Percutaneous coronary intervention during the shortage of iodinated contrast.

Objectives: A recent coronavirus-related factory shutdown led to a global shortage of iodinated contrast. The authors evaluated how the contrast shortage impacted percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI).

Methods: Using a statewide database incorporating CathPCI registry data from 19 hospitals, the authors evaluated 2 time periods: pre-shortage (May 1, 2021 - April 30, 2022) and during the shortage (May 1, 2022 - October 31, 2022).

Clinical Outcomes for Postinfarct Ventricular Septal Defect Repair in a Large State-Wide Surgical Registry.

Ventricular septal defect (VSD) is a life-threatening complication occurring after delayed presentation of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We assessed clinical characteristics based on mortality following surgical repair of post-AMI VSD and evaluated trends of mortality, mechanical circulatory support (MCS) device use, and surgical approach. We included all patients who had surgical VSD repair following AMI who were included in a regional quality collaborative from May 2008 through January 2020.

Performance of an interferon-γ release assay-based test for cell-mediated immunity to SARS-CoV-2.

In search for immunological correlates of protection against acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) there is a need for high through-put assays for cell-mediated immunity (CMI) to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. We established an interferon-γ release assay -based test for detection of CMI against SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) or nucleocapsid (NC) peptides. Blood samples obtained from 549 healthy or convalescent individuals were measured for interferon-γ (IFN-γ) production after peptide stimulation using a certified chemiluminescence immunoassay.

Three Separate Spike Antigen Exposures by COVID-19 Vaccination or SARS-CoV-2 Infection Elicit Strong Humoral Immune Responses in Healthcare Workers.

Background: The immunogenicity of different COVID-19 vaccine regimens and combinations in naïve and convalescent individuals has not been formally tested in controlled studies, and real-life observational studies are scarce.

Methods: We assessed the SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination-induced immunity of 697 hospital workers at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf between 17 and 31 January 2022.

Results: The overall prevalence of anti-NC-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies indicating prior infection was 9.

Silent Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava Right-to-Left Shunt as a Unique Cause of Recurrent Brain Abscesses.

We present a novel case of recurrent brain abscesses found to be the result of a silent congenital right-to-left extracardiac shunt, a persistent left superior vena cava draining into the left atrium. The patient's brain abscess was evacuated surgically and treated with antibiotics, and his shunt was subsequently repaired. The case suggests that attention should be paid to evaluation for shunt physiology allowing for bypass of the pulmonary circulation in those with recurrent brain abscesses.