Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a rare but significant cause of acute coronary syndrome (ACS), primarily affecting young women, often during pregnancy. Despite its rarity, SCAD poses challenges due to limited evidence on management strategies. This review examines the current state of art of SCAD management, integrating interventional and clinical insights from recent studies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hypersensitivity reactions to iodinated contrast media (ICM) are frequently encountered in clinical practice. Severe manifestations, despite being infrequent, can be life-threatening and represent an issue when re-administration of ICM is required. Clear recommendations on prevention and management of relapses are still lacking.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe role of antiplatelet therapy in patients with acute coronary syndromes is a moving target with considerable novelty in the last few years. The pathophysiological basis of the treatment depends on platelet biology and physiology, and the interplay between these aspects and clinical practice must guide the physician in determining the best therapeutic options for patients with acute coronary syndromes. In the present narrative review, we discuss the latest novelties in the antiplatelet therapy of patients with acute coronary syndromes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF: Percutaneous left-atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion is an important therapeutic option for preventing cardioembolic stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) at high risk of thromboembolic events and with contraindications for oral anticoagulation (OAC). It is usually performed with transesophageal echocardiography (TOE) guidance under general anesthesia (GA). In this retrospective study, we present a multicenter experience of LAA occlusion performed with conscious sedation (CS) without an anesthesiologist on site.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The optimal management of patients with spontaneous coronary artery dissection remains debated.
Methods: Patients enrolled in the DISCO (Dissezioni Spontanee Coronariche) Registry up to December 2020 were included. The primary end point was major adverse cardiovascular events, a composite of all-cause death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, and repeat percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
Spontaneous coronary dissection is an infrequent cause of acute coronary syndrome, which has been understood only recently in terms of pathophysiology, presentation, diagnosis and treatment. In particular, new evidence has emerged on its treatment in the interventional and medical fields, especially on the management of antiplatelet therapy, which is presented in this review; moreover, the local experience of the registry of spontaneous coronary dissections DISCO and its role in improving the management of these patients are reported.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe present the case of a 28-years-old male presenting to the Emergency Department for relapsing episodes of "déjà vu" and syncope. After a diagnostic workup by a multidisciplinary team, the simultaneous EEG and ECG monitoring showed an asystole associated with EEG anomalies in right fronto-temporal region of the brain. The brain MRI revealed an ischemic lesion concordant with EEG anomalies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAspirin hypersensitivity is a neglected issue, especially in the setting of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Nevertheless, in such context a prompt platelet inhibition remains crucial. We report the case of a patient presenting with STEMI, aspirin hypersensitivity and emesis causing inadequate intake of P2Y12 inhibitors managed with intravenous cangrelor therapy and aspirin desensitization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGender-related differences in COVID-19 clinical presentation, disease progression, and mortality have not been adequately explored. We analyzed the clinical profile, presentation, treatments, and outcomes of patients according to gender in the HOPE-COVID-19 International Registry. Among 2,798 enrolled patients, 1,111 were women (39.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Obesity has been described as a protective factor in cardiovascular and other diseases being expressed as 'obesity paradox'. However, the impact of obesity on clinical outcomes including mortality in COVID-19 has been poorly systematically investigated until now. We aimed to compare clinical outcomes among COVID-19 patients divided into three groups according to the body mass index (BMI).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAcute heart failure (HF) is commonly caused by a cardiomyopathy with one or more precipitating factor. Here, a case in which a cardiomyopathy is precipitated by pulmonary embolism (PE). A 77-year-old man is admitted for breathlessness and leg swelling.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for complex lesions, including unprotected left main (ULM) and bifurcations, is gaining a relevant role in treating coronary artery disease with good outcomes, also thanks to new generation stents. The daily risk of adverse cardiovascular events and their temporal distribution after these procedures is not known.
Methods: All consecutive patients presenting with a critical lesion of ULM or bifurcation treated with very thin struts stents, enrolled in the RAIN-Cardiogroup VII study, were analyzed.
Few data are available about the impact on outcomes of procedural strategies for percutaneous coronary intervention with thin-struts stents on unprotected left main (ULM): 792 patients with an ULM stenosis treated with percutaneous coronary intervention with thin-strut stents were enrolled in the present multicenter registry. Target lesion revascularization (TLR) was the primary end point. MACE (a composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction, TLR, and stent thrombosis) and its single components, along with target vessel revascularization were the secondary end points.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether asymptomatic recurrent (≥2) antibody-mediated rejection (pAMR 1+), defined as diffuse capillary C4d immunostaining (rAMR) on endomyocardial biopsies (EMBs), during the first year after heart transplantation impairs left ventricular (LV) function.
Methods: Fifty-four consecutive heart transplant patients who survived well (New York Heart Association ≤2 and EF≥55%) the first month after transplantation were enrolled and prospectively underwent 490 echocardiographies and EMB. Asymptomatic rAMR without histopathologic findings was evaluated as a risk factor for deterioration of graft function.