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Background: Following an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), patients remain at risk for subsequent cardiovascular (CV) events. In the AEGIS-II trial, CSL112, a human apolipoprotein A-I derived from plasma that enhances cholesterol efflux, did not significantly reduce the first occurrence of CV death, myocardial infarction (MI), or stroke through 90 days compared with placebo. However, an analysis involving only the first event may not capture the totality of the clinical impact of an intervention because patients may experience multiple events., Objectives: This prespecified exploratory analysis examines the effect of CSL112 on total burden of nonfatal ischemic events (ie, recurrent MI and stroke) and CV death., Methods: A total of 18,219 patients with AMI, multivessel coronary artery disease, and additional CV risk factors were randomized to either 4 weekly infusions of 6 g CSL112 (n = 9,112) or matching placebo (n = 9,107). A negative binomial regression model was applied to estimate the effect of CSL112 compared with placebo on the rate ratio (RR) of ischemic events., Results: For CV death, MI, and stroke, there were numerically fewer total events at 90 days (503 vs 545 events; rate ratio [RR]: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.76-1.03, P = 0.11), and nominally significantly fewer total events at 180 days (745 vs 821 events, RR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.77-0.99; P = 0.04) and 365 days (1,120 vs 1,211 events; RR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.80-0.99; P = 0.04). Subsequent events constituted 13% of events at 90 days, 17% at 180 days, and 22% at 1 year. Similar findings were seen with the total occurrence of nonfatal MI and CV death. When type II MIs, unlikely to be modified by enhancing cholesterol efflux, were excluded, there were nominally significant reductions in the total occurrence of nonfatal MI (excluding type 2) and CV death at all time points (90 days: RR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.68-0.97; P = 0.02; 180 days: RR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.71-0.95; P < 0.01; 365 days: RR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.76-0.98; P = 0.02)., Conclusions: In this prespecified exploratory analysis of the AEGIS-II trial, 4 weekly infusions of CSL112 among high-risk patients after AMI significantly reduced the total burden of nonfatal ischemic events and CV death at 180 and 365 days compared with placebo. (AEGIS-II [Study to Investigate CSL112 in Subjects With Acute Coronary Syndrome]; NCT03473223)., Competing Interests: Funding Support and Author Disclosures The study was sponsored by CSL Behring. CSL Behring was involved in the study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, and the preparation, review, and approval of the manuscript. The decision to submit the manuscript for publication was made by the academic leadership of the steering committee. Dr Gibson has received research funding from CSL Behring, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Johnson and Johnson Corporation, and SCAD Alliance; has been a consultant for Angel/Avertix Medical Corporation, AstraZeneca, Bayer Corporation, Beren Therapeutics, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Clinical Research Institute, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cardiovascular Research Foundation, CeleCor Therapeutics, CSL Behring, DCRI, Esperion, EXCITE International ($0 received), Fortress Biotech, Gilead Sciences Inc., Janssen, Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson Corporation, MashUp MD, MD Magazine, Microport, MJHealth, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, PHRI, PLxPharma, SCAI, Solstic Health/New Amsterdam Pharma, Somahlution/Marizyme, Vectura, Web MD, and Women as One; has equity in nference, Dyad Medical, Absolutys, and Fortress Biotech; and has received royalties as a contributor to UpToDate. Dr Chi has received research grant support paid to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School from Bayer, CSL Behring, Janssen Scientific Affairs, and SCAD Alliance. Dr Duffy has received salary as an employee of CSL Behring. Dr Bahit has received honoraria from MSD, Pfizer, Bristol Myers Squibb, CSL Behring, Janssen, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Anthos Therapeutics. Dr White has received grant support to institution from Sanofi, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly, Omthera Pharmaceuticals, American Regent, Eisai Inc, DalCor Pharma UK Inc., CSL Behring, NHI, Sanofi-Aventis Australia Pty Ltd, Esperion Therapeutics Inc, and National Institutes of Health; has received fees for serving on Steering Committees of the ODYSSEY trial from Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, the ISCHEMIA and the MINT studies from the National Institutes of Health, the STRENGTH trial from Omthera Pharmaceuticals, the HEART-FID study from American Regent, the DAL-GENE study from DalCor Pharma UK Inc., the AEGIS-II study from CSL Behring, the SCORED trial and the SOLOIST-WHF trial from Sanofi Australia Pty Ltd, and the CLEAR OUTCOMES study from Esperion Therapeutics. Dr Korjian has received research grant support paid to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School from CSL Behring. Dr Alexander has received research grants through Duke University from Artivion/CryoLife, Bayer, Bristol Myers Squibb, CSL Behring, Ferring, the U.S. FDA, Humacyte, and the U.S. NIH; has served as advisory board member or received honoraria or consulting payments from AbbVie, Artivion/CryoLife, AtriCure, Bayer, Bristol Myers Squibb, Curis, Eli Lilly, Ferring, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Novostia, Pfizer, Portola, Theravance, and Veralox. Dr Lincoff has received research funding from Esperion, Eli Lilly, Novartis, AstraZeneca, AbbVie; and has been a consultant for Novo Nordisk, Eli Lilly, Glaxo, Akebia, Endologix, Fibrogen, Provention, Becton Dickson, Brainstorm Cell, Intarcia, Medtronic, and Recor. Dr Anschuetz has received a salary as an employee of CSL Behring. Dr Girgis has received a salary as an employee of CSL Behring. Dr Nicolau has received a scholarship from the National Council of Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) #303448/2021-0; has received research grants from Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, CSL Behring, Daiichi-Sankyo, Dalcor, Esperion, Ionis, Janssen, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi, and Vifor; and has received consulting fees from Libbs. Dr Lopes has received grant support from Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Medtronic, Pfizer, and Sanofi; has been a consultant for AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Novo Nordisk; and has participated in educational activities for Daiichi-Sankyo, AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, and Pfizer. Dr Bainey has received research support from CSL Behring. Dr Libby has served on a scientific advisory board for Amgen, Kowa Pharmaceuticals, Novo Nordisk, Caristo, CSL Behring, DalCor, Dewpoint, Euclid Bioimaging, Xbiotech, Olatec, Medimmune, PlaqueTec, Polygon Therapeutics, TenSixteen Bio, Soley Therapeutics; and has been a consultant for Amgen, Baim Institute Beren, Esperion, Genentech, Kancera, Kowa Pharmaceuticals, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, and Sanofi-Regeneron. Dr Sacks has received support from CSL Behring. Dr Ridker has received institutional research grant support from Kowa, Novartis, Amarin, Pfizer, Esperion, Novo Nordisk, and the NHLBI; has served as a consultant to numerous companies including Novartis, Flame, Agepha, Ardelyx, Arrowhead, AstraZeneca, CSL Behring, Janssen, Civi Biopharm, GlaxoSmithKline, SOCAR, Novo Nordisk, Health Outlook, Montai Health, Eli Lilly, New Amsterdam, Boehringer Ingelheim, RTI, Zomagen, Cytokinetics, Horizon Therapeutics, and Cardio Therapeutics; holds minority shareholder equity positions in Uppton, Bitteroot Bio, and Angiowave; and receives compensation for service on the Peter Munk Advisory Board (University of Toronto), the Leducq Foundation (Paris, FR), and the Baim Institute (Boston, Massachusetts). Dr Goodman has received research grant support (eg, steering committee or data and safety monitoring committee) and/or speaker/consulting honoraria (eg, advisory boards) from Alnylam, Amgen, Anthos Therapeutics, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, CSL Behring, CYTE Ltd., Daiichi-Sankyo/American Regent, Eli Lilly, Esperion, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, HLS Therapeutics, Idorsia, JAMP Pharma, Merck, Novartis, Novo Nordisk A/C, Pendopharm/Pharmascience, Pfizer, Regeneron, Roche, Sanofi, Servier, Tolmar Pharmaceuticals, Valeo Pharma; has received salary support/honoraria from the Canadian Heart Failure Society, Canadian Heart Research Centre and MD Primer, Canadian VIGOUR Centre, Cleveland Clinic Coordinating Centre for Clinical Research, Duke Clinical Research Institute, Jewish General Hospital∖CIUSSS Centre-Ouest-de-l'Ile-de-Montreal, New York University Clinical Coordinating Centre, PERFUSE Research Institute, Peter Munk Cardiac Centre Clinical Trials and Translation Unit, Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research, and TIMI Study Group (Brigham Health). Dr Mahaffey has received grants from AHA, Apple Inc, Bayer, California Institute Regenerative Medicine, CSL Behring, Eidos, Ferring, Gilead, Google (Verily), Idorsia, Johnson & Johnson, Luitpold, Novartis, PAC-12, Precordior, Sanifit; has received consulting fees from applied Therapeutics, Bayer, BMS, BridgeBio, CSL Behring, Elsevier, Fosun Pharma, Human, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Myokardia, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Otsuka, Phasebio, Portola, Quidel, Theravance; has received payment or honoraria from CSL Behring; and has stock or stock options in Human, Medeloop, Precordior, and Regencor. Dr Nicholls has received research support from AstraZeneca, Amgen, Anthera, CSL Behring, Cerenis, Eli Lilly, Esperion, Resverlogix, Novartis, InfraReDx, and Sanofi-Regeneron; and has been a consultant for Amgen, Akcea, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, CSL Behring, Daiichi-Sankyo, Eli Lilly, Esperion, Kowa, Merck, Takeda, Pfizer, Sanofi-Regeneron, Novo Nordisk, CSL Sequiris, and Vaxxinity. Dr Pocock has been a consultant to CSL Behring. Dr Mehran has received institutional research payments from Abbott, Affluent Medical, Alleviant Medical, Amgen, AstraZeneca, BAIM, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, CardiaWave, CERC, Chiesi, Concept Medical, Daiichi-Sankyo, Duke, Faraday, Idorsia, Janssen, MedAlliance, Medscape, Mediasphere, Medtelligence, Medtronic, Novartis, OrbusNeich, Pi-Cardia, Protembis, RM Global Bioaccess Fund Management, and Sanofi; has received personal fees from Affluent Medical, Boehringer Ingelheim, Chiesi USA, Cordis, Daiichi-Sankyo, Esperion Science/Innovative Biopharma, Gaffney Events, Educational Trust, Global Clinical Trial Partners, Ltd., IQVIA, Medscape/WebMD Global, Novo Nordisk, PeerView Institute for Medical Education, TERUMO Europe N.V., and Radcliffe; has held equity <1% in Elixir Medical, Stel, ControlRad (spouse); has received an honorarium from AMA; is associate editor of JAMA Cardiology; and is a BOT Member, SC Member CTR Program of ACC. Dr Harrington has research relationships with Baim Institute, CSL, Janssen, NHLBI, PCORI, and DCRI; has consulting relationships with Atropos Health, Bitterroot Bio, BMS, BridgeBio, Element Science, Edwards Lifesciences, Foresite Labs, Medscape/WebMD; and serves on boards of directors for the American Heart Association, College of the Holy Cross, and Cytokinetics. Dr Cornel has reported that he has no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: A raised stress hyperglycaemia ratio (SHR) has been associated with all-cause mortality and may better discriminate than an absolute glucose value. The aim of this meta analysis and systematic review is to synthesise the evidence assessing the relationship between the SHR and all-cause mortality across three common cardiovascular presentations., Methods: We undertook a comprehensive search of Medline, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL and Web of Science from the date of inception to 1st March 2024, and selected articles meeting the following criteria: studies of patients hospitalised for acute myocardial infarction, ischaemic stroke or acute heart failure reporting the risk (odds ratio or hazard ratio) for all-cause mortality associated with the SHR. A random effects model was used for primary analysis. Subgroup analysis by diabetes status and of mortality in the short and long term was undertaken. Risk of bias assessment was performed using the Newcastle Ottawa quality assessment scale., Results: A total of 32 studies were included: 26 studies provided 31 estimates for the meta-analysis. The total study population in the meta analysis was 80,010. Six further studies were included in the systematic review. Participants admitted to hospital with cardiovascular disease and an SHR in the highest category had a significantly higher risk ratio of all-cause mortality in both the short and longer term compared with those with a lower SHR (RR = 1.67 [95% CI 1.46-1.91], p < 0.001). This finding was driven by studies in the myocardial infarction (RR = 1.75 [95% CI 1.52-2.01]), and ischaemic stroke cohorts (RR = 1.78 [95% CI 1.26-2.50]). The relationship was present amongst those with and without diabetes (diabetes: RR 1.49 [95% CI 1.14-1.94], p < 0.001, no diabetes: RR 1.85 [95% CI 1.49-2.30], p < 0.001) with p = 0.21 for subgroup differences, and amongst studies that reported mortality as a single outcome (RR of 1.51 ([95% CI 1.29-1.77]; p < 0.001) and those that reported mortality as part of a composite outcome (RR 2.02 [95% CI 1.58-2.59]; p < 0.001). On subgroup analysis by length of follow up, higher SHR values were associated with increased risk of mortality at 90 day, 1 year and > 1year follow up, with risk ratios of 1.84 ([95% CI 1.32-2.56], p < 0.001), 1.69 ([95% CI 1.32-2.16], p < 0.001) and 1.58 ([95% CI 1.34-1.86], p < 0.001) respectively., Conclusions: A raised SHR is associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality following myocardial infarction and ischaemic stroke. Further work is required to define reference values for the SHR, and to investigate the potential effects of relative hypoglycaemia. Interventional trials targeting to the SHR rather than the absolute glucose value should be undertaken., Prospero Database Registration: CRD 42023456421 https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display&#95;record.php?ID=CRD42023456421., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests Harriet Esdaile has received grant funding from Dexcom. Jamil Mayet has received a research award from the British Heart Foundation and grant funding from Dexcom. Nick Oliver has received grant funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research, Diabetes UK, the Helmsley Trust, Dexcom, and Medtronic Diabetes, and has received speaker’s fees from Tandem Diabetes, Sanofi, Dexcom, Medtronic Diabetes, and Astra Zeneca. Nick Oliver participates on the advisory board of Medtronic Diabetes and Roche Diabetes. Monika Reddy has received grant funding from Dexcom and Medtronic Diabetes, has participated on the advisory board of Medtronic, and has received payment from Wiley for an invited manuscript. Anoop Shah and Shaila Khan have no potential conflicts relevant to this article., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Cardiogenic shock (CS) is a severe complication of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with high mortality rates. While mechanical circulatory support devices like intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) and Impella are used to manage CS, their comparative effectiveness remains unclear. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Impella in the treatment of AMI-associated CS., Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed across PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, and Web of Science. The primary efficacy endpoint was 6-month all-cause mortality. Secondary efficacy endpoints included 30-day mortality, major bleeding, limb ischemia, sepsis, and left ventricular ejection fraction. Pooled odds ratios (OR) and standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using the random-effects model via Revman version 5.4. Statistical significance was determined at P < .05., Results: Four RCTs with a total of 442 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled analysis showed that the odds of 6-month all-cause mortality were significantly lower with Impella compared to standard of care (OR: 0.64, 95% CI: 0.43-0.95; P value: .03). However, 30-day mortality reported no statistically significant difference between the 2 groups (OR: 1.03; 95% CI: 0.43-2.48; P = .95). Our analysis found that the use of impella is associated with a statistically significant increase in the odds of major bleeding (OR: 3.61; 95% CI: 1.14-11.40; P = .03), limb ischemia (OR: 4.91; 95% CI: 1.37-17.59; P = .01), and sepsis (OR: 2.75; 95% CI: 1.25-6.08; P = .01). No statistical significance was found in left ventricular ejection fraction at follow-up between the 2 groups (SMD: -0.35; 95% CI: -0.78 to 0.07; P = .11)., Conclusion: Impella significantly reduces 6-month all-cause mortality in patients with CS following AMI compared to standard of care. However, this survival benefit is offset by a substantial increase in major bleeding, limb ischemia, and sepsis risks associated with Impella. Future large scale trials are needed to validate these findings and refine clinical guidelines for the optimal use of Impella in treating CS., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Background and Aims: Risk stratification of sudden cardiac death after myocardial infarction and prevention by defibrillator rely on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Improved risk stratification across the whole LVEF range is required for decision-making on defibrillator implantation., Methods: The analysis pooled 20 data sets with 140 204 post-myocardial infarction patients containing information on demographics, medical history, clinical characteristics, biomarkers, electrocardiography, echocardiography, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Separate analyses were performed in patients (i) carrying a primary prevention cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF ≤ 35% [implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) patients], (ii) without cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF ≤ 35% (non-ICD patients ≤ 35%), and (iii) without cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF > 35% (non-ICD patients >35%). Primary outcome was sudden cardiac death or, in defibrillator carriers, appropriate defibrillator therapy. Using a competing risk framework and systematic internal-external cross-validation, a model using LVEF only, a multivariable flexible parametric survival model, and a multivariable random forest survival model were developed and externally validated. Predictive performance was assessed by random effect meta-analysis., Results: There were 1326 primary outcomes in 7543 ICD patients, 1193 in 25 058 non-ICD patients ≤35%, and 1567 in 107 603 non-ICD patients >35% during mean follow-up of 30.0, 46.5, and 57.6 months, respectively. In these three subgroups, LVEF poorly predicted sudden cardiac death (c-statistics between 0.50 and 0.56). Considering additional parameters did not improve calibration and discrimination, and model generalizability was poor., Conclusions: More accurate risk stratification for sudden cardiac death and identification of low-risk individuals with severely reduced LVEF or of high-risk individuals with preserved LVEF was not feasible, neither using LVEF nor using other predictors., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

The relationship between the triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index and mortality among survivors of myocardial infarction (MI) remains understudied. This study aims to evaluate the association between the TyG index and mortality among adult MI patients in the US. Our study included 986 MI patients, sourced from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted from 1999 to 2018. Employing a multivariate Cox proportional hazards model, we examined the association between the TyG index and mortality. To explore potential nonlinear relationships, we employed restricted cubic splines in our analysis. Additionally, we applied a two-piecewise Cox proportional hazards model for a more nuanced analysis of the data, using key turning points as boundaries. To validate the robustness of our research findings, we also performed subgroup analyses. During a 7,342 person-years follow-up period, 434 MI survivors succumbed to various causes, including 158 cardiovascular disease-related deaths. The study revealed a U-shaped pattern between the TyG index and mortality. At TyG index levels below the thresholds (8.85 for all-cause mortality and 9.02 for cardiovascular mortality), mortality exhibited a negative correlation with the TyG index (HR = 0.56, 95%CI 0.39-0.82; HR = 0.67, 95%CI 0.39-1.14). Conversely, mortality rates increased when the TyG index surpassed these thresholds (HR = 1.38, 95%CI 1.08-1.76; HR = 1.56, 95%CI 1.02-2.38). Furthermore, among diabetic patients, subgroup analyses demonstrated that the U-shaped pattern between the TyG index and cardiovascular mortality was particularly pronounced. Our research indicates that among MI survivors, a U-shaped pattern exists between the TyG index and mortality rates, which is particularly pronounced in the diabetic patient subgroup. The corresponding threshold values for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality are 8.85 and 9.02, respectively., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests. Ethics statement The study was reviewed and approved by the NCHS Research Ethics Review Committee. Furthermore, all NHANES participants provided written informed consent as part of the research protocol., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Aims: Women are less likely to receive lipid-lowering therapy (LLT) after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We analysed whether this under-prescription currently persists and has an impact on long-term outcomes., Methods and Results: The FAST-MI programme consists of nationwide registries including all patients admitted for AMI ≤ 48 h from onset over a 1 month period in 2005, 2010, and 2015, with long-term follow-up. This analysis focused on high-intensity LLT (atorvastatin ≥ 40 mg or equivalent, or any combination of statin and ezetimibe) in women and men. Women accounted for 28% (N = 3547) of the 12 659 patients. At discharge, high-intensity LLT was significantly less prescribed in women [54 vs. 68% in men, P < 0.001, adjusted odds ratio (OR) 0.78(95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71-0.87)], a trend that did not improve over time: 2005, 25 vs. 35% (P = 0.14); 2010, 66 vs. 79% (P < 0.001); 2015, 67 vs. 79.5% (P = 0.001). In contrast, female sex was not associated with a lack of other recommended treatments at discharge: beta-blockers [adjusted OR 0.98(95% CI 0.88-1.10), P = 0.78], or renin-angiotensin blockers [adjusted OR 0.94(95% CI 0.85-1.03), P = 0.18]. High-intensity LLT at discharge was significantly associated with improved 5 year survival and infarct- and stroke-free survival in women [adjusted hazard ratios (HR) 0.74(95% CI 0.64-0.86), P < 0.001 and adjusted HR: 0.81(95% CI: 0.74-0.89); P < 0.001, respectively]. Similar results were found using a propensity score-matched analysis [HR for 5 year survival in women with high-intensity LLT: 0.82(95% CI 0.70-0.98), P = 0.03]., Conclusion: Women suffer from a bias regarding the prescription of high-intensity LLT after AMI, which did not attenuate between 2005 and 2015, with potential consequences on both survival and risk of cardiovascular events., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: N.D. has received personal fees and non-financial support from Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, BMS, Sanofi, personal fees from Boehringer Ingelheim, Intercept, MSD, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Servier, UCB Pharmaceuticals, and Vifor, all outside the submitted work. E.P. reports fees for lectures and/or consulting: Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Biotronik, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Daiichi Sankyo, Lilly, MSD, The Medicine Company, Sanofi, Saint Jude Medical, Servier, Siemens. J.F. reports speaking fees for Amgen, Sanofi, Servier and MSD. F.S. reports personal fees from Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, BMS, MSD, Pfizer, and Sanofi, outside the submitted work. T.S. reports grants from AstraZeneca, Daiichi Sankyo, Eli-Lilly, GSK, MSD, Novartis, Sanofi, and personal fees for board membership and/or consultancy and/or lectures from AstraZeneca, BMS, Sanofi, and Novartis. J.-L.G. reports personal fees for lectures and/or consulting: Amgen, MSD, Novartis, and Sanofi-Winthrop France., (© 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 and Aims: Prophylactic implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) are not recommended until left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) has been reassessed 40 to 90 days after an acute myocardial infarction. In the current therapeutic era, the prognosis of sustained ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) occurring during this early post-infarction phase (i.e. within 3 months of hospital discharge) has not yet been specifically evaluated in post-myocardial infarction patients with impaired LVEF. Such was the aim of this retrospective study., Methods: Data analysis was based on a nationwide registry of 1032 consecutive patients with LVEF ≤ 35% after acute myocardial infarction who were implanted with an ICD after being prescribed a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator (WCD) for a period of 3 months upon discharge from hospital after the index infarction., Results: ICDs were implanted either because a sustained VA occurred while on WCD (VA+/WCD, n = 72) or because LVEF remained ≤35% at the end of the early post-infarction phase (VA-/WCD, n = 960). The median follow-up was 30.9 months. Sustained VAs occurred within 1 year after ICD implantation in 22.2% and 3.5% of VA+/WCD and VA-/WCD patients, respectively (P < .0001). The adjusted multivariable analysis showed that sustained VAs while on WCD independently predicted recurrence of sustained VAs at 1 year (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 6.91; 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.73-12.81; P < .0001) and at the end of follow-up (adjusted HR 3.86; 95% CI 2.37-6.30; P < .0001) as well as 1-year mortality (adjusted HR 2.86; 95% CI 1.28-6.39; P = .012)., Conclusions: In patients with LVEF ≤ 35%, sustained VA during the early post-infarction phase is predictive of recurrent sustained VAs and 1-year mortality., (© 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.)

Introduction: The benefit of complete revascularization in diabetic patients with myocardial infarction remains unclear. this study aims to find the optimal strategy of total vascular repair for diabetic patients with acute myocardial infarction., Methods: In an analysis of a cohort, we assigned diabetic patients with myocardial infarction who were undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of the culprit lesion to receive either staged complete revascularization of nonculprit lesions or to receive no further revascularization in Madani Hospital (Tabriz, Iran). Functionally significant nonculprit lesions were identified either by angiography. The primary outcome was rates of readmission, cardiac deaths, nonfatal myocardial re-infarction, and overall mortality at 1 year., Results: In our center, a total of 1186 patients underwent primary-PCI treatment, among which 521 were diagnosed with diabetes. Ultimately, 393 patients were selected for inclusion in the study. Within this cohort, 271 individuals (68.9%) underwent repair of only the culprit vessels (group 1), while 122 individuals (31.1%) received a comprehensive staged restoration of the vessels (group 2). During this time, group 1 in comparison with group 2 experienced 204 (75.3%) versus 97 (79.5%) cases of readmission, 48 (17.7%) versus 8 (6.5%) instances of cardiac death, 22 (8.1%) versus 18 (14.7%) occurrences of nonfatal myocardial re-infarction. Notably, the incidence of cardiac death in group 2 were significantly lower than that in group 1 (p ≤ 0.05)., Conclusions: For individuals diagnosed with diabetes, staged complete revascularization demonstrated a lower frequency of readmission, cardiac deaths, nonfatal myocardial reinfarction, and overall mortality, in contrast to revascularization that targeted only the culprit lesion., (© 2024 The Author(s). Clinical Cardiology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: Double-kissing (DK) crush and DK culotte are the recommended 2-stent strategies in true coronary bifurcation lesions. However, it is a matter of curiosity about which of the DK crush and DK culotte stenting techniques will have superior results. We aimed to compare the clinical outcomes of DK crush and DK culotte stenting in nonleft main coronary artery bifurcation., Methods: Consecutive patients who received DK crush or DK culotte technique for de novo true nonleft main coronary artery bifurcation lesion were categorized according to which treatment they received. The primary end point of the study was target lesion failure as a composite end point of target lesion revascularization, target vessel myocardial infarction, and cardiac death. Secondary end points were all-cause death and definite stent thrombosis., Results: A total of 202 patients were categorized as DK crush (101 patients) or DK culotte (101 patients) techniques. The target lesion failure had occurred frequently in the DK crush (10.9%) compared with the DK culotte (3.0%; P =0.028) that was mainly driven by increased target lesion revascularization (9.9% in the DK crush versus 3.0% in the DK culotte; P =0.045). The number of patients with target vessel myocardial infarction (3.0% in the DK crush versus 2.0% in the DK culotte; P =0.651) and cardiac death (1.0% in the DK crush versus 0.0% in the DK culotte; P =0.315) was higher in the DK crush. There were no differences in terms of definite stent thrombosis and all-cause death between groups., Conclusions: In the present analysis, DK culotte was associated with lower 1-year target lesion failure rates compared with DK crush in true nonleft main coronary artery bifurcations., Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT04789161., Competing Interests: None.

Background: The optimal hemoglobin threshold to guide red blood cell (RBC) transfusion for patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) and anemia is uncertain., Objective: To estimate the efficacy of 4 individual hemoglobin thresholds (<10 g/dL [<100 g/L], <9 g/dL [<90 g/L], <8 g/dL [<80 g/L], and <7 g/dL [<70 g/L]) to guide transfusion in patients with acute MI and anemia., Design: Prespecified secondary analysis of the MINT (Myocardial Ischemia and Transfusion) trial using target trial emulation methods. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02981407)., Setting: 144 clinical sites in 6 countries., Participants: 3492 MINT trial participants with acute MI and a hemoglobin level below 10 g/dL., Intervention: Four transfusion strategies to maintain patients' hemoglobin concentrations at or above thresholds of 10, 9, 8, or 7 g/dL. Protocol exceptions were permitted for specified adverse clinical events., Measurements: Data from the MINT trial were leveraged to emulate 4 transfusion strategies and estimate per protocol effects on the composite outcome of 30-day death or recurrent MI (death/MI) and 30-day death using inverse probability weighting., Results: The 30-day risk for death/MI was 14.8% (95% CI, 11.8% to 18.4%) for a <10-g/dL strategy, 15.1% (CI, 11.7% to 18.2%) for a <9-g/dL strategy, 15.9% (CI, 12.4% to 19.0%) for a <8-g/dL strategy, and 18.3% (CI, 14.6% to 22.0%) for a <7-g/dL strategy. Absolute risk differences and risk ratios relative to the <10-g/dL strategy for 30-day death/MI increased as thresholds decreased, although 95% CIs were wide. Findings were similar and imprecise for 30-day death., Limitation: Unmeasured confounding may have persisted despite adjustment., Conclusion: The 30-day risks for death/MI and death among patients with acute MI and anemia seem to increase progressively with lower hemoglobin concentration thresholds for transfusion. However, the imprecision around estimates from this target trial analysis precludes definitive conclusions about individual hemoglobin thresholds., Primary Funding Source: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute., Competing Interests: Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M24-0571.

Objectives: To determine if sex was an effect modifier in a pooled analysis of asymptomatic patients from CREST and ACT I., Materials and Methods: We analyzed data from 2544 patients aged <80 with ≥70 % asymptomatic carotid stenosis randomized to CAS or CEA (n CREST = 1091; n ACT-1 = 1453). The pre-specified primary endpoint in both trials was any stroke, myocardial infarction or death during the peri-procedural period, or ipsilateral stroke within 4 years of randomization. The secondary endpoint was any stroke or death during the peri-procedural period, or ipsilateral stroke within 4 years of randomization., Results: There was no significant difference in the frequency of events for men or women between CAS and CEA for the primary or secondary endpoints. When assessing for an interaction of sex and risks between procedures, the treatment-by-sex interaction was not significant for either primary or secondary endpoints in the four-year period or the peri-procedural period. However, women had significantly fewer post-procedural events (ipsilateral stroke) with CAS than CEA (HR = 0.33, 95 % CI: 0.09-1.18) compared to men (HR = 2.09, 95 % CI: 0.78-5.61), p = 0.02 for interaction., Conclusions: In this large, pooled analysis of asymptomatic patients comparing CAS to CEA, sex did not act as an effect modifier of treatment differences in the four-year primary stroke-MI-or-death endpoint or the secondary stroke-or-death endpoint. However, during the post-procedural period men treated with CAS were at higher risk than their female counterparts., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: JV Research grant from NIH. BH Research grant NIH. GH Research grant from NIH. TB Research grant from the NIH. JSM Research grants from Abbott, Cook, Medtronic, Endologix, Gore, and NIH. GR; InspireMD Inc; Contego Medical Inc. KR Consultant/Scientific Advisory Board: Abbott Vascular; Althea Medical; Angiodynamics; Auxetics; Becton-Dickinson; Boston Scientific; Contego; Crossliner; Imperative Care; Innova Vascular; Inspire MD; Janssen/Johnson and Johnson; Magneto; Mayo Clinic; MedAlliance; Medtronic; Neptune Medical; Penumbra; Philips; Surmodics; Terumo; Thrombolex; Vasorum; Vumedi. Equity: Access Vascular; Aerami; Althea Medical; Auxetics; Contego; Crossliner; Endospan; Imperative Care/Truvic; Innova Vascular; InspireMD; JanaCare; Magneto; MedAlliance; Neptune Medical; Orchestra; PQ Bypass; Prosomnus; Shockwave; Skydance; Summa Therapeutics; Thrombolex; Valcare; Vasorum; Vumedi. Board Member: National PERT Consortium(TM). VJHoward: Research grant from NIH; AMP Declaration of Interest: None., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: The aim of this study is to describe resources and outcomes of coronary computed tomography angiography plus Stress CT perfusion (CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP) and stress cardiovascular magnetic resonance (Stress-CMR) in symptomatic patients with suspected or known CAD., Methods: Six hundred and twenty-four consecutive symptomatic patients with intermediate to high-risk pretest likelihood for CAD or previous history of revascularization referred to our hospital for clinically indicated CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP or Stress-CMR were enrolled. Stress-CTP scans were performed in 223 patients while 401 patients performed Stress-CMR. Patient follow-up was performed at 1 year after index test performance. Endpoints were all cardiac events, as a combined endpoint of revascularization, non-fatal MI and death, and hard cardiac events, as combined endpoint of non-fatal MI and death., Results: Twenty-nine percent of patients who underwent CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP received revascularization, 7% of subjects assessed with Stress-CMR were treated invasively, and a low number of non-fatal MI and death was observed with both strategies (hard events in 0.4% of patients that had CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP as index test, and in 3% of patients evaluated with Stress-CMR). According to the predefined endpoints, CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP group showed high rate of all cardiac events and low rate of hard cardiac events, respectively. The cumulative costs were 1970 ​± ​2506 Euro and 733 ​± ​1418 Euro for the CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP group and Stress-CMR group, respectively., Conclusions: The use of CCTA ​+ ​Stress-CTP strategy was associated with high referral to revascularization but with a favourable trend in terms of hard cardiac events and diagnostic yield in identifying individuals at lower risk of adverse events despite the presence of CAD., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All authors have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The risk of life-threatening major cardiovascular outcomes among patients with bullous pemphigoid (BP) is inconsistent in the current literature., Objective: To evaluate the risk and prognostic outcomes of myocardial infarction (MI), cerebrovascular accident (CVA), peripheral vascular disease (PVD) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients with BP. We additionally aimed to explore the influence of different therapeutic approaches on the risk of these outcomes., Methods: A population-based retrospective cohort study was conducted to compare BP patients (n = 3924) with age-, gender- and ethnicity-matched control subjects (n = 19,280) with regard to incident cases of MI, CVA, PVD and PE. Adjusted hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated by multivariate Cox regression analysis. Data were retrieved from Clalit Health Services' computerized database., Results: Relative to their matched controls, patients with BP were at an elevated risk of MI (fully-adjusted HR: 1.44; 95% CI: 1.14-1.81; p = 0.002), CVA (fully-adjusted HR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.06-1.45; p = 0.007), PVD (fully-adjusted HR: 1.60; 95% CI: 1.27-2.03; p = 0.003) and PE (fully-adjusted HR: 1.72; 95% CI: 1.28-2.32; p < 0.008). Patients with BP experienced heightened risk of all-cause mortality in the presence of comorbid MI (fully-adjusted HR: 1.61; 95% CI: 1.44-1.81; p < 0.001), CVA (fully-adjusted HR: 1.70; 95% CI: 1.52-1.89; p < 0.001), PVD (fully-adjusted HR: 1.38; 95% CI: 1.20-1.58; p < 0.001) and PE (fully-adjusted HR: 1.44; 95% CI: 1.10-1.88; p = 0.007). The therapeutic approach utilized to manage BP did not significantly influence the risk of cardiovascular outcomes., Conclusions: BP is associated with an elevated risk of MI, CVA, PVD, PE and cardiovascular mortality. Primary, secondary and tertiary cardiovascular prevention measures should be implemented among patients with BP., (© 2024 The Author(s). Australasian Journal of Dermatology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian College of Dermatologists.)

Introduction: Despite the effect on blood lipid levels, the clinical benefits of intensive versus standard pharmacological lipid-lowering therapy remain unclear. Previous reviews have presented relative effects on the risk of clinical outcomes, but not the absolute risk reductions (ARRs) and the time gained to a clinical outcome, also called outcome postponement (OP). The aim of this study was to estimate the effect of intensive versus standard lipid-lowering therapy in terms of ARR and OP of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and all-cause mortality., Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and prior reviews to identify trials comparing intensive versus standard lipid-lowering therapy for the risk of cardiovascular disease. We extracted the number of patients with MACE, MI, stroke, and all-cause mortality. Risk of bias was assessed according to the five domains of the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool 2.0. We calculated ARRs and OPs to assess the clinical benefits of intensive versus standard therapy for each outcome. We conducted meta-analyses standardizing the results to 2 and 5 years of follow-up., Results: We identified 11 double-blind, randomized, controlled trials (n = 101,357). The follow-up period ranged from 1.5 to 7.0 years, with an average follow-up duration of 3.7 years. Risk of bias was generally high. During an estimated 2 years of intensive versus standard lipid-lowering therapy, 1.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7-1.5) fewer patients had MACE and the OP of MACE was 4.1 days (95% CI 2.6-5.6). The effects were 0.7% (95% CI 0.4-0.8) and 2.5 days (95% CI 1.6-3.3) for MI, 0.2% (95% CI 0.1-0.3) and 0.9 days (95% CI 0.5-1.2) for stroke, and 0.2% (95% CI - 0.1 to 0.4) and 0.6 days (95% CI - 0.4 to 1.5) for all-cause death. During on average 5 years of intensive versus standard lipid-lowering therapy, 2.4% (95% CI 1.5-3.3) fewer patients had MACE and the time gained to MACE was 23.5 days (95% CI 14.9-32.0). The effects were 1.5% (95% CI 1.0-2.1) and 14.6 days (95% CI 9.3-20.0) for MI, 0.6% (95% CI 0.4-0.8) and 5.3 days (95% CI 3.3-7.4) for stroke, and 0.4% (95% CI -0.2 to 0.1) and 3.6 days (95% CI - 2.1 to 9.2) for all-cause death., Conclusion: Intensive lipid-lowering therapy during 2 or 5 years did not lead to fewer deaths or lifetime gained, and the effects on MI and stroke were negligible. The largest effect was that MACE did not occur in two of 100 patients and was postponed 3-4 weeks after 5 years of intensive treatment. Given the small effect, patients should receive this information as part of shared decision making., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objective: Patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) complicated by respiratory failure require antiplatelet regimens which often cannot be stopped and may increase bleeding from tracheostomy. However, there is limited available data on both the proportion of patients undergoing tracheostomy and the impact on antiplatelet regimens on outcomes., Methods: Utilizing the Vizient® Clinical Data Base, we identified patients ≥18 years admitted from 2015 to 2019 with a primary diagnosis of AMI and requiring invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). We assessed for the incidence of patients undergoing tracheostomy, outcomes stratified by the timing of tracheostomy (≤10 vs >10 days), and the association between dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) use and in-hospital mortality., Results: We identified 26 435 patients presenting with AMI requiring IMV. The mean (SD) age was 66.8 (12.3) years and 33.4% were women. The incidence of tracheostomy was 6.0% (n = 1573), and the median IMV time to tracheostomy was 12 days, 55.6% of which underwent percutaneous and 44.4% underwent open tracheostomy. Over 90% (n = 1424) underwent tracheostomy (>10 days) and had a similar mortality when compared to early (≤10 days) tracheostomy (22.5% vs 22.8%, P  = 0.94). On the day of tracheostomy, only 24.7% were given DAPT, which was associated with a lower mortality than those not on DAPT (17.4% vs 23.7%, P  = 0.01). After multivariable adjustment, DAPT use on the day of tracheostomy remained associated with lower in-hospital mortality (odds ratio 0.68; 95% confidence interval: 0.49-0.94, P  = 0.02). Tracheostomy complications were not different between groups ( P  > 0.05), but more patients in the DAPT group required post-tracheostomy blood transfusions (5.6% vs 2.7%, P  = 0.01)., Conclusion: Approximately 1 in 20 intubated AMI patients requires tracheostomy. The lack of DAPT interruption on the day of tracheostomy but not the timing of tracheostomy was associated with a lower in-hospital mortality. Our results suggest that DAPT should not be a barrier to tracheostomy for patients with AMI., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Purpose: Previous studies showed that long-term use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) was associated with cardiovascular events. However, the impact of short-term PPI exposure on intensive care unit (ICU) patients with myocardial infarction (MI) remains largely unknown. This study aims to determine the precise correlation between short-term PPI usage during hospitalization and prognostic outcomes of ICU-admitted MI patients using Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV database (MIMIC-IV)., Methods: Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to adjust confounding factors. The primary study outcome was rehospitalization with mortality and length of stay as secondary outcomes. Binary logistic, multivariable Cox, and linear regression analyses were employed to estimate the impact of short-term PPI exposure on ICU-admitted MI patients., Results: A total of 7249 patients were included, involving 3628 PPI users and 3621 non-PPI users. After PSM, 2687 pairs of patients were matched. The results demonstrated a significant association between PPI exposure and increased risk of rehospitalization for MI in both univariate and multivariate [odds ratio (OR) = 1.157, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.020-1.313] analyses through logistic regression after PSM. Furthermore, this risk was also observed in patients using PPIs > 7 days, despite decreased risk of all-cause mortality among these patients. It was also found that pantoprazole increased the risk of rehospitalization, whereas omeprazole did not., Conclusion: Short-term PPI usage during hospitalization was still associated with higher risk of rehospitalization for MI in ICU-admitted MI patients. Furthermore, omeprazole might be superior to pantoprazole regarding the risk of rehospitalization in ICU-admitted MI patients., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Gupta Perioperative Risk for Myocardial Infarction or Cardiac Arrest (MICA) is a validated self-explanatory score applied in cardiac or noncardiac surgeries. This study aims to assess the predictive value of the MICA score for cardiovascular events after aortoiliac revascularization., Methods: This prospective cohort underwent elective aortoiliac revascularization between 2013 and 2021. Patients' demographic, clinical characteristics, and outcomes were registered. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to the MICA score using optimal binning. Survival analysis to test for time-dependent variables and multivariate Cox regression analysis for independent predictors were performed., Results: This study included 130 patients with a median follow-up of 55 months. Preoperative MICA score was ≥6.5 in 41 patients. MICA ≥6.5 presented a statistically significant association, with long-term occurrence of acute heart failure (HR = 1.695, 95% CI 1.208-2.379, P = 0.002), major adverse cardiovascular events (HR = 1.222, 95% CI 1.086-1.376, P < 0.001), and all-cause mortality (HR = 1.256, 95% CI 1.107-1.425, P < 0.001). Multivariable Cox regression confirmed MICA as a significant independent predictor of long-term major adverse cardiovascular events (aHR = 1.145 95% CI 1.010-1.298, P = 0.034) and all-cause mortality (aHR = 1.172 95% CI 1.026-1.339, P = 0.020)., Conclusions: The MICA score is a quick, easy-to-obtain, predictive tool in identifying patients with a higher risk of postaortoiliac revascularization cardiovascular events, such as acute heart failure, major adverse cardiovascular events, and all-cause mortality. Additional research for the validation of the MICA score in the context of aortoiliac revascularization and specific interventions is necessary., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Cardiogenic Shock (CS) complicating acute myocardial infarction (AMI) poses a significant mortality risk, suggesting the opportunity to implement effective mechanical circulatory support strategies. The comparative efficacy of Intra-Aortic Balloon Pump (IABP) and Impella in managing CS-AMI remains a subject of investigation., Objective: This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of Impella and IABP in managing CS-AMI, exploring mortality and adverse events., Methods: A systematic search of major databases from inception to November 2023 identified eight studies, comprising 10,628 patients, comparing Impella and IABP in CS-AMI. Retrospective studies (preferably Propensity-matched) and Randomized Clinical Trials (RCTs) were included., Results: Impella use exhibited significantly higher mortality (57% vs. 46%; OR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.29-1.60; p < 0.001) and major bleeding (30% vs 15%; OR: 2.93, 95% CI: 1.67-5.13; p < 0.001)., Conclusions: In unselected CS-AMI patients, Impella usage is associated with significantly higher mortality and major bleeding., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest Authors have no conflict of interest to declare., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Renal failure is a predictor of adverse outcomes in carotid revascularization. There has been debate regarding the benefit of revascularization in patients with severe chronic kidney disease or on dialysis., Methods: Patients in the Vascular Quality Initiative undergoing transcarotid artery revascularization (TCAR), transfemoral carotid artery stenting (tfCAS), or CEA between 2016 and 2023 with an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of <30 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or on dialysis were included. Patients were divided into cohorts based on procedure. Additional analyses were performed for patients on dialysis only and by symptomatology. Primary outcomes were perioperative stroke/death/myocardial infarction (MI) (SDM). Secondary outcomes included perioperative death, stroke, MI, cranial nerve injury, and stroke/death. Inverse probability of treatment weighting was performed based on treatment assignment to TCAR, tfCAS, and CEA patients and adjusted for demographics, comorbidities, and preoperative symptoms. The χ 2 test and multivariable logistic regression analysis were used to evaluate the association of procedure with perioperative outcomes in the weighted cohort. Five-year survival was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier and weighted Cox regression., Results: In the weighted cohort, 13,851 patients with an eGFR of <30 (2506 on dialysis) underwent TCAR (3639; 704 on dialysis), tfCAS (1975; 393 on dialysis), or CEA (8237; 1409 on dialysis) during the study period. Compared with TCAR, CEA had higher odds of SDM (2.8% vs 3.6%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.27; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-1.61; P = .049), and MI (0.7% vs 1.5%; aOR, 2.00; 95% CI, 1.31-3.05; P = .001). Compared with TCAR, rates of SDM (2.8% vs 5.8%), stroke (1.2% vs 2.6%), and death (0.9% vs 2.4%) were all higher for tfCAS. In asymptomatic patients CEA patients had higher odds of MI (0.7% vs 1.3%; aOR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.15-2.97; P = .011) and cranial nerve injury (0.3% vs 1.9%; aOR, 7.23; 95% CI, 3.28-15.9; P < .001). Like in the primary analysis, asymptomatic tfCAS patients demonstrated higher odds of death and stroke/death. Symptomatic CEA patients demonstrated no difference in stroke, death, or stroke/death. Although tfCAS patients demonstrated higher odds of death, stroke, MI, stroke/death, and SDM. In both groups, the 5-year survival was similar for TCAR and CEA (eGFR <30, 75.1% vs 74.2%; aHR, 1.06; P = .3) and lower for tfCAS (eGFR <30, 75.1% vs 70.4%; aHR, 1.44; P < .001)., Conclusions: CEA and TCAR had similar odds of stroke and death and are both a reasonable choice in this population; however, TCAR may be better in patients with an increased risk of MI. Additionally, tfCAS patients were more likely to have worse outcomes after weighting for symptom status. Finally, although patients with a reduced eGFR have worse outcomes than their healthy peers, this analysis shows that the majority of patients survive long enough to benefit from the potential stroke risk reduction provided by all revascularization procedures., (Copyright © 2024 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Outcomes for weekend surgical interventions are associated with higher rates of mortality and complications than weekday interventions. Although prior investigations have reported the "weekend effect" for carotid endarterectomy (CEA), this association remains unclear for transcarotid artery revascularization (TCAR) and transfemoral carotid artery stenting (TFCAS). We investigated the weekend effect for all three carotid revascularization methods., Methods: We queried the Vascular Quality Initiative for patients who underwent CEA, TCAR, and TFCAS between 2016 and 2022. χ 2 and logistic regression modeling analyzed outcomes including in-hospital stroke, death, myocardial infarction, and 30-day mortality by weekend vs weekday intervention. Backward stepwise regression was used to identify significant confounding variables and was ultimately included in each final logistic regression model. Logistic regression of outcomes was substratified by symptomatic status. Secondary multivariable analysis compared outcomes between the three revascularization methods by weekend vs weekday interventions., Results: A total of 155,962 procedures were analyzed including 103,790 CEA, 31,666 TCAR, and 20,506 TFCAS. Of these, 1988 CEA, 246 TCAR, and 820 TFCAS received weekend interventions. Logistic regression demonstrated no significant differences for TCAR and increased odds of in-hospital stroke/death/myocardial infarction for CEA (odds ratio [OR]: 1.31, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.04-1.65) and TFCAS (OR: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.09-1.96) weekend procedures. Asymptomatic TCAR patients had nearly triple the odds of 30-day mortality (OR: 2.85, 95% CI: 1.06-7.68, P = .038). Similarly, odds of in-hospital death were nearly tripled for asymptomatic CEA (OR: 2.89, 95% CI: 1.30-6.43, P = .009) and asymptomatic TFCAS (OR: 2.78, 95% CI: 1.34-5.76, P = .006) patients. Secondary analysis demonstrated that CEA and TCAR had no significant differences for all outcomes. TFCAS was associated with increased odds of stroke and death compared with CEA and TCAR., Conclusions: In this observational cohort study, we found that weekend carotid revascularization is associated with increased odds of complications and mortality. Furthermore, asymptomatic weekend patients perform worse in the CEA and TFCAS procedural groups. Among the three revascularization methods, TFCAS is associated with the highest odds of perioperative stroke and mortality. As such, our findings suggest that TFCAS procedures should be avoided over the weekend in favor of CEA or TCAR. In patients who are poor candidates for CEA, TCAR offers the lowest morbidity and mortality for weekend procedures., Competing Interests: Disclosures None., (Copyright © 2024 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Postoperative outcomes following carotid revascularization are understudied in Asian patients. We aimed to assess whether disease severity and postoperative outcomes following carotid revascularization differ between Asian and White patients, and whether this varies with Asian procedure density., Methods: We analyzed the Vascular Quality Initiative Carotid Endarterectomy and Carotid Artery Stenting datasets from 2003 to 2021. Regions were divided into tertiles based on Asian procedure density. Propensity scores were used to match Asian and White patients based on patient factors and procedure type. The primary outcome variable was a collapsed composite of in-hospital ipsilateral stroke/death/myocardial infarction. χ 2 tests were used to assess association between Asian race and disease severity, center and surgeon volume, and 1-year outcomes. Logistic and Cox regressions were performed between the matched cohorts., Results: A total of 1766 Asian and 159,608 White patients underwent carotid revascularization, and we identified 2704 patients (1352 Asian and 1352 White) in the matched cohorts. Among propensity matched patients, all-comer Asian patients more commonly had >80% ipsilateral stenosis (63% vs 52%; P < .001) and a moderate/severe preoperative Rankin score (7.6% vs 5.1%; P = .007). The rate of in-hospital stroke/death/myocardial infarction was higher in Asian patients (2.6% vs 1.3%; P = .012), and this disparity was more pronounced in the lowest tertile of Asian procedure density (4.3% vs 0.5%; P < .001). Logistic regression in the propensity-matched cohort demonstrated Asian race was associated with lower odds of intervention at highest volume centers (odds ratio [OR], 0.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.2-0.3; P < .001) and by highest volume surgeons (OR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.3-0.4; P < .001). Asian race was associated with higher odds of in-hospital stroke/death/myocardial infarction (OR, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.1-3.8; P = .031), and there was a significant interaction between Asian procedure density and the relationship between Asian race and this outcome (interaction P = .001). After accounting for center and surgeon volume, the association of Asian race and the composite outcome was mitigated (OR, 1.5; 95% CI, 0.7-3.3; P = .300). Cox regression between the matched cohorts demonstrated that Asian race was associated with lower 1-year mortality (hazard ratio, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.3-0.7; P = .001) and higher risk of 1-year reintervention (hazard ratio, 16; 95% CI, 1.8-142; P = .013)., Conclusions: Asian patients are more likely to present with a higher degree of carotid stenosis, higher preoperative risk, and experience worse perioperative outcomes. The association of Asian race with perioperative stroke/death/myocardial infarction varies with Asian procedure density and is also confounded by center and surgeon volume. These results highlight the importance of understanding referral patterns and cultural effects on outcomes disparities in Asian patients., Competing Interests: Disclosures None., (Copyright © 2024 Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Type 2 diabetes has traditionally been a risk factor for worse prognosis after myocardial infarction (MI), but major advances have been made in its treatment, and the use of secondary preventive measures has intensified. We evaluated the short- and long-term mortality rates of patients with type 2 diabetes after MI and explored the associations between the characteristics of patients with type 2 diabetes and MI mortality., Methods: Mortality rates among consecutive MI patients with type 2 diabetes using oral antidiabetic medication (n = 13,152; 40% female; mean age 73.6 years) and MI patients without diabetes (n = 77,669) treated in Finland from 2004 to 2018 were retrospectively studied using a combination of national registries (median follow-up 5.7 years). Differences between groups were balanced with multivariable adjustments and propensity score matching., Results: Mortality was higher in patients with type 2 diabetes than in the propensity score-matched controls without diabetes at 30 days (12.6% versus 12.0%: p = 0.013), at 1 year (22.4% versus 21.4%; p = 0.001), and at 15 years (83.2% vs. 73.4%; HR 1.20; 95% CI 1.17-1.24; p < 0.0001) after MI. In subgroup analyses, type 2 diabetes was associated with a poorer prognosis across the spectrum of MI patients. The excess mortality risk was attenuated by increasing age but was similar in both sexes. Male sex, age, cardiovascular and noncardiovascular co-morbidities, lack of revascularization, a longer duration of diabetes, and baseline insulin therapy were associated with increased mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes. The one-year prognosis of patients with type 2 diabetes improved during the study period, but the mortality gap compared to patients without diabetes was not altered., Conclusions: Type 2 diabetes had a negative impact on both short- and long-term outcome after MI, but effect sizes were relatively small. Patients with longer duration of diabetes or need for insulin therapy are still at particular risk., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: International cohort studies have consistently demonstrated an unfavorable prognosis in female patients after the first acute myocardial infarction (AMI) over the past decades. However, national data on this topic are limited., Objectives: This study aims to compare national cohorts of men and women hospitalized due to the first acute myocardial infarction, examining long-term outcomes., Methods: A retrospective, observational study using real-world data extracted from the global TriNetX platform, including patients of both sexes with a confirmed diagnosis of AMI according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), version 11, code I21. The level of statistical significance adopted in the analysis was 5% (0.05). The primary outcome assessed was a composite of death, new hospitalization for AMI, myocardial revascularization procedures, or heart failure after the hospital phase with a 5-year follow-up., Results: Data from 29,041 patients were evaluated, of which 11,284 (38.4%) were women. The mean age of the female and male populations was 64.4 and 59.8 years, respectively. The group of women showed a higher occurrence of the composite outcome of death, new hospitalization for AMI, myocardial revascularization procedures, or heart failure after the hospital phase with a 5-year follow-up (OR 1.058; CI 1.005 - 1.113; p = 0.03)., Conclusions: In this large Brazilian cohort, the female sex was associated with a higher occurrence of cardiovascular events within 5 years after hospital discharge., Background: Real-world study comparing female and male cohorts in the TriNetX network.

Aims: Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is a serious consequence of a myocardial infarction (MI), but identifying patients at risk of developing SCD remains a major clinical challenge, especially in the case of juvenile MI. The aim of this study is to identify predictors of SCD after early-onset MI using long-term follow-up data relating to a large nationwide patient cohort., Methods and Results: The Italian Genetic Study on Early-onset MI enrolled 2000 patients experiencing a first MI before the age of 45 years, who were followed up for a median of 19.9 years. Fine-Gray proportional hazard models were used to assess the associations between their clinical, demographic, and index event data and the occurrence of SCD. Sudden cardiac death occurred in 195 patients, who were more frequently males, were hypertensive and/or diabetic, had a history of previous thrombo-embolic events with a greater atherosclerotic burden, and had a lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) after the index event. A multivariable analysis showed that the independent predictors of SCD were diabetes, hypertension, previous thrombo-embolic events, a higher SYNTAX score, and a lower LVEF. There was no clear evidence of the clustering of SCD events during the follow-up. Sudden cardiac death was the first post-MI clinical event in 101 patients; the remaining 94 experienced SCD after a non-fatal MI or hospitalization for coronary revascularization., Conclusion: Sudden cardiac death frequently occurs during the 20 years after early-onset MI. The nature of the identified predictors and the absence of clustering suggest that the pathophysiological basis of SCD may be related to progressive coronary atherosclerosis., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: none declared., (© 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: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the most common cause of morbidity and mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). There is a paucity of data on the pattern of first manifestation of CVD and the outcome among patients with T2DM in Cameroon., Objectives: We aimed to examine the pattern of the first manifestation of CVD and the outcome among patients with T2DM., Methods: Between January 2017 and December 2023, files of patients with T2DM hospitalized for the first observed CVD were reviewed. We identified cases of three incident overt clinically manifest CVD complications (acute myocardial infarction [AMI], stroke, and heart failure) in hospitalized T2DM patients. Patients with a previous history of CVD were excluded., Results: Out of the 1091 patients hospitalized with T2DM, we identified 261(23.9%) patients with clinically overt CVD, of whom 129 (49.4%) were females. The mean age was 63.9 ± 12.1 years and ranged from 15 to 91 years. Women were significantly older compared to men (65.4 ± 11.4 years vs. 62.5 ± 12.6 years; p = 0.042). Hypertension was reported in 201 (77%; 95% CI: 71.4-82) patients. Any form of chronic kidney disease was seen in 15 (5.8%; 95% CI: 3.3-9.3) patients. HIV infection was seen in 5 (1.9%; 95% CI: 0.6-4.4) patients. Stroke was the most common incident clinically overt CVD in 144 (55.2%; 95% CI: 48.9-61.3) patients, followed by heart failure in 105 (40.2%; 95% CI: 34.2-46.5) patients, and Acute MI in 12 (4.6%; 95% CI: 2.4-7.9) patients. The mean length of hospital stay was 9.7 ± 6.6 days. Patients with stroke had a significantly longer hospital stay > 7 days (63% vs. 48.7%, p = 0.021). The in-hospital case fatality was seen in 35 (13.4%; 95% CI: 9.5-18.2) patients., Conclusion: Nearly 1 out of 4 hospitalized patients with T2DM was hospitalized for a first CVD. Stroke and heart failure are the most common initial manifestations of CVD. More than three-quarters of the patients had concomitant hypertension and the in-hospital case fatality was high., Clinical Trial Number: Not applicable., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: The optimal transfusion strategy in acute myocardial infarction (AMI)-associated anemia remains uncertain., Objectives: To compare all-cause mortality between liberal versus restrictive transfusion strategies in patients with AMI-associated anemia, using a meta-analytic approach., Methods: Pubmed, Embase, and ClinicalTrials.gov were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing liberal and restrictive transfusion strategies in AMI-associated anemia. Random-effects meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis (TSA) were conducted to compare blood use, efficacy, and safety endpoints. The p-values were 2-sided with an α of 0.05., Results: In a pooled analysis involving 4,217 participants from three RCTs followed-up for 30 days, no statistically significant differences emerged between restrictive and liberal strategies in all-cause mortality (RR 1.03; 95% CI 0.67-1.57; p=0.90) and other efficacy endpoints (recurrent AMI, unscheduled revascularization, acute heart failure, stroke, and acute kidney injury), as well as in safety endpoints including allergic reactions, infection, and acute lung injury. TSA did not reach futility boundaries. In patients assigned to restrictive strategy, substantial differences in transfusion use were observed across RCTs, correlating with mortality rates, and likely accounting for between-study heterogeneity in treatment effects., Conclusions: In patients with AMI-associated anemia, there is no clear superiority between liberal and restrictive transfusion strategies in all-cause mortality or other major outcomes in 30 days. However, the heterogeneity observed in blood use between the restrictive groups likely explains variable findings across RCTs.

Background: Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) reportedly reduce upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, whether the benefits of PPIs differ in high-risk subgroups is unknown., Methods and Results: Among 24,563 patients undergoing first PCI in the CREDO-Kyoto registry Cohort-2 and -3, we evaluated long-term effects of PPI for UGIB, defined as GUSTO moderate/severe bleeding, in several potential high-risk subgroups. In the study population, 45.6% of patients were prescribed PPIs. Over a median 5.6-year follow-up, PPIs were associated with lower adjusted risk of UGIB (hazard ratio [HR] 0.64; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.50-0.80; P<0.001) and a non-significant but numerically lower risk of any gastrointestinal bleeding (HR 0.84; 95% CI 0.71-1.01; P=0.06). PPIs were not associated with a lower risk of GUSTO moderate/severe bleeding (HR 1.04; 95% CI 0.94-1.15; P=0.40) or a higher adjusted risk of myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke (HR 1.00; 95% CI 0.90-1.12; P=0.97), but were associated with higher adjusted mortality risk (HR 1.18; 95% CI 1.09-1.27; P<0.001). The effects of PPIs for UGIB, myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke, and all-cause death were consistent regardless of age, sex, acute coronary syndrome, high bleeding risk, oral anticoagulant use, and type of P2Y 12 inhibitor., Conclusions: PPIs were associated with a lower risk of UGIB and a neutral risk of ischemic events regardless of high-risk subgroup.

Introduction: The use of multiple arterial grafts (MAGs) has an impact on patient survival; however, preference for its use in the acute phase of myocardial infarction (AMI) has not yet been established. This study aimed to compare the short-mid-term clinical results of AMI patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) with a single arterial graft (SAG) vs. MAGs., Methods: This is a cross-sectional cohort study of 4,053 patients from the Registro Paulista de Cirurgia Cardiovascular II (REPLICCAR II). CABG in the AMI was considered when performed between one and seven days after diagnosis (n=238). Thirty-five patients underwent surgery with ≥ 2 arterial grafts (MAG group), population adjustment in SAG group was performed using the propensity score matching (PSM). Clinical follow-up was performed by telephone to assess need for readmission, new AMI, reoperation, and death., Results: After PSM, 70 patients were evaluated. During hospitalization, a significant statistical difference was observed in the surgery duration: the MAG group had a median of 4.78 hours while the SAG group had 4.11 hours (P=0.040). Within the MAG group, there was a predominance use of bilateral internal thoracic artery (62.86%), followed by radial graft associated with the use of left internal thoracic artery (28.57%) and the combination of the three grafts (8.57%). There were no significant differences between the groups in terms of outcomes up to 30 days after CABG or up to five years after CABG., Conclusion: In REPLICCAR II, usage of MAGs in the AMI was not associated with clinical worsening of patients until the mid-term follow-up.

Background: Whether revascularisation (REV) improves outcomes in patients with three-vessel coronary artery disease (3V-CAD) is uncertain., Aims: Our objective was to evaluate outcomes with REV (percutaneous coronary intervention [PCI] or coronary artery bypass graft surgery [CABG]) versus medical therapy in patients with 3V-CAD., Methods: ISCHEMIA participants with 3V-CAD on coronary computed tomography angiography without prior CABG were included. Outcomes following initial invasive management (INV) with REV (PCI or CABG) versus initial conservative management (CON) with medical therapy alone were evaluated. Regression modelling was used to estimate the outcomes if all participants were to undergo prompt REV versus those assigned to CON. Outcomes were cardiovascular (CV) death/myocardial infarction (MI), death, CV death, and quality of life. Bayesian posterior probability for benefit (Pr [benefit]) for 1 percentage point lower 4-year rates with REV versus CON were evaluated., Results: Among 1,236 participants with 3V-CAD (612 INV/624 CON), REV was associated with lower 4-year CV death/MI (adjusted 4-year difference: -4.4, 95% credible interval [CrI] -8.7 to -0.3 percentage points, Pr [benefit]=94.8%) when compared with CON, with similar results for PCI versus CON (-5.8, 95% CrI: -10.8 to -0.5 percentage points, Pr [benefit]=96.4%) and CABG versus CON (-3.7, 95% CrI: -8.8 to 1.5 percentage points, Pr [benefit]=84.7%). Adjusted 4-year REV versus CON differences were as follows: death -1.2 (95% CrI: -4.7 to 2.2) percentage points, CV death -2.3 (95% CrI: -5.5 to 0.8) percentage points, with similar results for PCI and for CABG. The Pr (benefit) for death with REV (PCI or CABG) versus CON was 49-63%. The adjusted 12-month Seattle Angina Questionnaire-7 summary score differences favoured REV: REV versus CON 4.6 (95% CrI: 2.7-6.4) percentage points; PCI versus CON 3.6 (95% CrI: 1.2-5.8) percentage points and CABG versus CON 4.3 (95% CrI: 1.5-6.9) percentage points with high Pr (benefit)., Conclusions: In participants with 3V-CAD, REV (either PCI or CABG) was associated with a lower 4-year CV death/MI rate and improved quality of life, with similar results for PCI versus CON and CABG versus CON. The differences in all-cause mortality between REV and CON were small with wide confidence intervals. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01471522).

Background: The outcomes of patients with acute myocardial infarction complicated by cardiogenic shock (AMI-CS) and the efficacy and safety of extracorporeal life support (ECLS) may be affected by the timing of hospital admission., Objectives: The present ECLS-SHOCK substudy sought to investigate the prognostic impact of on-hours vs off-hours admission and the efficacy of ELCS according to the timing of hospital admission time in AMI-CS., Methods: Patients with AMI-CS enrolled in the multicenter, randomized ECLS-SHOCK trial from 2019 to 2022 were included. The prognosis of patients admitted during regular hours (ie, on-hours) was compared to patients admitted during off-hours. Thereafter, the prognostic impact of ECLS was investigated stratified by the timing of hospital admission. The primary endpoint was 30-day all-cause mortality. Statistical analyses included Kaplan-Meier, univariable, and multivariable logistic regression analyses., Results: Of 417 patients enrolled in the ECLS-SHOCK trial, 48.4% (n = 202) were admitted during off-hours. Patients admitted during off-hours were younger (median age = 62 years [Q1-Q3: 55-69 years] vs 63 years [Q1-Q3: 58-71 years]; P = 0.036) and more commonly treated using initial femoral access for coronary angiography (79.0% [n = 158/200] vs 67.9% [n = 146/215]; P = 0.011). However, off-hours admission was not associated with an increased risk of 30-day all-cause mortality (off-hours vs on-hours: 46.0% [n = 93/202] vs 50.7% [n = 109/215]; OR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.56-1.22). Furthermore, ECLS had no prognostic impact on 30-day all-cause mortality in patients with AMI-CS admitted during on-hours (50.5% [n = 52/103] vs 50.9% [n = 57/112]; P = 0.95; OR: 0.98; 95% CI: 0.58-1.68) or in patients admitted during off-hours (45.3% [n = 48/106] vs 46.9% [n = 45/96]; P = 0.82; OR: 0.94; 95% CI: 0.54-1.63). Finally, ECLS was associated with an increased risk of bleeding events, especially in patients admitted during on-hours., Conclusions: The prognosis in AMI-CS was not affected by admission time with a similar effect of ECLS during on- and off-hours., Competing Interests: Funding Support and Author Disclosure Supported by the Else Kröner Fresenius Foundation, the German Heart Research Foundation, and the Helios Health Institute (formerly Leipzig Heart Institute). Dr Rassaf has received honoraria, lecture fees, and grant support from Edwards Lifesciences, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Novartis, Berlin Chemie, Daiicho-Sankyo, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novo Nordisk, Cardiac Dimensions, and Pfizer, all unrelated to this work; and is a cofounder of Bimyo GmbH, a company that develops cardioprotective peptides. Dr Clemmensen has previously or currently been involved in research contracts, consulting, and Speakers Bureau for Abbott, Abiomed, AstraZeneca, Aventis, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, CeleCor, CytoSorbent, Daiichi-Sankyo, Eli-Lilly, Evolva, Ferrer, Fibrex, Idorsia, Janssen, Merck, Myogen, Medtronic, Mitsubishi Pharma, The Medicines Company, Nycomed, Organon, Pfizer, Pharmacia, Philips, Regado, Sanofi, Searle, Servier, and ViFor Pharma; and has received research and/or educational grants from Abbott, Abiomed, AstraZeneca, Aventis, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, CeleCor, CytoSorbent, Daiichi-Sankyo, Eli-Lilly, Evolva, Ferrer, Fibrex, Idorsia, Janssen, Merck, Myogen, Medtronic, Mitsubishi Pharma, The Medicines Company, Nycomed, Organon, Pfizer, Pharmacia, Philips, Regado, Sanofi, Searle, Servier, and ViFor Pharma. Dr Linke has received grants from Novartis and Edwards Lifesciences; has received personal fees from Abbott, Abiomed, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Edwards Lifesciences, Medtronic, Meril, Novartis, Sanofi Genzyme, and Pfizer; and has received other fees from Picardia, Filterlex, and Transverse Medical outside the submitted work. Dr Pöss has received research grants (institutional) from German Cardiac Society, German Heart Research Foundation, Dr Rolf M. Schwiete Foundation, and Maquet Cardiopulmonary GmbH. All other authors have reported that they have no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Non-HDL-C provides an estimate of lipid-associated risk and is a secondary treatment target after myocardial infarction (MI). The aim was to study the relationship between non-HDL-C levels after MI and risk of adverse outcomes., Methods: From the SWEDEHEART registry, 56 262 patients with MI were included. Outcomes were major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE: death, MI, and ischaemic stroke), death, and non-fatal MI. Non-HDL-C was assessed at admission, 2 months, and 1 year. Target achievement (<2.2 mmol/L) of non-HDL-C, timing thereof, and outcomes were assessed., Results: During median follow-up of 5.4 years, 9549 had MACE, 5427 died, and 3946 had MI. Long-term hazard ratio (HR) for MACE in the lowest vs. the highest quartile of achieved non-HDL-C at 1 year was 0.76 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71-0.81]. Short-term results were consistent also when assessing non-HDL-C levels at 2 months, including early events up to 1 year (HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.68-0.92). Similar results were observed for all outcomes. Patients achieving both early and sustained targets had lowest risk of outcomes (HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.74-0.86) vs. patients achieving target early or late (HR for both 0.86, 95% CI 0.79-0.93)., Conclusions: The lowest achieved levels both at 2 months and at 1 year of non-HDL-C were associated with better outcome. The lowest risk was observed when target was achieved within 2 months of MI and sustained thereafter. These findings challenge the current stepwise approach for cholesterol lowering after MI, which inevitably results in delaying goal attainment and possible harm., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: Troponin elevation is frequently observed in various scenarios in the Emergency Department (ED), yet there is a paucity of studies investigating simultaneously measured high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) and troponin I (hs-cTnI) within a diverse cohort in a clinical setting., Methods: All patients who underwent troponin testing at a single center were eligible for this study. Only patients with simultaneous samples with hs-cTnI (Siemens) and hs-cTnT (Roche) were included, regardless of chief complaint., Results: Analysis of 1987 samples from 1134 patients showed a significant correlation between hs-cTnT and hs-cTnI (r = 0.86, p < 0.01). Of these samples, 65% exceeded the upper reference limit (URL) for hs-cTnT, and 30% for hs-cTnI with 39% who exhibited elevated hs-cTnT levels alongside normal hs-cTnI levels. The area under the curve (AUC) for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) for the index visit was 0.80 (95% CI; 0.75-0.85) for hs-cTnT and 0.87 (95% CI; 0.83-0.91) for hs-cTnI. Sensitivity and specificity were 91% and 39% for hs-cTnT, and 80% and 80% for hs-cTnI. Positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) was 9.3% and 98.5% for hs-cTnT respectively, corresponding for hs-cTnI was 21.3% and 98.3% respectively. Hazard ratios for 1-year mortality were 1.52 (95% CI; 1.40-1.66) for hs-cTnT and 1.26 (95% CI; 1.18-1.34) for hs-cTnI., Conclusion: Elevated troponins above the URL were very common in this diverse cohort, particularly for hs-cTnT, which was twice as frequent compared to hs-cTnI, resulting in low specificity and PPV for AMI., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Previous studies of the incidence and case fatality of acute myocardial infarction in Norway are based on administrative data that do not distinguish between myocardial infarction with ST segment elevation (STEMI) and without ST segment elevation (NSTEMI). The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence, case fatality and patient characteristics for different types of myocardial infarction in the period 2013-2021., Material and Method: The Norwegian Myocardial Infarction Registry, the Norwegian Patient Registry and the Norwegian Cause of Death Registry were linked in order to identify all patients with myocardial infarction. We calculated age-adjusted incidence and 30-day case fatality., Results: Incidence of all types of myocardial infarction in total fell by 3.8 % per year on average (95 % CI 3.6-4.1). There was a reduction of 2.3 % (95 % CI 1.8-2.8) for STEMI, 3.1 % (95 % CI 2.8-3.4) for NSTEMI, and 6.5 % (95 % CI 5.9-7.1) for out-of-hospital deaths from myocardial infarction. Thirty-day case fatality for all types of myocardial infarction in total was 21.3 % in 2013 and 17.5 % in 2021. Case fatality for all infarctions fell by an average of 2.8 % per year (95 % CI 2.3-3.3), case fatality for NSTEMI fell by 4.4 % per year (95 % CI 3.3-5.5) per year, while case fatality for STEMI was unchanged., Interpretation: Incidence of all types of myocardial infarction declined in the period 2013-2021. Thirty-day case fatality remains high, despite a fall in case fatality for all myocardial infarctions in total and for NSTEMI. There was no change in case fatality for STEMI.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Early identification of high-risk patients is crucial for timely interventions and improved outcomes. The lactate/albumin ratio (LAR) has been suggest as a significant correlate for assessing the risk of mortality in critically ill patients. This study aimed to utilize the American eICU Collaborative Research Database to explore the association between baseline LAR and all-cause mortality within 28 days in ICU of critically ill patients diagnosed with AMI. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 989 AMI patients from the eICU Collaborative Research Database. Patients were included based on ICD-9 code 410 and the universal definition of AMI. LAR was calculated as the ratio of baseline lactate to albumin levels within the first 24 h of ICU admission. The outcome was all-cause mortality within 28 days after ICU admission. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate the independent association between LAR and the risk of death, adjusting for potential confounders including demographics, comorbidities, vital signs, and laboratory parameters. Subgroup analyses and nonlinear modeling were performed to further explore the relationship. Of the 989 AMI patients, 171 (17.3%) died within 28 days after ICU admission. Patients who died had significantly higher LAR compared to survivors (1.66 vs. 0.96, p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis showed that each unit increase in LAR was associated with a 2.15-fold higher risk of all-cause mortality within 28 days after ICU admission (95% CI: 1.64-2.83, p < 0.001). Subgroup analyses confirmed the consistent association across different patient characteristics. Nonlinear modeling revealed a threshold effect, where LAR above 2.15 was no longer significantly associated with mortality. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated lower survival probabilities for patients with higher LAR(1.0526-5.8235). The findings suggest that a higher LAR was associated with an increased risk of 28-day all-cause mortality for critically ill patients with AMI after ICU admission., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Aims: While heart failure (HF) symptoms are associated with adverse prognosis after myocardial infarction (MI), they are not routinely used for patients' stratification. The primary objective of this study was to develop and validate a score to predict mortality risk after MI, combining remotely recorded HF symptoms and clinical risk factors, and to compare it against the guideline-recommended Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score., Methods and Results: A cohort study design using prospectively collected data from consecutive patients hospitalized for MI at a large tertiary heart centre between June 2017 and September 2022 was used. Data from 1135 patients (aged 64 ± 12 years, 26.7% women), were split into derivation (70%) and validation cohort (30%). Components of the 23-item Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire and clinical variables were used as possible predictors. The best model included the following variables: age, HF history, admission creatinine and heart rate, ejection fraction at hospital discharge, and HF symptoms 1 month after discharge including walking impairment, leg swelling, and change in HF symptoms. Based on these variables, the PragueMi score was developed. In the validation cohort, the PragueMi score showed superior discrimination to the GRACE score for 6 months [the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) 90.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 81.8-98.4 vs. 77.4, 95% CI 62.2-92.5, P = 0.04) and 1-year risk prediction (AUC 89.7, 95% CI 83.5-96.0 vs. 76.2, 95% CI 64.7-87.7, P = 0.004)., Conclusion: The PragueMi score combining HF symptoms and clinical variables performs better than the currently recommended GRACE score., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: none declared., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Aims: Icosapent ethyl lowers triglycerides and significantly reduces major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), though treatment effects may vary between individuals. This study aimed to determine the relative and absolute effects of icosapent ethyl on MACE according to baseline cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD)., Methods and Results: Participants from the Reduction of Cardiovascular Events with Icosapent Ethyl-Intervention Trial (REDUCE-IT) with ASCVD were included (n = 5785). The primary outcome was 3-point MACE, i.e. non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. Baseline 5-year risk of MACE was estimated using the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guideline-recommended SMART2 risk score. Modification of the relative treatment effects of icosapent ethyl by baseline risk was assessed using Cox proportional hazards models, including a treatment-by-risk interaction. Next, treatment effects were assessed stratified by quartiles of baseline risk. During a median follow-up of 4.8 years (interquartile range 3.2-5.3), MACE occurred in 361 vs. 489 patients in the icosapent ethyl vs. placebo group [95% confidence interval (CI)]; hazard ratio (HR) 0.72 (0.63-0.82), absolute risk reduction (ARR) 4.4% (2.6-6.2%), number needed to treat (NNT) 23 (16-38), and 5-year Kaplan-Meier estimated cumulative incidence reduction (CIR) 5.7% (3.5-7.9%). Icosapent ethyl significantly reduced MACE in all risk quartiles, with an HR (95% CI) of 0.62 (0.43-0.88), 0.66 (0.48-0.92), 0.69 (0.53-0.90), and 0.78 (0.63-0.96), respectively (P for treatment-by-risk interaction = 0.106). The ARR (95% CI) increased across risk quartiles, i.e. was 3.9% (1.0-6.8%), 4.3% (1.2-7.3%), 5.1% (1.4-8.7%), and 5.6% (1.3-10.0%), respectively. This translates to NNTs (95% CI) of 26 (15-98), 24 (14-84), 20 (11-70), and 18 (10-77). The 5-year CIR (95% CI) was 4.8% (1.3-8.2%), 5.0% (1.3-8.7%), 6.1% (1.7-10.5%), and 7.7% (2.3-13.2%), respectively. Consistent results were obtained for 5-point MACE, additionally including coronary revascularization and unstable angina., Conclusion: Among patients with ASCVD and elevated triglyceride levels, icosapent ethyl significantly reduces the risk of MACE irrespective of baseline CVD risk, though absolute benefits are largest for patients at the highest risk., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: The influence of age on cardiac troponin is unclear and may vary between cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and I (cTnI). We aimed to compare the impact of age on the diagnostic and prognostic utility of cTnT and cTnI., Methods: This Danish nationwide, register-based cohort study included patients with at least one cardiac troponin (cTn) measurement from 2009 through June 2022, stratified into decades of age. We used peak cTn concentration during admission, dichotomized as positive/negative and normalized to the 99th percentile. Receiver operating characteristics for myocardial infarction (MI) and logistic regression were used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) for mortality at 1 year., Results: We included 541 817 patients; median age 66 years (interquartile range [IQR] 51-77) and 256 545 (47%) female. A total of 40 359 (7.4%) had an MI, and 59 800 (14.1%) patients died within 1 year of admission. The predictive ability of both cTns for MI were highest for patients 30 to 50 years. This was most pronounced for cTnT, the specificity of which fell from 83% among patients 40 to 49 years to 4% for patients ≥90 years. The prognostic ability of both cTns for 1-year mortality declined with age. cTnT had stronger prognostic ability for all age-groups; OR for a positive cTnT 28.4 (95% CI, 20.1-41.0) compared with 9.4 (95% CI, 5.0-16.7) for cTnI among patients <30 years., Conclusions: The predictive and prognostic ability of cTnT and cTnI declined with age. cTnT had a low specificity for MI in elderly patients. However, cTnT was the strongest prognostic marker among all age groups., (© Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine 2024. 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.)

Importance: Despite being recommended by clinical guidelines, substantial concerns remain regarding the use of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin assays and whether it is associated with increased resource use, myocardial infarction (MI) or myocardial injury diagnoses, and procedural rates., Objective: To characterize the association of reporting high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) to the lowest limit of quantification vs conventional troponin reporting with clinical outcomes., Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study used a historically controlled baseline and follow-up design to compare clinical outcomes after changing hs-cTnT reporting to the lowest limit of quantification. All patients aged 18 years or older presenting to any public emergency department (ED) in the state of South Australia between February 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021, who had an hs-cTnT test in the 6 months before and after the change in troponin reporting practice were included. Outcomes were assessed after adjusting for patient characteristics using inverse probability treatment weighting. The data analysis was performed between May 1, 2022, and July 27, 2023., Exposure: hs-cTcnT reporting., Main Outcomes and Measures: The main outcomes were frequency of diagnosed MI, coronary angiography, percutaneous coronary intervention, and coronary artery bypass graft (CABG); hospital length of stay; and ED discharge rate as measured using time-to-event Cox regression models. The secondary outcome was the composite 12-month event rate of all-cause mortality, MI, and myocardial injury., Results: A total of 40 921 patients were included, of whom 20 206 were included in the unmasked hs-cTnT reporting group (median [IQR] age, 62.0 [46.0-77.0]; 10 120 females [50.1%]) and 20 715 were included in the conventional troponin reporting group (median [IQR] age, 63.0 [47.0-77.0] years; 10 752 males [51.9%]). Unmasked hs-cTnT reporting was associated with higher ED discharge rates (45.2% vs 39.0%; P < .001) and a shorter median hospital length of stay (7.68 [IQR, 4.32-46.80] hours vs 7.92 [IQR, 4.56-49.92] hours; P < .001). There was no difference in diagnosis of MI, coronary angiography, percutaneous coronary intervention, or coronary artery bypass graft. The composite of all-cause mortality, MI, and myocardial injury at 12 months was similar (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.90-1.01; P = .09)., Conclusions and Relevance: This cohort study found that unrestricted reporting of hs-cTnT results to the lowest limit of quantification was not associated with an increase in the diagnosis of MI, invasive coronary procedures, or harm at 12 months but may be associated with improved hospital resource use.

Background: Right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) complicates 30%-40% of cases in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and cardiogenic shock (CS). There are sparse data on the effects of RVD on outcomes and the impact of providing early left ventricular (LV) mechanical circulatory support (MCS) on RV function and hemodynamics., Methods and Results: Between July 2016 and December 2020, 80 sites participated in the study. All centers agreed to treat patients with AMI-CS using a standard protocol emphasizing invasive hemodynamic monitoring and rapid initiation of LV-MCS. RVD was defined as a right atrial (RA) pressure of >12 mm Hg and a pulmonary artery pulsatility index (PAPI) of <1 within 24 hours of the index procedure. The primary outcome was survival to discharge. In a subgroup analysis, data available from the Automated Impella Controller console was used to analyze diastolic suction alarms from LV placement signal and its relation to RVD. A total of 361 patients were included in the analysis, of whom 28% had RVD. The median age was 64 years (interquartile range 55-72 years), 22.7% were female and 75.7% were White. There was no difference in age, sex, or comorbidities between those with or without RVD. Patients with RVD had a higher probability of active CPR during LV-MCS implant (14.7% vs 6.3%), Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions stage E shock (39.2% vs 23.2%), and higher admission lactate levels (5.1 mg/dL vs 3.0 mg/dL). Survival to discharge was significantly lower among those with RVD (61.8% vs 73.4%, odds ratio 0.89, 95% confidence interval 0.36-0.95, P = .031). This association remained significant in the multivariate analysis. There was no significant difference in hemodynamic variables within 24 hours of LV-MCS support among those with or without RVD. At 24 hours, patients with a CPO of >0.6 W and a PAPi of >1 had a trend toward better survival to discharge compared with those with a CPO of ≤0.6 W and a PAPi of ≤1 (77.1% vs 54.6%, P = .092). Patients with RVD were significantly more likely to have diastolic suction alarms within 24 hours of LV-MCS initiation., Conclusions: RVD in AMI-CS is common and associated with worse survival to discharge. Early LV-MCS decreases filling pressures rapidly within the first 24 hours and decreases the rate of RVD. Achieving a CPO of >0.6 W and a PAPi of >1 within 24 hours is associated with high survival. Diastolic suction alarms may have usefulness as an early marker of RVD., Competing Interests: Disclosures Dr. Tedford reports no direct conflicts of interest related to this manuscript. He reports general disclosures to include consulting relationships with Abbott, Acorai, Aria CV Inc., Acceleron/Merck, Alleviant, CareDx, Cytokinetics, Edwards LifeSciences, Gradient, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Medtronic, and United Therapeutics. Dr. Tedford serves on steering committee for Merck, Edwards, and Abbott, as well as a research advisory board for ​Abiomed. He also does hemodynamic core lab work for Merck. Dr. Cowger is a paid consultant/advisor for Abbott, Inc (HeartMate 3 LVAD; tendyne and cephea valve trials), Medtronic (HVAD study), Bioventrix, CorWave, and Procyrion (Aortix device). She is an unpaid steering committee member for Endotronix (Cordella PA sensor) and Nuwellis. She is on the DSMB for BiVACOR and Berlin Heart Excor device trials. She is a speaker for Zoll, Abbott, and Bioventrix., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Post-myocardial infarction ventricular septal rupture (PIVSR) is one of the most severe types of mechanical complications after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with high mortality and poor prognosis. The risk factors for short-term mortality of patients with PIVSR may be not widely recognized. We aimed to assess the prevalence and short-term mortality risk predictors of PIVSR., Methods: A total of 62 patients with a diagnosis of PIVSR were admitted to three top general public hospitals in Chongqing, China. Clinical characteristics and short-term outcomes of patients with PIVSR were compared. Predictors of PIVSR were assessed using logistic regression analysis., Results: Mean age was 70.7 ± 10.7 years (38.7% female). The overall in-hospital mortality of PIVSR remained high (71%). Most (47/62) of the patients were in Killip class III or IV at the time of rupture diagnosis. Logistic regression analysis revealed that white blood cell count (WBC, OR 1.619, 95% CI 1.172-2.237, P = 0.005), cardiogenic shock (OR 47.706, 95%CI 2.859-795.945, P = 0.007) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF, OR 0.803, 95%CI 0.689-0.936, P = 0.009) were independent risk factors of in-hospital early mortality. The nomogram developed for predicting the risk of short-term mortality showed a robust discrimination, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.956 (95%CI 0.912-1.000)., Conclusion: The short-term mortality of PIVSR remained high. WBC, cardiogenic shock, and LVEF were the independent predictive factors of short-term mortality. Our nomogram might be used to predict early mortality of patients with PIVSR., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

This study aimed to investigate the association between non-traditional lipid profiles and the risk of 1-year vascular events in patients who were already using statins before stroke and had admission LDL-C < 100 mg/dL. This study was an analysis of a prospective, multicenter, nationwide registry of consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke patients who treated with statin before index stroke and LDL-C < 100 mg/dL on admission. Non-traditional lipid profiles including non-HDL, TC/HDL ratio, LDL/HDL ratio, and TG/HDL ratio were analyzed as a continuous or categorical variable. The primary vascular outcome within one year was a composite of recurrent stroke (either hemorrhagic or ischemic), myocardial infarction (MI) and all-cause mortality. Hazard ratios (95% Cis) for 1-year vascular outcomes were analyzed using the Cox PH model for each non-traditional lipid profiles groups. A total of 7028 patients (age 70.3 ± 10.8years, male 59.8%) were finally analyzed for the study. In unadjusted analysis, no significant associations were observed in the quartiles of LDL/HDL ratio and 1-year primary outcome. However, after adjustment of relevant variables, compared with Q1 of the LDL/HDL ratio, Q4 was significantly associated with increasing the risk of 1-year primary outcome (HR 1.48 [1.19-1.83]). For the LDL/HDL ratio, a linear relationship was observed (P for linearity < 0.001). Higher quartiles of the LDL/HDL ratio were significantly and linearly associated with increasing the risk of 1-year primary vascular outcomes. These findings suggest that even during statin therapy with LDL-C < 100 mg/dl on admission, there should be consideration for residual risk based on the LDL/HDL ratio, following stroke., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Aims: Congestive heart failure (HF) is a common complication in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The estimated plasma volume status [ePVS = (100 - haematocrit)/haemoglobin] is used as the blood plasma volume index to determine the presence of congestion in patients with HF. However, the clinical impact of ePVS at discharge in patients with AMI remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether ePVS at discharge could determine the long-term prognosis in patients with AMI., Methods and Results: We retrospectively identified patients with AMI with ePVS measured at discharge between January 2012 and December 2020. The primary endpoint was post-discharge all-cause death. The patients were divided into two groups according to an ePVS cut-off value of 5.5%, which is commonly used in HF. In total, 1012 patients with AMI were included. The median age was 70 years (range, 61-78 years), and 76.4% of the patients were male. The ePVS > 5.5% (high-ePVS) group included 365 patients (36.1%), and the all-cause mortality rate in the total cohort was 17.7%. The log-rank test revealed that the high-ePVS group had a significantly higher rate of all-cause death than the ePVS ≤ 5.5% (low-ePVS) group (P < 0.001). Multivariate Cox proportional hazards model analysis revealed that high ePVS was associated with post-discharge all-cause death, independent of other risk factors (hazard ratio = 1.879; 95% confidence interval = 1.343-2.629, P < 0.001)., Conclusions: High ePVS at discharge was independently associated with high post-discharge all-cause mortality in patients with AMI. Our study suggests that ePVS at discharge in patients with AMI could serve as a novel prognostic marker., (© 2024 The Author(s). ESC Heart Failure published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: High-sensitivity cardiac troponins (Hs-cTns) are reliable indicators of myocardial injury, but their relationship with cardiovascular outcomes remains less understood. This study explores the association between adverse cardiac events and Hs-cTnT levels exceeding 14 ng/L in patients with stable CAD., Methods: Thirteen pertinent studies were identified using specific keywords from a pool of 208 articles retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar, spanning 2013 to 2023. The primary outcomes included all-cause mortality (ACM), myocardial infarction (MI), cardiovascular death (CVD), rehospitalization due to decompensated heart failure (RDHF), need for revascularization, and stroke. Comprehensive meta-analysis (CMA) was employed to analyze the data for odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Heterogeneity was assessed using I 2 statistics, and both qualitative assessment (Newcastle-Ottawa Scale) and quantitative analysis (Egger's and Beggs test, funnel plots) were conducted., Results: The analysis included 29,115 participants (74.72% male) with a mean age of 68.34 years. It revealed a significantly elevated risk of ACM among stable CAD patients with Hs-cTnT levels >14 ng/L compared to those with levels <14 ng/L (11.2% vs. 3.3%; OR = 5.46; 95% CI = 1.53-19.54; p  = 0.009). Similarly, higher risks were observed for MI (10.9% vs 3.6%; OR = 3.12; 95% CI = 0.98-9.95, p  = 0.053), CVD (8.1% vs. 2.1%; OR = 3.37; 95% CI = 1.74-6.50; p  < 0.0001), and RDHF (6.62% vs. 0.92%; OR = 9.46; 95% CI = 4.65-19.24; p  < 0.0001). Notably, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) exhibited a stronger association with Hs-cTnT levels (18.2% vs 7.81%; OR = 1.89; 95% CI = 0.80-4.43; I 2  = 97%; p  = 0.14) compared to Hs-cTnI levels (20.1% vs 21.1%; OR = 1.30; 95% CI = 1.03-1.64; I 2 <0.0001%; p  = 0.03)., Conclusion: Elevated levels of Hs-cTnT (>14 ng/L) are significantly associated with increased risks of RDHF and ACM in patients with stable CAD. Further large-scale prospective studies are warranted to refine risk assessment strategies and mitigate cardiovascular mortality in this population.

Recent studies have linked the cardiovascular events with the exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ); however, the impact of PM 2.5 chemical components on acute myocardial infarction (AMI) case fatality remains poorly understood. To address this gap, we included 178,340 hospitalised patients with AMI utilising the inpatient discharge database from Sichuan, Shanxi, Guangxi, and Guangdong, China spanning 2014-2019. We evaluated exposure to PM 2.5 and its components (black carbon (BC), organic matter (OM), sulphate (SO 4 2- ), nitrate (NO 3 - ), and ammonium (NH 4 + )) using bilinear interpolation based on the patient's residential address. We used mixed-effects logistic regression models to investigate the associations of PM 2.5 and its five components with in-hospital AMI case fatality. Per interquartile range (IQR) increment in short-term exposure (7-day average) to overall PM 2.5 (odds ratio (OR): 1.086, 95 % confidence interval (CI): 1.045-1.128), SO 4 2- (1.063, 1.024-1.104), BC (1.055, 1.023-1.089), OM (1.052, 1.019-1.086, and NO 3 - (1.045, 1.003-1.089) were significantly associated with high risk of in-hospital AMI case fatality. The ORs per IQR increment in long-term exposure (annual average) were 1.323 (95 % CI: 1.255-1.394) for PM 2.5 , followed by BC (1.271, 1.210-1.335), OM (1.243, 1.188-1.300), SO 4 2- (1.212, 1.157-1.270), NO 3 - (1.116, 1.075-1.159), and NH 4 + (1.068, 1.031-1.106). Our study suggests that PM 2.5 chemical components might be important risk factors for in-hospital AMI case fatality, highlighting the importance of targeted reduction of PM 2.5 emissions, particularly BC, OM, and SO 4 2- ., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest 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., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a modifiable risk factor for patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Treatment with insulin correlates with advanced disease and has been associated with excess cardiovascular risk, but evidence on outcomes of patients with insulin-treated DM (ITDM) undergoing left main percutaneous coronary intervention (LMPCI) remains scarce., Aims: The aim of the presented study is to evluate the risk attributable to DM and ITDM in patients undergoing LMPCI., Methods: We included 869 patients undergoing PCI for unprotected LMCAD. The cohort was divided into three subgroups based on diabetic status: No DM, ITDM, and Non-ITDM. The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), defined as a composite of death, spontaneous myocardial infarction (MI), or stroke at 1 year. Results were adjusted for clinically relevant baseline characteristics., Results: Amongst participants, 58.7% had no DM, 25.9% non-ITDM, and 15.4% ITDM. Diabetics were younger and more likely to be female. They also exhibited higher body mass index as well as prevalence of comorbidities, including hypertension, anemia, and chronic kidney disease. The number of bifurcation lesions and stents used was similar between groups. At 1 year, when compared to no DM, ITDM (25.4% vs. 10.0%, p < 0.01) but not non-ITDM (10.8% vs. 10.0%, p = 0.94) demonstrated higher MACCE. This finding was driven by increased risk of MI. Mortality was 8.4%, 7.8%, and 17.2% for no DM, Non-ITDM, and ITDM, respectively. Results remained unchanged after adjustment., Conclusions: In a rather contemporary patient population undergoing PCI for LMCAD, ITDM but not non-ITDM was associated with higher risk of 1-year MACCE, primarily driven by MI., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

We explored the association of body mass index (BMI) with mortality in cardiogenic shock (CS). Using the Cardiogenic Shock Working Group registry, we assessed the impact of BMI on mortality using restricted cubic splines in a multivariable logistic regression model adjusting for age, gender, and race. We also assessed mortality, device use, and complications in BMI categories, defined as underweight (<18.5 kg/m 2 ), normal (18.5-24.9 kg/m 2 ), overweight (25-29.9 kg/m 2 ), obese (30-39.9 kg/m 2 ), and severely obese (>40 kg/m 2 ) using univariable logistic regression models. Our cohort had 3,492 patients with CS (mean age = 62.1 ± 14 years, 69% male), 58.0% HF-related CS (HF-CS), and 27.8% acute myocardial infarction (AMI) related CS. Body mass index was a significant predictor of mortality in multivariable regression using restricted cubic splines ( p < 0.0001, p = 0.194 for nonlinearity). When stratified by categories, patients with healthy weight had lower mortality (29.0%) than obese (35.1%, p = 0.003) or severely obese (36.7%, p = 0.01). In HF-CS cohort, the healthy weight patients had the lowest mortality (21.7%), whereas it was higher in the underweight (37.5%, p = 0.012), obese (29.2%, p = 0.003), and severely obese (29.9%, p = 0.019). There was no difference in mortality among BMI categories in AMI-CS., Competing Interests: Disclosure: The authors have no conflicts of interest to report., (Copyright © ASAIO 2024.)

Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential associations between Sjogren syndrome and outcomes of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) hospitalization. This population-based, retrospective observational study extracted data from the US Nationwide Inpatient Sample between 2005 and 2018. Adults aged 20 years or older hospitalized for AMI were eligible for inclusion. Propensity score matching was applied to balance the characteristics between the comparison groups (ie, with and without Sjogren syndrome). Associations between Sjogren syndrome and in-hospital outcomes were determined using univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses. A total of 1,735,142 patients were included. After propensity score matching, 4740 patients remained for subsequent analyses (948 had Sjogren syndrome and 3792 did not). After adjustment, patients with Sjogren syndrome had significantly lower in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR: 0.52, 95% CI, 0.36-0.73, P < 0.001), prolonged length of stay (aOR: 0.83, 95% CI, 0.69-0.995, P = 0.044), cardiogenic shock (aOR: 0.58, 95% CI, 0.40-0.83, P = 0.004), cardiac dysrhythmias (aOR: 0.77, 95% CI, 0.66-0.90, P < 0.001), acute kidney injury (aOR: 0.56, 95% CI, 0.45-0.70, P < 0.001), or respiratory failure (aOR: 0.63, 95% CI, 0.48-0.81, P < 0.001) than those without Sjogren syndrome. The stratified analysis revealed that Sjogren syndrome was associated with decreased odds of in-hospital mortality in patients with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction or ST-elevation myocardial infarction. In conclusion, among patients admitted to US hospitals for AMI, the patients with Sjogren syndrome have a lowered probability of in-hospital mortality, certain morbidities, and prolonged length of stay. Further investigations should be conducted to establish a robust understanding of the associations observed., Competing Interests: The author reports no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: There is a paucity of studies investigating the outcomes among Asian stroke patients. Identifying subgroups of stroke patients at risk of poorer outcomes could identify patients who would benefit from targeted interventions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify which ischemic stroke patients at high risk of recurrent events and mortality., Methods: This cohort study adhered to STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines. We obtained data from the Singapore Stroke Registry (SSR) from 2005 to 2016 and cross referenced to the Death Registry and the Myocardial Infarction Registry. Outcome measures included recurrent stroke, acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and all-cause and stroke-related deaths. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models were performed to determine risk factors for recurrent stroke, AMI, and all-cause and stroke-related deaths., Results: A total of 64,915 patients (6705 young, and 58,210 older) were included in our analysis. Older stroke patients were found to have an increased risk of recurrent stroke (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.21, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.12-1.30), AMI (HR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.54-1.95), all-cause death (HR = 2.49, 95% CI = 2.34-2.64), and stroke-related death (HR = 176, 95% CI = 1.61-1.92). Among young stroke patients, males were at increased risk for recurrent stroke (HR = 1.18, 95% CI = 1.01-1.39) and AMI (HR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.08-1.83), but at reduced risk for all-cause (HR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.69-0.89) and stroke-related deaths (HR = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.67-0.94). Ethnicity appeared to influence outcomes, with Malay patients at increased risk of recurrent stroke (HR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.14-1.65), AMI (HR = 2.45, 95% CI = 1.87-3.22), and all-cause (HR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.24-1.66) and stroke-related deaths (HR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.09-1.64). Indian patients were also at increased risk of AMI (HR = 1.96, 95% CI = 1.41-2.72). Similar findings were seen among the older stroke patients., Conclusion: This study found that older stroke patients are at risk of poorer outcomes. Within the young stroke population specifically, males were predisposed to recurrent stroke and AMI but were protected against all-cause and stroke-related deaths. Males were also at reduced risk of all-cause and stroke-related deaths in the older stroke population. In addition, Malay and Indian patients experience poorer outcomes after first stroke. Further optimization of risk factors targeting these high-priority populations are needed to achieve high-quality care., 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.