Publications by authors named "Margarita Chernovolenko"
Can Grading of Mild Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy be Further Refined? An angiographic and physiologic assessment of heart transplant recipients with ISHLT CAV 1.
Nikil Prasad Erin Harris Melana Yuzefpolskaya Ersilia M DeFilippis Paolo C Colombo Margarita Chernovolenko
J Heart Lung Transplant
December 2024
Background: Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) results in impaired blood flow in both epicardial vessels and the microvasculature and is a leading cause of poor outcomes in heart transplant (HT) recipients. Most patients have mild (ISHLT CAV 1) disease. This study examined outcomes amongst those with ISHLT CAV 1 and investigated the value of physiologic assessment via cardiac positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) for added risk stratification.
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- Cardiac hybrid PET/CT is used to assess cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) in heart transplant patients and visually estimated coronary artery calcium (VECAC) from CT scans can help predict cardiovascular outcomes.
- A study of 430 heart transplant patients found that higher VECAC scores (specifically 10-99 and 100+) were linked to a significantly greater risk of death or retransplantation during a median follow-up of 4.2 years.
- The findings suggest that VECAC can be a valuable independent marker for predicting adverse outcomes post-heart transplant and should be considered in patient evaluations.
Article Synopsis
- Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a serious complication that affects nearly 50% of heart transplant patients within a decade, leading to reduced blood flow in the heart.
- An analysis of 181 heart transplant recipients revealed that those with a reduced myocardial blood flow reserve (MBFR ≤2.0) faced significantly higher risks of death, retransplantation, and cardiovascular issues compared to those with normal MBFR (>2.0).
- The findings suggest that monitoring myocardial blood flow can provide crucial prognostic insights for heart transplant patients, even when there are no visible signs of epicardial CAV.