evaluate whether baseline heart rate (HR) predicted change in EF., Results: Among 73 patients, the mean pre-ablation resting HR was 90 ± 25 bpm, and baseline EF was 27 ± 7%. Patients experienced significant improvements in EF by mean + 14% ± 11% (p < 0.001). Post-ablation EF recovery occurred in 60% of patients. No differences in EF improvement were detected at HR control targets of ≤ 110 bpm or ≤ 90 bpm, while patients achieving HR ≤ 70 bpm had less improvement in EF (+ 9% ± 9%) compared to those with HR above the cutoff (+ 16% ± 11%; p = 0.01). Linear regression analysis did not reveal baseline HR as a significant predictor of change in LVEF (slope = 0.09, r 2  = 0.05, p = 0.07)., Conclusions: Catheter ablation of persistent AF in patients with reduced EF frequently resulted in recovery in EF > 35%, irrespective of pre-ablation achieved rate control. While patients with HR > 70 bpm experienced a greater improvement in EF compared to those ≤ 70 bpm, patients with baseline HR below this target still experienced significant EF improvements. Further investigation into irregularity-mediated cardiomyopathy is warranted., Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: Relationships to the industry are all modest (< $10,000). Dr. Barbhaiya has received speaking fees/honoraria from Biosense Webster, Inc.; Abbott, Inc.; and ZOLL, Inc. Dr. Aizer receives fellowship support from Abbott, Inc.; BIOTRONIK, Inc.; Boston Scientific, Inc.; and Medtronic, Inc. Dr. Chinitz has received speaking fees/honoraria from Abbott Medical, Inc.; Medtronic, Inc.; BIOTRONIK, Inc.; and Biosense Webster, Inc. The remaining authors have nothing to disclose., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Purpose of Review: Multiple agents are being developed that inhibit apolipoprotein (apo) C-III. This state-of-the-art review examines their potential for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk reduction., Recent Findings: Apo C-III, an apolipoprotein on the surface of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins (TRLs), impairs clearance of TRLs through both lipoprotein lipase dependent and independent pathways, thereby resulting in increased concentrations of triglycerides. Apo C-III has also been shown to have pro-atherogenic effects when bound to high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles. Classical and genetic epidemiology studies provide support for the concept that apo C-III is associated with an increased risk of ASCVD events. Drug efficacy of agents that silence APOC3 mRNA has been studied in populations with varying hypertriglyceridemia severity, including those with familial chylomicronemia syndrome, multifactorial chylomicronemia syndrome/severe hypertriglyceridemia, and mixed hyperlipidemia. Randomized controlled trials have reported significant reductions in TG and non-HDL cholesterol levels among these patients treated with APOC3 inhibitors. Upcoming clinical outcomes trials seek to establish a role for APOC3 inhibitors to reduce risk of ASCVD., Competing Interests: Declarations Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent No animal or human subjects by the authors were used for the purposes of the submitted work. Disclosures Dr. Maidman has no relationships to disclose. Dr. Hegele reports consulting fees from Acasti, Aegerion, Akcea/Ionis, Amgen, Arrowhead, HLS Therapeutics, Pfizer, Novartis, Regeneron, Sanofi and UltraGenyx. Dr. Rosenson reports research funding to his institution from Amgen, Arrowhead, Eli Lilly, Merck, NIH, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, and 89Bio​, consulting fees from Amgen, Avilar, CRISPER Therapeutics, Eli Lilly, Lipigon, New Amsterdam, Novartis, Precision Biosciences, Regeneron, UltraGenyx, Verve Therapeutics​, non-promotional honoraria from Meda Pharma, royalties from Wolters Kluwer (UpToDate)​, and stock holding in MediMergent, LLC.​ He reports patent applications on: Methods and systems for biocellular marker detection and diagnosis using a microfluidic profiling device. EFS ID: 32278349. Application No. (PCT/US2019/026364) (provisional); Compositions and methods relating to the identification and treatment of immunothrombotic conditions. New International Application No. (PCT/US2021/63104926); and quantification of Lp(a) vs. non-Lp(a) apoB concentration: development of a novel validated equation. (PCT/US2021/63248837). Competing Interests The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Aims: Myocardial infarction and heart failure are major cardiovascular diseases that affect millions of people in the USA with morbidity and mortality being highest among patients who develop cardiogenic shock. Early recognition of cardiogenic shock allows prompt implementation of treatment measures. Our objective is to develop a new dynamic risk score, called CShock, to improve early detection of cardiogenic shock in the cardiac intensive care unit (ICU)., Methods and Results: We developed and externally validated a deep learning-based risk stratification tool, called CShock, for patients admitted into the cardiac ICU with acute decompensated heart failure and/or myocardial infarction to predict the onset of cardiogenic shock. We prepared a cardiac ICU dataset using the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-III database by annotating with physician-adjudicated outcomes. This dataset which consisted of 1500 patients with 204 having cardiogenic/mixed shock was then used to train CShock. The features used to train the model for CShock included patient demographics, cardiac ICU admission diagnoses, routinely measured laboratory values and vital signs, and relevant features manually extracted from echocardiogram and left heart catheterization reports. We externally validated the risk model on the New York University (NYU) Langone Health cardiac ICU database which was also annotated with physician-adjudicated outcomes. The external validation cohort consisted of 131 patients with 25 patients experiencing cardiogenic/mixed shock. CShock achieved an area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.821 (95% CI 0.792-0.850). CShock was externally validated in the more contemporary NYU cohort and achieved an AUROC of 0.800 (95% CI 0.717-0.884), demonstrating its generalizability in other cardiac ICUs. Having an elevated heart rate is most predictive of cardiogenic shock development based on Shapley values. The other top 10 predictors are having an admission diagnosis of myocardial infarction with ST-segment elevation, having an admission diagnosis of acute decompensated heart failure, Braden Scale, Glasgow Coma Scale, blood urea nitrogen, systolic blood pressure, serum chloride, serum sodium, and arterial blood pH., Conclusion: The novel CShock score has the potential to provide automated detection and early warning for cardiogenic shock and improve the outcomes for millions of patients who suffer from myocardial infarction and heart failure., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: N.S. reports consulting for Abbott Vascular as a member of an advisory board., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Preoperative cardiovascular risk stratification before noncardiac surgery is a common clinical challenge. Coronary artery calcium scores from ECG-gated chest computed tomography (CT) imaging are associated with perioperative events. At the time of preoperative evaluation, many patients will not have had ECG-gated CT imaging, but will have had nongated chest CT studies performed for a variety of noncardiac indications. We evaluated relationships between coronary calcium severity estimated from previous nongated chest CT imaging and perioperative major clinical events (MCE) after noncardiac surgery., Methods: We retrospectively identified consecutive adults age ≥45 years who underwent in-hospital, major noncardiac surgery from 2016 to 2020 at a large academic health system composed of 4 acute care centers. All patients had nongated (contrast or noncontrast) chest CT imaging performed within 1 year before surgery. Coronary calcium in each vessel was retrospectively graded from absent to severe using a 0 to 3 scale (absent, mild, moderate, severe) by physicians blinded to clinical data. The estimated coronary calcium burden (ECCB) was computed as the sum of scores for each coronary artery (0 to 9 scale). A Revised Cardiac Risk Index was calculated for each patient. Perioperative MCE was defined as all-cause death or myocardial infarction within 30 days of surgery., Results: A total of 2554 patients (median age, 68 years; 49.7% women; median Revised Cardiac Risk Index, 1) were included. The median time interval from nongated chest CT imaging to noncardiac surgery was 15 days (interquartile range, 3-106 days). The median ECCB was 1 (interquartile range, 0-3). Perioperative MCE occurred in 136 (5.2%) patients. Higher ECCB values were associated with stepwise increases in perioperative MCE (0: 2.9%, 1-2: 3.7%, 3-5: 8.0%; 6-9: 12.6%, P <0.001). Addition of ECCB to a model with the Revised Cardiac Risk Index improved the C-statistic for MCE (from 0.675 to 0.712, P =0.018), with a net reclassification improvement of 0.428 (95% CI, 0.254-0.601, P <0.0001). An ECCB ≥3 was associated with 2-fold higher adjusted odds of MCE versus an ECCB <3 (adjusted odds ratio, 2.11 [95% CI, 1.42-3.12])., Conclusions: Prevalence and severity of coronary calcium obtained from existing nongated chest CT imaging improve preoperative clinical risk stratification before noncardiac surgery., Competing Interests: Disclosures N.R.S. is supported, in part, by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health under award No. K23HL150315. He has served on an advisory board as a consultant to Abbott Vascular. J.S.B. is supported, in part, by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health under award nos. R01HL114978 and R35HL144993. The other authors report no conflicts.

Despite many recent advances in three-dimensional (3D) transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) imagining, the process of orienting 3D TEE images is nonintuitive and uses assumptions based on idealized anatomy. Correlating two-dimensional TEE cross-sectional images to 3D reconstructions remains an additional challenge. In this article, we suggest the repurposing of the stitching artifact generated in 2-beat electrocardiogram-gated 3D TEE as a means of exactly orienting 3D images within a patient's unique anatomy. We demonstrate the application of this strategy to assess a normal mitral valve to localize scallops of mitral valve prolapse and to visualize typical left atrial appendage two-dimensional cuts in a 3D space. By taking command of stitching artifacts, cardiac imagers can successfully navigate the complex structures of the heart for optimal, individualized echocardiographic views., (Copyright © 2022 American Society of Echocardiography. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: ImmuKnow, an immune cell function assay that quantifies overall immune system activity can assist in post-transplant immunosuppression adjustment. However, the utility of pre-transplant ImmuKnow results representing a patient's baseline immune system activity is unknown. This study sought to assess if pre-transplant ImmuKnow results are predictive of rejection at the time of first biopsy in our cardiac transplant population., Methods: This is a single center, retrospective observational study of consecutive patients from January 1, 2018 to October 1, 2020 who underwent orthotopic cardiac transplantation at NYU Langone Health. Patients were excluded if a pre-transplant ImmuKnow assay was not performed. ImmuKnow results were categorized according to clinical interpretation ranges (low, moderate, and high activity), and patients were divided into two groups: a low activity group versus a combined moderate-high activity group. Pre-transplant clinical characteristics, induction immunosuppression use, early postoperative tacrolimus levels, and first endomyocardial biopsy results were collected for all patients. Rates of clinically significant early rejection (defined as rejection ≥ 1R/1B) were compared between pre-transplant ImmuKnow groups., Results: Of 110 patients who underwent cardiac transplant, 81 had pre-transplant ImmuKnow results. The low ImmuKnow activity group was comprised of 15 patients, and 66 patients were in the combined moderate-high group. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. Early rejection occurred in 0 (0%) patients with low pre-transplant ImmuKnow levels. Among the moderate- high pre-transplant ImmuKnow group, 16 (24.2%) patients experienced early rejection (P = .033). The mean ImmuKnow level in the non-rejection group was the 364.9 ng/ml of ATP compared to 499.3 ng/ml of ATP for those with rejection (P = .020)., Conclusion: Patients with low pre-transplant ImmuKnow levels had lower risk of early rejection when compared with patients with moderate or high levels. Our study suggests a possible utility in performing pre-transplant ImmuKnow to identify patients at-risk for early rejection who may benefit from intensified upfront immunosuppression as well as to recognize those where slower calcineurin inhibitor initiation may be appropriate., (© 2022 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Infective endocarditis (IE) is a life-threatening disease associated with in-hospital mortality of nearly one in five cases. IE can destroy valvular tissue, which may rarely progress to aneurysm formation, most commonly at the anterior leaflet in instances of mitral valve involvement. We present a remarkable case of a patient with IE and a rare complication of a ruptured aneurysm of the posterior leaflet of the mitral valve. Two- and Three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography, intra-operative videography, and histopathologic analysis revealed disruption at this unusual location-at the junction of the P2 and P3 scallops, surrounded by an annular abscess., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Study Design: A retrospective cohort of prospective data., Objective: Determine the frequency of various symptoms in a surgical cohort of cervical myelopathy (CM)., Summary of Background Data: CM can be difficult to diagnose as there is no sine qua non "myelopathic symptom." Despite extensive literature, the likelihood or frequency of symptoms at presentation remains unclear., Materials and Methods: A total of 484 patients treated at a single academic center were reviewed. Preoperative symptoms included: axial neck pain; upper extremity (UE) pain; UE sensory or motor deficit; lower extremity (LE) sensory or motor deficit; and sphincter dysfunction. It was noted whether a symptom was the chief complaint (CC) and/or one of a list of overall symptoms (OS) reported by the patient. Magnetic resonance imaging was assessed for the maximal cord compression level and T2 hyperintensity., Results: The most common CC was UE sensory deficit (46.5%), whereas the most common OS were UE and LE motor deficits (82.6% and 81.2%). Neck pain was significantly less common (32.6% CC, 55.4% OS), and sphincter dysfunction was rare (0.6% CC, 16.5% OS). UE pain as a CC was significantly higher when the maximal compression involved a more distal level. The presence of T2 hyperintensity was negatively associated with neck pain but positively associated with sensory and motor deficits of LE., Conclusions: The most common CC in CM related to UE sensation, whereas the most common OS related to upper and lower motor function. UE pain was more common with more distal cord compression. Those with T2 hyperintensity had worse myelopathy and were less likely to have neck pain, but more likely to have LE symptoms. To our knowledge, this study is the largest to quantify the frequency of myelopathic symptom presentation in a surgical population. These findings provide valuable insight into the symptomatic presentation of CM in clinical practice and can be used to better inform diagnosis and treatment in this complex patient population., Level of Evidence: Level II-retrospective study.

Background: Hallux rigidus is one of the most common toe pathologies in patients greater than 50 years old. Although metatarsophalangeal (MTP) arthrodesis is used to improve pain and function, older patients are often considered to be higher-risk operative candidates. There are minimal data on outcomes of MTP fusion and no studies comparing outcomes between geriatric and younger patients., Methods: This is a single-center, prospective study of all patients who underwent MTP fusion between August 1, 2015, and July 1, 2018. Patient-reported outcomes were assessed using the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), Life-Space Assessment survey (LSA), and visual analog scale (VAS) for pain administered preoperatively as well as 6 months and 1 year postoperatively. Baseline characteristics and operative outcomes were collected from the electronic medical record. Clinical and patient-reported outcomes were compared between patients <65 years old and ≥65 years old. Of 143 included patients, 79 were in the younger group (mean of 56.5 years) and 64 were in the older group (mean of 72.0 years)., Results: Compared with the younger group, the older group was more predominantly female (95.3% older group, 77.2% younger group, P = .002). More patients in the older group had hypertension (73.4% older group, 50.6% younger group, P = .005) and coronary artery disease (9.4% older group, 0.0% younger group, P = .005). Both age groups had similar rates of postoperative wound complications requiring operative irrigation and debridement, deep vein thrombosis, deformity recurrence, and revision surgery. No differences were detected in SF-36, LSA, and VAS surveys administered at baseline, 6 months postoperation, or 1 year postoperation between younger and older patients., Conclusion: Despite more comorbidities, older patients had similar rates of postoperative complications and reported similar outcomes for pain, function, and mobility following MTP fusion. These findings support increased implementation of MTP fusion surgery for older patients with hallux rigidus., Level of Evidence: Level II, prospective cohort.

Background: Although complications following hammertoe correction surgery are rare, older patients with comorbid conditions are often considered poorer operative candidates compared with younger, healthier patients because of a suspected increased risk of adverse outcomes. The aim of this study was to determine if the presence of multiple comorbidities was associated with increased complications or unsuccessful patient-reported outcomes following operative hammertoe correction in geriatric patients., Methods: Prospectively collected data was reviewed on 78 patients aged 60 years or older who underwent operative correction of hammertoe deformity. Patient demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative complications were recorded. Patient-reported outcomes were assessed using preoperative and postoperative visual analog scale for pain and Short Form Health Survey Physical and Mental Component Summary with 1 year of follow-up. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on number of comorbidities (0 or 1 vs > 2) and then compared. The average age of patients was 69.4 years and the prevalence of comorbidities in the study population was as follows: 11.5% smokers, 25.6% on blood thinners, 15.4% with rheumatoid arthritis, 7.7% with diabetes mellitus, 2.6% with peripheral arterial disease, 6.4% with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 11.5% with coronary artery disease, and 23.1% with osteoporosis., Results: Fifty-three patients (67.9%) had 0 or 1 comorbidity and 25 (32.1%) had 2 or more comorbidities. Compared to the 0 or 1 comorbidity group, the presence of multiple comorbidities was associated with an adjusted odds ratio (OR) for superficial wound infection of 4.18 ( P = .045) and deformity recurrence requiring surgery OR of 23.15 ( P = .032). Patient-reported outcomes were similar between comorbidity groups., Conclusions: This study further informs foot and ankle specialists to maintain increased surveillance for postoperative complications and unsuccessful outcomes in patients with multiple comorbidities. Although geriatric patients still report significant improvements in both pain and function, patients with underlying medical conditions should be counseled about their increased risks when pursuing operative hammertoe correction., Level of Evidence: Level III, retrospective comparative series., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article ICMJE forms for all authors are available online., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

Objectives: To compare transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) with surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) for patients in shock., Background: There are minimal data on the clinical and echocardiographic outcomes for patients in shock that undergo TAVR and no data comparing these outcomes to similar patients undergoing SAVR., Methods: This is a single center, retrospective cohort study of patients having Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS)-defined urgent or emergent AVR for aortic stenosis with clinical signs and symptoms of shock. Inclusion criteria were based on the Society of Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) shock consensus statement and included: the need for inotropic or vasopressor agents, mechanical ventilation, continuous renal replacement therapy or newly initiated hemodialysis, and/or utilization of mechanical hemodynamic support. Clinical and echocardiographic outcomes for TAVR and SAVR were compared., Results: Thirty-seven patients met the inclusion criteria for this study (17 TAVR, 20 SAVR). TAVR patients had a higher STS Predicted Risk of Mortality (PROM) score of 22.3% compared to 11.8% for SAVR patients (p = 0.001). No significant differences were found in baseline echocardiographic results. TAVR procedures required less procedure room time (185.9 min TAVR, 348.5 min SAVR, p < 0.001) and fewer intraoperative packed red blood cell (pRBC) transfusions (0.2 units TAVR, 3.4 units SAVR, p < 0.001). TAVR patients also had lower rates of prolonged postoperative ventilation compared to SAVR patients (38.5% TAVR, 75.0% SAVR, p = 0.047). TAVR and SAVR had similar rates of mortality at discharge (2 TAVR, 1 SAVR, p = 0.584), 30-days (2 TAVR, 1 SAVR, p = 0.584), and 1-year (8 TAVR, 5 SAVR, p = 0.149)., Conclusions: Despite a higher risk TAVR group, patients in shock undergoing either TAVR or SAVR have similar 30-day mortality. At one year, SAVR patients have a numerically better, though not statistically significant, survival. These findings support the use of TAVR for patients in shock with aortic stenosis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest VCB is a consultant for Edwards Lifesciences and Abbott Vascular, and his employer has research contracts for clinical investigation of transcatheter aortic, mitral, and tricuspid devices from Edwards Lifesciences, Abbott Vascular, Medtronic, St Jude Medical, and Boston Scientific. He has an equity interest in Transmural Systems. CD is a consultant for Medtronic, ReCor Medical, Shockwave Medical, and Vascular Dynamics. ABG is a proctor for Edwards Lifesciences and Medtronic. He has an equity interest in Transmural Systems. RG has served as the national principal investigator on the Edwards Lifesciences TMVR early feasibility trial. JCL has received significant research funding from Edwards Life Sciences. All other authors have reported that they have no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Hammertoe deformities can seriously affect activity level and footwear. The use of prescription, mood-altering medications is very common, with some estimates as high as 25% of the population. Mood disorders, especially depression, negatively affect the results of medical and operative treatments. This study assessed the relationship of mood-altering medication use with the outcomes and complications of operative reconstruction of hammertoes., Methods: Data were prospectively collected from 116 patients who underwent hammertoe reconstruction, including demographic information, medical history, the use of mood-altering psychotropic medications (antidepressants, anxiolytics, hypnotics, and mood stabilizers), and postoperative complications. Preoperative patient-reported outcomes were measured using the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain and Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), which were repeated at 1-year follow-up., Results: A total of 36.2% of patients were taking psychotropic medications. Medication and nonmedication groups had similar pain VAS and SF-36 Physical Component Summary (PCS) scores before and after surgery. Compared with nonmedication patients, patients on psychotropic medications had significantly lower SF-36 Mental Component Summary (MCS) scores preoperatively ( P = .001) and postoperatively ( P = .006), but no significant difference in the change in MCS (ΔMCS) from preoperative to postoperative. Psychotropic medication use was associated with superficial wound infections ( P = .048), but not other complications., Conclusions: Patients taking psychotropic medications were equally likely to benefit from forefoot reconstruction as nonmedication patients. Preoperative and postoperative PCS and VAS were not significantly different between medication and nonmedication groups. Although the medication group had lower absolute MCS, they reported the same magnitude of improvement in MCS (ΔMCS) as the nonmedication group., Level of Evidence: Level II, prospective cohort study., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. ICMJE forms for all authors are available online., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

Background: Surgery for degenerative foot and ankle conditions often results in a lengthy recovery. Current outcome measures do not accurately assess postoperative mobility, especially in older patients. The Life-Space Assessment (LSA), a questionnaire quantifying patients' mobility after a medical event, was used in this study to assess perioperative mobility in total hip arthroplasty (THA) and foot and ankle surgery patients. We hypothesized that patients undergoing elective foot and ankle surgery would have greater postoperative mobility limitation than THA patients., Methods: Preoperative, 3-month, and 6-month postoperative LSA data were collected from THA and foot and ankle cohorts. Twelve-month postoperative data were obtained for the foot and ankle group as well. Patient demographics were recorded, and data were analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U test., Results: Twenty-eight degenerative foot and ankle operative patients and 38 THA patients met inclusion criteria. Only patients aged ≥60 years were included in this study. The mean preoperative LSA score was lower in the foot and ankle group (68.8) compared with THA (74.0), although the difference was not statistically significant ( P = .602). THA patients showed a significant increase in LSA score from preoperative (74) to 6 months postoperation (95.9) ( P = .003); however, foot and ankle patients showed no significant difference between preoperative (68.8) and 6-month (61.2) scores ( P = .468). Twelve months postoperatively, foot and ankle patients showed improvement in LSA score (88.3) compared with preoperation ( P = .065)., Conclusion: Compared with THA, recovery of mobility after foot and ankle surgery was slower. THA patients exhibited improved mobility as early as 3 months after surgery, whereas foot and ankle patients did not show full improvement until 12 months. This work will assist the foot and ankle specialist in educating patients about challenges in mobility during their recovery from surgery., Level of Evidence: Level II, prospective cohort study.

Acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) is the leading cause of hospital admissions in patients older than 65 years. These hospitalisations are highly risky and are associated with poor outcomes, including rehospitalisation and death. The management of ADHF is drastically different from that of chronic heart failure as inpatient treatment consists primarily of haemodynamic stabilisation, symptom relief and prevention of short-term morbidity and mortality. In this review, we will discuss the strategies put forth in the most recent American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association and Heart Failure Society of America guidelines for ADHF as well as the evidence behind these recommendations., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Hammertoe deformities are the most common lesser toe deformity. To date, no studies have looked at outcomes of operative management in the geriatric population, which may be at greater risk for complications or functional compromise because of comorbidities., Methods: Data on 58 patients undergoing operative correction of hammertoe deformities were prospectively collected. Clinical outcomes were assessed using preoperative and postoperative visual analogue scale (VAS) and Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) scores with a minimum of 6-month follow-up. Patients were divided into 2 groups on the basis of age at the time of surgery: younger than 65 and 65 and older. Complication rates and mean VAS and SF-36 improvement were compared. Forty-seven patients met inclusion criteria (7 men, 40 women), with 26 patients (37 toes) in the younger cohort and 21 patients (39 toes) in the older cohort., Results: Overall, patients demonstrated significant improvement from baseline to 6 and 12 months postoperatively in VAS ( P < .001 and P < .001) and SF-36 ( P < .001 and P < .001) scores. Mean improvement in VAS and SF-36 scores was not significantly different between the groups at 6 and 12 months postoperatively. Complications occurred in 13.5% and 10.3% of patients in the younger and older cohorts, respectively., Conclusions: Outcomes of operative correction of hammertoe deformities in older patients were similar to outcomes in younger patients after greater than 6 months of follow-up. Overall improvement in VAS and SF-36 was statistically significant for both cohorts. There was no associated increase in complications for older patients., Level of Evidence: Level, III comparative series.