Publications by authors named "Leanne Barrett"
Background: Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy characterized by systemic endothelial dysfunction. The pathophysiology of preeclampsia remains incompletely understood. This study used human venous endothelial cell (EC) transcriptional profiling to investigate potential novel mechanisms underlying EC dysfunction in preeclampsia.
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- The study aimed to investigate myocardial inflammation in patients with desmoplakin (DSP) cardiomyopathy using FDG PET/CT imaging and assess circulating inflammation biomarkers.
- Ten DSP cardiomyopathy participants and four titin cardiomyopathy participants were recruited; no significant differences in key inflammation markers were found between the groups.
- The results showed some non-specific myocardial FDG uptake in both groups but no overall differences, suggesting similar inflammation profiles in DSP and titin cardiomyopathies.
Article Synopsis
- This study looked at how inflammation affects heart health in people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), focusing on something called myocardial flow reserve (MFR), which is important for heart function.! -
- Researchers examined 66 patients with RA who started a new treatment and checked their heart blood flow before and after the treatment, finding that nearly half had issues with their heart's small blood vessels.! -
- Although there was no improvement in heart flow after treatment, they saw some links between lower inflammation markers and a tiny drop in one specific marker related to heart health.
Article Synopsis
- Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related condition characterized by high blood pressure and a disruption in the balance of certain proteins, potentially leading to cardiovascular risks due to microvascular dysfunction.
- Researchers compared cardiac function in women with severe preeclampsia to those with normal pregnancies and nonpostpartum controls using advanced imaging techniques to assess myocardial flow and resistance.
- Results indicated that women who had preeclampsia showed significantly decreased blood flow and increased vascular resistance, highlighting reduced coronary microvascular function soon after delivery, which could have long-term health implications.
Article Synopsis
- Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related condition characterized by high blood pressure and microvascular dysfunction, potentially increasing cardiovascular risks post-pregnancy.
- A study compared women with severe preeclampsia to those with normal pregnancies and non-postpartum controls using cardiac imaging to assess heart function and blood flow.
- Results showed that women who experienced preeclampsia had significantly reduced heart function and increased vascular resistance, indicating potential long-term cardiovascular issues, warranting further investigation for preventive measures.
Background: HIV infection and abacavir-containing antiretroviral regimens are associated with vascular endothelial dysfunction and increased cardiovascular risk. Positron emission tomography (PET)-derived myocardial blood flow reserve (MBFR), the ratio of vasodilator stress to rest myocardial blood flow, is a well-validated measure of coronary microvascular health and marker of cardiovascular risk. Our objective was to compare MBFR among people with HIV (PWH) with matched non-HIV controls and to assess whether switching from dolutegravir/lamivudine/abacavir to the non-abacavir regimen bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) would improve MBFR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Given the central importance of cardiorenal interactions, mechanistic tools for evaluating cardiorenal physiology are needed. In the heart and kidneys, shared pathways of neurohormonal activation, hypertension, and vascular and interstitial fibrosis implicate the relevance of systemic vascular health. The availability of a long axial field of view positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) system enables simultaneous evaluation of cardiac and renal blood flow.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImportance: Impaired myocardial flow reserve (MFR) and stress myocardial blood flow (MBF) on positron emission tomography (PET) myocardial perfusion imaging may identify adverse myocardial characteristics, including myocardial stress and injury in aortic stenosis (AS).
Objective: To investigate whether MFR and stress MBF are associated with LV structure and function derangements, and whether these parameters improve after aortic valve replacement (AVR).
Design, Setting, And Participants: In this single-center prospective observational study in Boston, Massachusetts, from 2018 to 2020, patients with predominantly moderate to severe AS underwent ammonia N13 PET myocardial perfusion imaging for myocardial blood flow (MBF) quantification, resting transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) for assessment of myocardial structure and function, and measurement of circulating biomarkers for myocardial injury and wall stress.
Aims: The transition from hypertension to heart failure (HF) remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that insufficient perfusion to match global metabolic demand, reflected by a low ratio of myocardial blood flow to global myocardial mass, may be a HF risk marker.
Methods And Results: A retrospective cohort (n = 346) of patients with hypertension who underwent clinical positron emission tomography (PET) myocardial perfusion imaging for chest pain and/or dyspnoea at Brigham and Women's Hospital (Boston, MA, USA) were studied.
Background Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune inflammatory disorder associated with premature atherosclerosis and increased cardiovascular risk. Systemic inflammation is an emerging risk factor for coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD). We aimed to test whether CMD, defined as abnormal myocardial flow reserve (MFR) by positron emission tomography-computed tomography, would be independently associated with SLE after adjusting for nonobstructive atherosclerotic burden and common cardiovascular risk factors.
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