G-CSF treatment for STEMI: final 3-year follow-up of the randomised placebo-controlled STEM-AMI trial.

Objective: To assess whether granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) treatment induces a sustained benefit on adverse remodelling in patients with large anterior ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and left ventricular (LV) dysfunction after successful reperfusion.

Methods: The STEM-AMI Trial was a prospective, placebo-controlled, multicentre study. Sixty consecutive patients with a first anterior STEMI, who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention 2-12 h after symptom onset, with LV ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤45% measured by echocardiography within 12 h after successful revascularisation (TIMI flow score ≥2), were randomised 1:1 to G-CSF (5 µg/Kg body weight b.

Modalities of treatment and 30-day outcomes of unselected patients older than 75 years with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction: data from the BLITZ study.

Background: The optimal treatment strategy for elderly patients presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction is still controversial and few investigations have studied this high-risk population in a community setting.

Methods: We analyzed data from the BLITZ survey on patients with any acute myocardial infarction admitted to the Italian Coronary Care Unit (CCU) network, in order to assess current treatment strategies among unselected patients older than 75 years presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction. We also evaluated the 30-day rates of major adverse cardiovascular events (death/re-myocardial infarction/stroke) relative to different treatment strategies.

Comparative effects of candesartan and enalapril on left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with essential hypertension: the candesartan assessment in the treatment of cardiac hypertrophy (CATCH) study.

Background: A limited number of studies have evaluated the effect of angiotensin II receptor antagonists (AIIAs) on left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in comparison with other antihypertensive drugs, and no large study has compared AIIAs with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs).

Methods And Results: The CATCH (Candesartan Assessment in the Treatment of Cardiac Hypertrophy) study was a multicenter prospective randomized double-blind trial comparing the effects of candesartan cilexetil (8-16 mg once daily) and enalapril (10-20 mg once daily) with possible addition of hydrochlorothiazide (12.5-25 mg once daily) on echocardiographic left ventricular mass index (LVMI), in 239 hypertensives with LVH (LVMI 120 g/m2 in men and 100 g/m2 in women).

The consequences of under-use of coronary revascularization; results of a cohort study in Northern Italy.

Aim: To assess whether under-use of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) affects patient outcome.

Patients And Methods: A prospective observational study was performed following up a cohort of patients, candidates for a revascularization procedure (either CABG or PTCA) after an index angiogram. A total of 1258 patients, candidates -- according to explicit criteria -- for either CABG or PTCA entered the study enrolled by 16 hospitals located in a Northern Italian region (Lombardia).