Association of the Polymorphism rs3918242 of the Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 Gene with Coronary Artery Disease in a Younger Population.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a complex disease resulting from the interaction of numerous so-called traditional risk factors and comorbid conditions on the one side (such as dyslipidemia, smoking, obesity, diabetes, hypertension) and genetic factors on the other. The evidence of a genetic contribution to the development of CAD, especially in the last 2 decades is consistent. It is important that a number of established gene polymorphisms in the younger CAD population are in the genes involved in the inflammatory response and tissue maintenance and remodeling processes.

Transition Towards Transradial Approach Improves Outcomes of Acute Myocardial Infarction PCI.

Introduction And Aim: Transradial (TRA) instead of transfemoral (TFA) approach strategy has been presented in research literature as superior access strategy especially for acute ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). There is a paucity of registry-based data of outcomes from default TRA strategy compared to TFA.

Materials And Methods: All-comers STEMI PCI institutional Registry identified 1808 consecutive patients in time-frame of 40 months from 2007 to 2010, without making any exclusions.

Macedonia: coronary and structural heart interventions from 2010 to 2015.

The aim of this report is to describe invasive cardiology procedural practice in Macedonia during the period from 2010 to 2015. Details of all consecutive 39,899 patients who underwent cardiovascular, peripheral or structural heart procedures during the period from 2010 until 2015 were examined. Clinical and procedure characteristics, access site, procedural success and complications were analysed.

Transradial versus transfemoral access for female patients who underwent primary PCI in STEMI: Two years follow-up data from acute STEMI interventional registry.

Background: Female patients possess a higher risk for poorer outcome in ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). There is possibility that transradial access (TRA) for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) could provide better outcome than transfemoral access (TFA) in female patients with STEMI.

Methods: From 2008 to 2010, 418 female patients (out of 1808 patients) underwent PPCI for acute STEMI.

Antiphospholipid Syndrome - A Case Report of Pulmonary Thromboembolism, Followed with Acute Myocardial Infarction in Patient with Systemic Sclerosis.

Aim: We are presenting an uncommon case of pulmonary embolism, followed with an acute myocardial infarction, in a patient with progressive systemic sclerosis.

Case Presentation: A female 40 years of age was admitted with signs of pulmonary embolism, confirmed with CT scan, which also reviled a thrombus in the right ventricle. The patient had medical history of systemic sclerosis since the age of 16 years.

Meta-Analysis of Cell-based CaRdiac stUdiEs (ACCRUE) in patients with acute myocardial infarction based on individual patient data.

Rationale: The meta-Analysis of Cell-based CaRdiac study is the first prospectively declared collaborative multinational database, including individual data of patients with ischemic heart disease treated with cell therapy.

Objective: We analyzed the safety and efficacy of intracoronary cell therapy after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), including individual patient data from 12 randomized trials (ASTAMI, Aalst, BOOST, BONAMI, CADUCEUS, FINCELL, REGENT, REPAIR-AMI, SCAMI, SWISS-AMI, TIME, LATE-TIME; n=1252).

Methods And Results: The primary end point was freedom from combined major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (including all-cause death, AMI recurrance, stroke, and target vessel revascularization).

Complete transitioning to the radial approach for primary percutaneous coronary intervention: a real-world single-center registry of 1808 consecutive patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Objectives: To compare the short- and long-term outcomes of transradial approach (TRA) versus transfemoral approach (TFA) for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) during a complete institutional transition from TFA to TRA.

Methods And Results: An all-comer population of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients (n=1808) who underwent PPCI using TRA (n=1162) and TFA (n=646) from October 2007 to December 2010 were enrolled. TRA was used in 25% of PPCIs by 2007 and in 96% of PPCIs in 2010.

Atherosclerosis of coronary blood vessels - local or systemic inflamation?

The presence of atherosclerotic lesions in the blood vessels is a predisposition for the development and occurrence of acute ischaemic attacks. Bigger atherosclerotic lesions in the coronary blood vessels cause lumen occlusion, which is a cause of acute myocardial infarction. Endothelial dysfunction is defined as an ability of the endothelium to produce vasorelaxing nitric oxide (NO), or deregulation of the other vasoactive substances, such as angiotensin II and endothelin [13].

Combined delivery approach of bone marrow mononuclear stem cells early and late after myocardial infarction: the MYSTAR prospective, randomized study.

Background: Combined intracoronary and intramyocardial administration might improve outcomes for bone-marrow-derived stem cell therapy for acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We compared the safety and feasibility of early and late delivery of stem cells with combined therapy approaches.

Methods: Patients with left ventricular ejection fraction less than 45% after AMI were randomly assigned stem cell delivery via intramyocardial injection and intracoronary infusion 3-6 weeks or 3-4 months after AMI.

Recurrent myocardial infarction in a young football player with antithrombin III deficiency.

Acute myocardial infarction is a rare condition in young athletes. One of the causes could be a hypercoagulable state due to congenital antithrombin III deficiency, together with a prothrombotic state soon after strenuous physical training. We present the case of myocardial reinfarction in young football player with antithrombin III deficiency, treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention and drug eluting stent, as well as the functional repercussions of continuous intensive physical activity.

Design and rationale for the Myocardial Stem Cell Administration After Acute Myocardial Infarction (MYSTAR) Study: a multicenter, prospective, randomized, single-blind trial comparing early and late intracoronary or combined (percutaneous intramyocardial and intracoronary) administration of nonselected autologous bone marrow cells to patients after acute myocardial infarction.

Background: Previous data suggest that bone marrow-derived stem cells (BM-SCs) decrease the infarct size and beneficially affect the postinfarction remodeling.

Methods: The Myocardial Stem Cell Administration After Acute Myocardial Infarction Study is a multicenter, prospective, randomized, single-blind clinical trial designed to compare the early and late intracoronary or combined (percutaneous intramyocardial and intracoronary) administration of BM-SCs to patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with reopened infarct-related artery. The primary end points are the changes in resting myocardial perfusion defect size and left ventricular ejection fraction (gated single photon emission computed tomography [SPECT] scintigraphy) 3 months after BM-SCs therapy.

Stenting of coronary bifurcation lesions: case series.

Aim: To assess the procedural success and major cardiac event rate after stenting of coronary bifurcation lesions.

Methods: The prospective study included 36 patients with coronary artery bifurcation lesion treated with stenting between January 1999 and December 2001 at the Institute for Heart Disease, Skopje University Center. There were 23 men and 13 women, with a mean age of 62.