Diabetes mellitus (DM) promotes atherosclerosis, leading to increased risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Diabetics represent a challenging subset of patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or who have experienced an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), a subset characterized by higher rates of recurrent ischemic events compared with non-diabetics. These events are caused by both patient-related accelerated atherosclerotic disease progression and worse stent-related adverse clinical outcomes translating into a higher risk for repeat revascularization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Distal radial artery access (DRA) has been emerged as an alternative for conventional transradial arterial access. While palpation of radial artery is mandatory prior coronary angiography, it remains unknown the clinical impact of palpation in DRA success. Aim of our study is to explore whether the palpability of distal radial artery is linked with higher rates of successful arterial access.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging
October 2024
Vasospastic angina (VSA) was first described in 1959 by Myron Prinzmetal as "the variant form of angina pectoris" on the sole basis of medical history and ECG. This condition is currently categorized as an endotype of myocardial infarction without coronary obstruction (Myocardial Infarction with Non-Obstructive Coronary Arteries (MINOCA)). Diagnostic criteria have been suggested by expert consensus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImportance: Previous studies investigated atherosclerotic changes induced by lipid-lowering therapy in extensive coronary segments irrespective of baseline disease burden (a vessel-level approach).
Objective: To investigate the effects of lipid-lowering therapy on coronary lesions with advanced atherosclerotic plaque features and presumably higher risk for future events.
Design, Setting, And Participants: The PACMAN-AMI randomized clinical trial (enrollment: May 2017 to October 2020; final follow-up: October 2021) randomized patients with acute myocardial infarction to receive alirocumab or placebo in addition to high-intensity statin therapy.
For the first time, the European Society of Cardiology has drafted guidelines which encompass the management of the entire spectrum of patients with acute coronary syndrome, ranging from cardiogenic shock or cardiac arrest to ST-segment as well as non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, to unstable angina. Some of the modified, as well as new recommendations include cardiac arrest, cardiogenic shock, diagnostic workup, antithrombotic therapy, timing of invasive strategy, intravascular imaging and revascularization in multivessel coronary artery disease. In addition, and for the first time, one entire section is dedicated to the patient's perspective and shared decision.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Compared with thin-strut durable-polymer drug-eluting stents (DP-DES), ultrathin-strut biodegradable-polymer sirolimus-eluting stents (BP-SES) improve stent-related clinical outcomes in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Reduced stent strut thickness is hypothesised to underlie these benefits, but this conjecture remains unproven.
Aims: We aimed to assess the impact of strut thickness on stent healing and clinical outcomes between ultrathin-strut and thin-strut BP-SES.
Introduction: Among patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), intravenous fentanyl does not enhance ticagrelor-induced platelet inhibition within 2 h compared to morphine. The impact of the total dose of fentanyl and morphine received on ticagrelor pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic responses in patients with STEMI remains however undetermined.
Materials And Methods: We performed a post-hoc subanalysis of the prospective, open-label, single-center, randomized PERSEUS trial (NCT02531165) that compared treatment with intravenous fentanyl vs.
Hellenic J Cardiol
July 2024
Background: Hypertension is a major public health issue due to its association with cardiovascular disease risk. Despite the availability of effective antihypertensive drugs, rates of blood pressure (BP) control remain suboptimal. Renal denervation (RDN) has emerged as an effective non-pharmacological, device-based treatment option for patients with hypertension.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging
March 2024
Background: Biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stents improve early stent-related clinical outcomes compared to durable polymer everolimus-eluting stents in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention. The long-term advantages of biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stents after complete degradation of its polymer coating in patients with STEMI remains however uncertain.
Methods: BIOSTEMI Extended Survival (BIOSTEMI ES) was an investigator-initiated, follow-up extension study of the BIOSTEMI prospective, multicentre, single-blind, randomised superiority trial that compared biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stents with durable polymer everolimus-eluting stents in patients with STEMI undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention at ten hospitals in Switzerland.
Importance: The Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) risk score, a guideline-recommended risk stratification tool for patients presenting with acute coronary syndromes (ACS), does not consider the extent of myocardial injury.
Objective: To assess the incremental predictive value of a modified GRACE score incorporating high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) T at presentation, a surrogate of the extent of myocardial injury.
Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospectively designed longitudinal cohort study examined 3 independent cohorts of 9803 patients with ACS enrolled from September 2009 to December 2017; 2 ACS derivation cohorts (Heidelberg ACS cohort and Newcastle STEMI cohort) and an ACS validation cohort (SPUM-ACS study).
Background: The frequency, characteristics, and outcomes of patients treated with high-intensity lipid-lowering therapy and showing concomitant atheroma volume reduction, lipid content reduction, and increase in fibrous cap thickness (ie, triple regression) are unknown.
Objectives: This study was designed to investigate rates, determinants, and prognostic implications of triple regression in patients presenting with acute myocardial infarction and treated with high-intensity lipid-lowering therapy.
Methods: The PACMAN-AMI (Effects of the PCSK9 Antibody Alirocumab on Coronary Atherosclerosis in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction) trial used serial intravascular ultrasound, near-infrared spectroscopy, and optical coherence tomography to compare the effects of alirocumab vs placebo in patients receiving high-intensity statin therapy.
Diabetic patients remain at increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events, compared to their non-diabetic counterparts. Coronary artery bypass grafting remains superior to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) among diabetic patients with chronic coronary syndrome and multivessel coronary artery disease. PCI represents an alternative in diabetic patient with low coronary anatomy complexity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A third-generation coronary drug-eluting resorbable magnesium scaffold (DREAMS 3G) was developed to enhance the performance of previous scaffold generations and achieve angiographic outcomes comparable to those of contemporary drug-eluting stents.
Methods: This prospective, multicenter, non-randomized, first-in-human study was conducted at 14 centers in Europe. Eligible patients had stable or unstable angina, documented silent ischemia, or non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction, and a maximum of two single de novo lesions in two separate coronary arteries with a reference vessel diameter between 2.
Background: Ultrathin-strut biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stents (BP-SES) are superior to thin-strut durable polymer everolimus-eluting stents (DP-EES) with respect to target lesion failure (TLF) at 2 years among patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). We sought to determine the impact of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI) complexity on long-term clinical outcomes with BP-SES versus DP-EES in STEMI patients.
Methods: We performed a post hoc subgroup analysis from the BIOSTEMI (NCT02579031) randomized trial, which included individual data from 407 STEMI patients enrolled in the BIOSCIENCE trial (NCT01443104).