Coronary artery calcification as an incremental predictive risk: Research perspectives in primary prevention.

Coronary artery calcium (CAC) score is a neglected biomarker that can be derived from non-cardiac chest computed tomography scan and represents a surrogate for atherosclerosis. We created a simulation model using different CAC score values in the MESA coronary artery risk score in a population derived from the Fourier Trial. CAC score could modulate the sample sizes of cardiovascular trials in primary and secondary prevention and offer new primary prevention treatments to high-risk subjects with reasonable numbers needed to treat comparable to secondary prevention trials.

Sugar Cane ( L.) Waste Synthesized Si,N,S-Carbon Quantum Dots as High-Performance Corrosion Inhibitors for Mild Steel in Hydrochloric Acid.

This work reports the obtention of Si,N,S-CQDs from sugar cane bagasse and their inhibitory action on the mild steel corrosion in 1 mol L HCl solution. The CQDs were successfully obtained and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Dynamic light scattering, Raman, and UV-vis techniques, also showing endogenous self-doping. The anti-corrosive activity of CQDs was investigated by gravimetric tests, potentiodynamic polarization curves, electrochemical impedance measurements, atomic force microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy.

[Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists in heart failure with preserved/mildly reduced ejection fraction: from TOPCAT to FINEARTS-HF].

Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) represent one of the cornerstones of treatment for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Post-hoc data from the TOPCAT trial, conducted in patients with heart failure mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction (HFmrEF/HFpEF), suggest the possible clinical benefit of MRAs, particularly for slightly reduced ejection fraction values. The advent of non-steroidal MRAs, including finerenone, seems to represent a turning point in the treatment for HFmrEF/HFpEF.

Prognostic role of gait speed in worsening heart failure.

Background: Worsening Heart Failure (WHF) is associated with adverse prognosis. Identifying novel prognostic markers in WHF is crucial. Gait speed (GS), a validated frailty index, is an easily obtainable parameter that may aid in reclassifying the risk of HF patients.