Serial longitudinal changes of coronary calcified plaques with clear outer borders under intensive lipid management: insights from optical coherence tomography.

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for calcified lesions is one of the most challenging procedures related to worse clinical outcomes. To stabilize vulnerable plaques, intensive lipid management is recommended; however, the serial changes of calcified plaques under intensive lipid management are unknown. A total of 31 patients (mean age, 63 ± 10 years; men, 29 patients) who underwent PCI with intensive lipid management were retrospectively studied.

Incidence, Predictors, and Outcome Associated With Ventricular Tachycardia or Fibrillation in Patients Undergoing Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention for Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Background: The characteristics and clinical outcomes associated with sustained ventricular tachycardia and fibrillation (VT/VF) in Japanese acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients remain unknown.

Methods and results: Consecutive AMI patients (n=1,941) transferred to the Hirosaki University Hospital and treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) within 12 h of onset were retrospectively studied. The incidence of VT/VF during hospitalization was 8.

Association of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the NRF2 promoter with vascular stiffness with aging.

Purpose: Pulse wave velocity (PWV), an indicator of vascular stiffness, increases with age and is increasingly recognized as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although many mechanical and chemical factors underlie the stiffness of the elastic artery, genetic risk factors related to age-dependent increases in PWV in apparently healthy people are largely unknown. The transcription factor nuclear factor E2 (NF-E2)-related factor 2 (Nrf2), which is activated by unidirectional vascular pulsatile shear stress or oxidative stress, regulates vascular redox homeostasis.

Blockade of PAR-1 Signaling Attenuates Cardiac Hypertrophy and Fibrosis in Renin-Overexpressing Hypertensive Mice.

Background Although PAR-1 (protease-activated receptor-1) exerts important functions in the pathophysiology of the cardiovascular system, the role of PAR-1 signaling in heart failure development remains largely unknown. We tested the hypothesis that PAR-1 signaling inhibition has protective effects on the progression of cardiac remodeling induced by chronic renin-angiotensin system activation using renin-overexpressing hypertensive (Ren-Tg) mice. Methods and Results We treated 12- to 16-week-old male wild-type (WT) mice and Ren-Tg mice with continuous subcutaneous infusion of the PAR-1 antagonist SCH79797 or vehicle for 4 weeks.

D-dimer and C-reactive Protein as Potential Biomarkers for Diagnosis of Trousseau's Syndrome in Patients with Cerebral Embolism.

Background: Differentiating stroke due to Trousseau's syndrome from other types of cerebral embolism is challenging, especially in patients with occult cancer. The current study aimed to determine predicting factors and biomarkers of stroke due to Trousseau's syndrome.

Methods: This retrospective study comprised 496 consecutive patients with acute cerebral embolism, including 19, 85, 310, and, 82 patients with stroke due to Trousseau's syndrome, artery-to-artery embolism, cardioembolic stroke, and embolic stroke with undetermined source, respectively.

Emerging evidence for crosstalk between Nrf2 and mitochondria in physiological homeostasis and in heart disease.

Nrf2 regulates redox homeostasis in cells by coordinately regulating a range of antioxidant enzymes and proteins. An increase in oxidative stress is one of the hallmarks of aging, and Nrf2 protein levels and activity decrease with aging. Decreased mitochondrial functions, such as decreased ATP production, also occur with aging, leading to the increased generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress.

Novel Electrocardiographic Criteria for the Diagnosis of Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in the Japanese General Population.

Although there are several diagnostic criteria for left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), their sensitivity remains low. A recent study reported that the sum of the amplitude of the deepest S wave in any lead (SD) and the S wave in lead V4 (SV4) (SD + SV4) improved sensitivity compared with commonly used criteria. To test whether this new formula improves sensitivity in the Japanese general population, we analyzed 12-lead electrocardiograms for Japanese residents participating in the Iwaki Health Promotion Project (n = 866).