Prognostic Value of Ambulatory Status at Transplant in Older Heart Transplant Recipients: Implications for Organ Allocation Policy.

Background: Shortage of organ donors in the Republic of Korea has become a major problem. To address this, it has been questioned whether heart transplant (HTx) allocation should be modified to reduce priority of older patients. We aimed to evaluate post-HTx outcomes according to recipient age and specific pre-HTx conditions using a nationwide prospective cohort.

Discontinuation rates, clinical effects and provocation factors of SGLT-2 inhibitor in the real world.

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors are the only medications that improve clinical outcomes regardless of baseline left ventricular ejection fraction. Despite the recognized effectiveness of SGLT-2 inhibitors, there remains a paucity of research on the discontinuation of these medications. The objective of this study is to analyze the rate of discontinuation of SGLT-2 inhibitors, to evaluate the impact of discontinuation on the clinical outcome, and to identify the factors associated with discontinuation.

The importance of kidney response over hematologic response in predicting kidney outcome in amyloid light-chain amyloidosis.

Background: Light chain amyloidosis, characterized by amyloid fibril deposition in multiple organs, often leads to progression to endstage kidney disease. This study aimed to identify predictors of kidney survival in patients with kidney amyloidosis, focusing on hematologic and kidney response.

Methods: This retrospective study included 138 patients diagnosed with kidney amyloidosis between 2011 and 2019.

The Korean Organ Transplant Registry (KOTRY): Third Official Adult Heart Transplant Report.

Background And Objectives: The Korean Organ Transplant Registry (KOTRY) provided data for this third official report on adult heart transplantation (HT), including information from 709 recipients.

Methods: Data from HTs performed at seven major centers in Korea between March 2014 and December 2020 were analyzed, focusing on immunosuppression, acute rejection, cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV), post-transplant survival, and mechanical circulatory support (MCS) usage.

Results: The median ages of the recipients and donors were 56.

Temporal Trends in Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes for Peripartum Cardiomyopathy: The Nationwide Multicenter Registry Over 20 Years.

Background: Although peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a fatal disease affecting young patients and fetuses, little is known about its recent prognosis and risk factors. This study investigated temporal trends in clinical characteristics and outcomes for PPCM in a nationwide multicenter registry.

Methods And Results: The study population comprised 340 patients (mean age, 33 years) who were diagnosed with PPCM between January 2000 and September 2022 in 26 tertiary hospitals in South Korea.

Impacts of Pre-transplant Panel-Reactive Antibody on Post-transplantation Outcomes: A Study of Nationwide Heart Transplant Registry Data.

Background And Objectives: The number of sensitized heart failure patients on waiting lists for heart transplantation (HTx) is increasing. Using the Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY), a nationwide multicenter database, we investigated the prevalence and clinical impact of calculated panel-reactive antibody (cPRA) in patients undergoing HTx.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 813 patients who underwent HTx between 2014 and 2021.

Impact of Everolimus Initiation and Corticosteroid Weaning During Acute Phase After Heart Transplantation on Clinical Outcome: Data from the Korean Organ Transplant Registry (KOTRY).

The effect of changes in immunosuppressive therapy during the acute phase post-heart transplantation (HTx) on clinical outcomes remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of changes in immunosuppressive therapy by corticosteroid (CS) weaning and everolimus (EVR) initiation during the first year post-HTx on clinical outcomes. We analyzed 622 recipients registered in the Korean Organ Transplant Registry (KOTRY) between January 2014 and December 2021.

Expert recommendations for the management of iron deficiency in patients with heart failure in Asia.

Background: Iron deficiency is a common comorbidity in heart failure (HF) and is independently associated with a worse quality-of-life and exercise capacity, as well as increased risk of hospitalization, regardless of anemia status. Although international guidelines have provided recommendations for the management of iron deficiency in patients with HF, guidelines in Asia are less established, and practical use of guidelines for management of iron deficiency is limited in the region.

Methods: A panel comprising cardiologists from China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand convened to share insights and provide guidance for the optimal management of iron deficiency in patients with HF, tailored for the Asian community.

Early stroke after left ventricular assist device implantation: role of right heart failure.

Background: Both stroke and right heart failure (RHF) are common and serious complications after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation. The objective of this study was to evaluate relation between stroke and RHF early after LVAD implantation.

Methods: This is a retrospective observational cohort study.

Unexpected Restart Failure of Durable Left Ventricular Assist Devices: A Report of Two Cases.

The HeartWare Ventricular Assist Device (HVAD) was widely used for mechanical circulatory support in patients with end-stage heart failure. However, there have been reports of a critical issue with HVAD pumps failing to restart, or experiencing delays in restarting, after being stopped. This case report describes 2 instances of HVAD failure-to-restart during heart transplantation surgery and routine outpatient care.

CRYAB stop-loss variant causes rare syndromic dilated cardiomyopathy with congenital cataract: expanding the phenotypic and mutational spectrum of alpha-B crystallinopathy.

Missense mutations in the alpha-B crystallin gene (CRYAB) have been reported in desmin-related myopathies with or without cardiomyopathy and have also been reported in families with only a cataract phenotype. Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a disorder with a highly heterogeneous genetic etiology involving more than 60 causative genes, hindering genetic diagnosis. In this study, we performed whole genome sequencing on 159 unrelated patients with DCM and identified an unusual stop-loss pathogenic variant in NM_001289808.

Metformin treatment is associated with improved survival in diabetic patients hospitalized with acute heart failure: A prospective observational study using the Korean acute heart failure registry data.

Aims: Although the hypothesis that metformin is beneficial for patients with diabetes and heart failure (HF) has been steadily raised, there is limited data on metformin use in patients with acute HF. We analyzed the association of metformin on all-cause mortality in hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes and acute HF.

Methods: The Korean Acute Heart Failure registry prospectively enrolled patients hospitalized for acute HF from 2011 to 2014.

Optimization of guideline-directed medical treatment for heart failure patients with reduced ejection fraction.

With the increasing number of medications demonstrating mortality benefits in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), the pharmacological treatment of HFrEF is entering a new phase. To enhance outcomes in heart failure patients through medical treatment, the choice of appropriate medications and simultaneous and rapid uptitration are critical. However, there are several challenges encountered during this medication uptitration, including issues like hypotension, fatigue, worsening renal function, and hyperkalemia.

Korean Society of Heart Failure Guidelines for the Management of Heart Failure: Advanced and Acute Heart Failure.

The Korean Society of Heart Failure (KSHF) Guidelines provide evidence-based recommendations based on Korean and international data to guide adequate diagnosis and management of heart failure (HF). Since introduction of 2017 edition of the guidelines, management of advanced HF has considerably improved, especially with advances in mechanical circulatory support and devices. The current guidelines addressed these improvements.

Korean Society of Heart Failure Guidelines for the Management of Heart Failure: Management of the Underlying Etiologies and Comorbidities of Heart Failure.

Most patients with heart failure (HF) have multiple comorbidities, which impact their quality of life, aggravate HF, and increase mortality. Cardiovascular comorbidities include systemic and pulmonary hypertension, ischemic and valvular heart diseases, and atrial fibrillation. Non-cardiovascular comorbidities include diabetes mellitus (DM), chronic kidney and pulmonary diseases, iron deficiency and anemia, and sleep apnea.

Direct comparison of diagnostic and clinical values between Tc-99 m DPD and Tc-99 m PYP scintigraphy in patients with cardiac amyloidosis.

Background: Technetium-99 m 3,3-diphosphono-1,2-propanodicarboxylic acid (DPD) and technetium-99 m sodium pyrophosphate (PYP) are the two most commonly used radiotracers for cardiac amyloidosis (CA), but no studies have directly compared them. Therefore, in this study, we directly compared the diagnostic and clinical utility of DPD and PYP scintigraphy in patients with CA.

Methods: Ten patients with CA were enrolled.

Iron Deficiency in Korean Patients With Heart Failure.

Background: Although iron deficiency (ID) is an important and treatable risk factor for heart failure (HF), data on ID are scarce in Asian patients with HF. Therefore, we sought to determine the prevalence and clinical characteristics of ID in hospitalized Korean patients with HF.

Methods: In this prospective, multicenter cohort study, 461 patients with acute HF seen at five tertiary centers from January to November 2019 in Korea were enrolled.