Elevated Natriuretic Peptides in Patients With Severe or Critical COVID-19: A Meta-Analysis.

Background: The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has resulted in an extraordinary increase in the number of patients who are severely critically ill. For many of these patients, cardiovascular risk factors are key contributors to the development of severe illness. Laboratory markers for cardiac damage and failure, such as natriuretic peptides, are reported to be elevated in patients with severe COVID-19.

Relationship between hemoglobin A1C and characteristics of plaque vulnerability in stable coronary disease: an optical coherence tomography study.

Patients with diabetes mellitus are at increased risk of cardiovascular events. We aimed to analyze the impact of serum HbA1c levels on coronary plaque characteristics in stable coronary disease. Two hundred sixty-one patients who underwent optical coherence tomography (OCT) examination before elective percutaneous coronary intervention for a de novo obstructive lesions were included in this single-center retrospective analysis.

Orbital Atherectomy for Treatment of Severely Calcified Coronary Artery Bifurcation Lesions: A Multicenter Analysis.

Objective: This study evaluated the safety and efficacy of orbital atherectomy (OA) for the treatment of severely calcified coronary artery bifurcation lesions.

Background: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of severely calcified coronary artery lesions is associated with lower procedural success and higher rates of target lesion failure compared to non-calcified lesions. OA is an effective treatment for calcified coronary artery lesions prior to stent implantation.

PCSK9 Inhibitors and Ezetimibe Monotherapy in Patients Not Receiving Statins: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials.

Background: Statins are the mainstay of treatment for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) lowering, however, some patients cannot tolerate statins because of adverse effects. Ezetimibe and proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 inhibitors (PCSK9i) are alternative treatment options. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to compare LDL-C reduction with ezetimibe vs PCSK9i in patients not on statins.

Procedural and 1-year clinical outcomes of orbital atherectomy for treatment of coronary in-stent restenosis: A single-center, retrospective study.

Objectives: We evaluated the procedural and 1-year clinical outcomes of orbital atherectomy (OA) for treatment of coronary in-stent restenosis (ISR).

Background: The optimal treatment for ISR remains uncertain. While rotational and laser atherectomy have been used as neointimal debulking techniques for ISR, there have been few reports on OA for ISR.