Worldwide impact of COVID-19 on hospital admissions for non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTACS): a systematic review with meta-analysis of 553 038 cases.

Background: How coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) impacted non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTACS) is an object of controversial reports.

Aim: To systematically review studies reporting NSTACS hospitalizations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and analyse whether differences in COVID-19 epidemiology, methodology of report, or public health-related factors could contribute to discrepant findings.

Methods: Comprehensive search (Medline, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Register), of studies reporting NSTACS hospitalizations during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with a reference period, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis guidelines.

Worldwide differences of hospitalization for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction during COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Discrepant data were reported about hospital admissions for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) during COVID-19 pandemic. We reviewed studies reporting STEMI hospitalizations during COVID-19 pandemic, investigating whether differences in COVID-19 epidemiology or public health-related factors could explain discrepant findings in different countries.

Methods: Search through MedLine, Embase, Scopus, Web-of-Science, Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials, of studies comparing STEMI admissions during COVID-19 pandemic with a reference period, without language restrictions, as registered in PROSPERO International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews.

Severe spruelike enteropathy due to olmesartan.

Villous atrophy and negative serologic testing is a diagnostic challenge, and the rarer possibility of drug-induced enteritis should be considered. We report a rare case of severe spruelike enteritis due to olmesartan that completely resolved after withdrawal of the drug. The possibility that patient labeled as "refractory" celiac disease may actually be due to drug treatment should always be taken into consideration, to avoid unnecessary investigations.

Effects of a multidisciplinary lifestyle intervention for obesity on mental and physical components of quality of life: the mediatory role of depression.

The current study investigates the effects of a multidisciplinary lifestyle intervention for obesity on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). In this study, 92 adults with obesity were weighed and completed the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) at the baseline and at the end of a 3-month intervention. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), a series of hierarchical regressions, and the statistical mediation analysis of Baron and Kenny were conducted.

Mutual interactions between depression/quality of life and adherence to a multidisciplinary lifestyle intervention in obesity.

Context: There is scarce knowledge of the interaction between depression/health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and lifestyle intervention in obesity.

Objective: The aim of the study was to establish whether baseline mood status or HRQOL affects attendance to educational or exercise sessions and whether attendance to these two components of the intervention affects mood and/or HRQOL in obesity.

Design: A total of 282 overweight/obese subjects (body mass index, 33.

[Antihypertensive therapy and cardiovascular prevention. The role of angiotensin II receptor blockers].

Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) are widely used in patients with hypertension, heart failure, diabetic nephropathy, and other conditions. Over-stimulation of AT2 receptor as a result of AT1 blockade may contribute to the beneficial effects of ARBs through vasodilation and inhibition of cardiac and vascular hypertrophy and fibrosis. Some experimental studies, however, suggested that AT, receptor overstimulation, in addition to beneficial effects, might trigger inhibition of angiogenesis and apoptosis.

Estimate of white-coat effect and arterial stiffness.

Objectives: Blood pressure (BP) measured in the office is usually higher than the average ambulatory BP, a difference generally taken as an estimate of the white-coat effect. This study was designed to assess whether such a difference is associated with impairment of the conduit arterial system.

Methods: We calculated the difference between office and average daytime peak systolic blood pressure (DeltaSBP) in 2778 hypertensive participants (1240 women) of the Progetto Ipertensione Umbria Monitoraggio Ambulatoriale cohort.

Regression of left ventricular hypertrophy and prevention of stroke in hypertensive subjects.

Background: Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a risk marker for stroke and its regression confers protection from stroke. The relationship between serial LVH changes and risk of stroke has never been investigated in a mixed population of hypertensive subjects with and without LVH.

Methods: In this study, 880 initially untreated hypertensive subjects (mean age 48 years, office blood pressure (BP) 155/98 mm Hg; 24-h BP 137/87 mm Hg) underwent tests including echocardiography and 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring at entry and after a median of 3.

Do angiotensin II receptor blockers increase the risk of myocardial infarction?

Aims: The uncertainty surrounding safety of angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) increased after publication of experimental and clinical studies which suggested an excess risk of myocardial infarction (MI) in people treated with ARBs.

Methods And Results: We performed a meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials, which compared ARBs with either a placebo or active drugs different from ARBs. Overall, ARBs were not associated with an excess risk of MI [odds ratio (OR): 1.

New-onset diabetes in treated hypertensive patients.

Interpretation of some recent trials in hypertension opened a debate on the clinical value of new-onset diabetes in treated hypertensive patients. It is not completely clear whether certain antihypertensive drug classes are associated with a higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes when compared with other classes. Some longitudinal studies suggest that new-onset diabetes in treated hypertensive subjects carries a risk for subsequent cardiovascular disease similar to that of previously known diabetes.

Short- and long-term incidence of stroke in white-coat hypertension.

White-coat hypertension (WCH) has been associated with a low risk for stroke, but long-term data are scanty. We analyzed individual data from 4 prospective cohort studies from the United States, Italy, and Japan that used comparable methodology for 24-hour noninvasive ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM). Overall, 4406 subjects with essential hypertension and 1549 healthy normotensive controls who were untreated at the time of initial ABPM were followed for a median of 5.

Hypertension and microalbuminuria: the new detrimental duo.

Excretion of albumin with urine (UAE) in small amounts, i.e. microalbuminuria (MAU), also referred to as "incipient nephropathy", has long been considered a marker of early nephropathy and increased cardiovascular risk in the specific setting of diabetes mellitus.

Calcium channel blockade to prevent stroke in hypertension: a meta-analysis of 13 studies with 103,793 subjects.

Background: The possibility that specific antihypertensive treatments may prevent the occurrence of stroke more effectively than other treatments remains unproved. We undertook a meta-analysis to assess whether calcium channel blockers (CCBs) are associated with a lesser risk of stroke as compared with other antihypertensive drugs.

Methods: Through Medline we identified 13 major studies conducted in hypertensive subjects for a total of 103,793 subjects.

Validation of the A&D UA-774 (UA-767Plus) device for self-measurement of blood pressure.

Objectives: To determine the accuracy of the UA-774 (UA-767Plus) blood pressure monitor developed by the A&D Company.

Methods: Device evaluation was performed according to the modified British Hypertension Society (BHS) protocol released in 1993. Eighty-five subjects with characteristics outlined in the BHS protocol were recruited among those attending the outpatient clinic of the Department of Cardiovascular Disease, Hospital 'R.

Meta-Analysis of effectiveness or lack thereof of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors for prevention of heart failure in patients with systemic hypertension.

We undertook a meta-analysis of large, randomized controlled trials in hypertensive subjects that compared angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors with different classes of antihypertensive drugs. Compared with subjects randomized to drugs different from ACE inhibitors, those treated with ACE inhibitors did not show a different risk of congestive heart failure (CHF) (odds ratio 1.03, 95% confidence interval 0.

Hypertrophy at ECG and its regression during treatment survey (HEART survey). Rationale, design and baseline characteristics of patients.

Background: Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) detected at electrocardiography (ECG) is a predictor of an increased cardiovascular risk in essential hypertension. However, uncertainty remains concerning the reproducibility of ECG LVH and the prognostic relevance of its regression over time in hypertension. The aim of this study was to determine the prognostic value of baseline ECG LVH and its serial changes in a large cohort of hypertensive patients.

Atrial fibrillation in hypertension: predictors and outcome.

Incidence, determinants, and outcome of atrial fibrillation in hypertensive subjects are incompletely known. We followed for up to 16 years 2482 initially untreated subjects with essential hypertension. At entry, all subjects were in sinus rhythm.