Radial Hemostasis Is Facilitated With a Potassium Ferrate Hemostatic Patch: The STAT2 Trial.

Objectives: The aim of this trial was to test whether the potassium ferrate hemostatic patch (PFHP) as an adjunct to the TR Band (TRB) facilitated an early deflation protocol.

Background: Shorter TRB compression times may reduce the rate of radial artery occlusion (RAO) and reduce observation time after transradial access.

Methods: A total of 443 patients were randomized to the TRB or PFHP + TRB, with complete TRB deflation attempted 60 minutes postprocedure.

Randomized Trial of Radial Hemostasis Using Focused vs Balloon Compression Devices.

Background: Radial artery hemostasis devices differ in compression mechanisms, which may influence time to hemostasis and hand perfusion.

Methods: Subjects (n = 52) undergoing transradial diagnostic coronary catheterization or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were randomized 1:1 to either focused compression (VasoStat; Forge Medical) or balloon compression device (TR Band; Terumo Medical) for radial artery hemostasis. Time to complete hemostasis enabling device removal was measured in each subject.

Optimizing Transradial Access: Radiation, Contrast, Access Site Crossover, and Ergonomics.

This article summarizes the data comparing radiation exposure and contrast use between transradial and transfemoral cardiac catheterizations. It also reviews the important features that may predict access site failure and crossover. In addition, it reviews the concept of ergonomics in the catheterization laboratory and how clinicians can improve the transradial approach.

A Rare Case of Primary Intracardiac Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: Multimodality Imaging to the Rescue.

• Primary cardiac malignancies are extremely rare and lethal. • Early diagnosis with multimodality imaging and treatment are crucial. • Survival with primary cardiac lymphoma is typically <1 month without treatment.

An Update on Radial Artery Access and Best Practices for Transradial Coronary Angiography and Intervention in Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.

Transradial artery access for percutaneous coronary intervention is associated with lower bleeding and vascular complications than transfemoral artery access, especially in patients with acute coronary syndromes. A growing body of evidence supports adoption of transradial artery access to improve acute coronary syndrome-related outcomes, to improve healthcare quality, and to reduce cost. The purpose of this scientific statement is to propose and support a "radial-first" strategy in the United States for patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Transradial PCI and Same Day Discharge.

Purpose Of Review: The evolution of cardiac catheterization has led to the development of well-refined, more effective, and safer devices that allow cardiovascular interventionalists to deliver high-quality percutaneous interventions (PCI). Transradial PCI (TRI) has gained more popularity in the USA over the past 10 years, and as experience and volume of TRI grow, studies adopting same day radial PCI protocols have emerged and are showing promising results. We sought to review the current literature on TRI and same day discharge (SDD).

Mortality, Length of Stay, and Cost Implications of Procedural Bleeding After Percutaneous Interventions Using Large-Bore Catheters.

Importance: Bleeding complications after percutaneous transcatheter interventions that used large-bore catheters are frequent and associated with high mortality and morbidity.

Objective: To describe the incidence of bleeding complications among patients undergoing contemporary endovascular interventions involving large-bore catheters and its association with in-hospital mortality, length of stay, and health care cost.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective cohort study analyzed all 17 672 patients from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's National Inpatient Sample database who were recorded as having undergone a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (n = 3223), an endovascular aneurysm repair (n = 12 633), or a percutaneous left ventricular assist device implant (n = 1816) between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2013.

Late breaking trials of 2016 in coronary artery disease: Commentary covering SCAI, ACC, TCT, EuroPCR, ESC, and AHA.

The SCAI Publications Committee and Emerging Leadership Mentorship (ELM) Fellows concisely summarize and provide context on the most important coronary trials presented at large international meetings in 2016, including SCAI, ACC, TCT, EuroPCR, ESC, and AHA. The intent is to allow quick assimilation of trial results into interventional practice, and enable busy interventional cardiologists to stay up to date. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Late breaking trials of 2015 in coronary artery disease: Commentary covering ACC, EuroPCR, SCAI, TCT, ESC, and AHA.

The SCAI Publications Committee and Emerging Leadership Mentorship (ELM) Fellows concisely summarize and provide context on the most important coronary trials presented at large international meetings in 2015, including the MATRIX, ABSORB, and TOTAL trials. The intent is to allow quick assimilation of trial results into interventional practice, and enable busy interventional cardiologists to stay up to date. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Shared Genetic Predisposition in Peripartum and Dilated Cardiomyopathies.

Background Peripartum cardiomyopathy shares some clinical features with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy, a disorder caused by mutations in more than 40 genes, including TTN, which encodes the sarcomere protein titin. Methods In 172 women with peripartum cardiomyopathy, we sequenced 43 genes with variants that have been associated with dilated cardiomyopathy. We compared the prevalence of different variant types (nonsense, frameshift, and splicing) in these women with the prevalence of such variants in persons with dilated cardiomyopathy and with population controls.

Low-Dose Alteplase Infusion for the Treatment of Mechanical Aortic Valve Thrombosis: A Spotlight on the Importance of Medication Adherence.

A rare, yet serious, complication of mechanical heart valves is symptomatic obstructive prosthetic valve thrombosis. The risk of valve thrombosis is magnified in patients who are nonadherent to prescribed anticoagulation. In this case report, we describe a 48-year-old male patient with a history of mechanical aortic valve replacement surgery, who stopped taking prescribed warfarin therapy 2 years before presentation and subsequently developed acute decompensated heart failure secondary to valvular dysfunction.

An update on treatments and outcomes in peripartum cardiomyopathy.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a well-established complication of pregnancy. Criteria include heart failure that presents with reduced left ventricular function, signs and symptoms of heart failure either late in pregnancy or early in the postpartum period. The incidence varies widely depending geography and ethnicity.

Evaluation of the clinical relevance of baseline left ventricular ejection fraction as a predictor of recovery or persistence of severe dysfunction in women in the United States with peripartum cardiomyopathy.

Background: Baseline left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) has been shown to be associated with likelihood of recovery in patients with peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM). The clinical relevance of this association for individual patients is unclear.

Methods And Results: We analyzed baseline parameters of LVEF in 187 PPCM patients with ≥6 months follow-up data in an attempt to detect the value of baseline LVEF as a predictor of early recovery or persistence of severe LV dysfunction.

Predictors of left ventricular recovery in a cohort of peripartum cardiomyopathy patients recruited via the internet.

Background: Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is the onset of acute heart failure without demonstrable cause during the last month of pregnancy or within five months after delivery. The purpose of this study was to create a prospective registry of PPCM patients with the assistance of the internet and identify clinical factors predictive of ejection fraction (EF) recovery.

Methods: Patients with PPCM were identified by novel web-based methods.

Cardiac epithelioid hemangioendothelioma with 8-year follow-up.

An incidentally discovered right atrial mass excised from the heart of a 51-year-old woman was found on pathological examination to be an epithelioid hemangioendothelioma. No further therapy was undertaken, and the patient has remained free of recurrence for 8 years. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the behavior of this distinctive vascular neoplasm occurring as an isolated cardiac tumor.

Athletic ergogenic aids.

Claims championing exotic substances that produce healing or ergogenic powers have been around for centuries. The competitive, peer-pressured environment enveloping today's athletes and adolescence makes these groups particularly susceptible to the uproar surrounding the current ergogenic aid market. Presently, it seems that rumor and anecdotal information overwhelms the available scientific data.