Publications by authors named "Nishant Vatsa"
Background: Higher soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) levels are associated with adverse outcomes in chronic heart failure (HF).
Objectives: The authors assessed the association between proteomics-based suPAR levels and incident HF risk in the general population.
Methods: In 40,418 UK Biobank participants without HF or coronary artery disease at enrollment, the association between Olink-based suPAR levels measured as relative protein expression levels and incident all-cause, ischemic, and nonischemic HF was analyzed by competing-risk regression, while accounting for all-cause death as a competing risk.
Background: Depression is associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). Whether longitudinal changes in depression affect MACE in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) remains unknown.
Objectives: The authors evaluated the hypothesis that increasing or persistent depression predicts MACE in patients with CHD.
Article Synopsis
- - The study focused on how obesity and depressive symptoms are linked to chest pain (CP) in patients with nonobstructive coronary artery disease, revealing that 71.5% of participants experienced CP, with a particularly higher prevalence in those with obesity (77.6% vs. 67%).
- - Out of 814 patients, obesity was found to significantly increase CP occurrence, especially in men, who showed more frequent and prevalent CP compared to women with similar obesity levels.
- - The research concluded that both obesity and depressive symptoms are independently associated with CP, and the impact of obesity on CP in men was partially mediated by levels of depressive symptoms.
Recent studies have demonstrated that coronary plaque burden carries greater prognostic value in predicting adverse atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease outcomes than myocardial ischemia, thereby challenging the existing paradigm. Advances in plaque quantification through both noncontrast and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) methods have led to earlier and more cost-effective detection of coronary disease compared with traditional stress testing. The 2 principal techniques of noninvasive coronary plaque quantification assessment are coronary artery calcium scoring by noncontrast CT and coronary CT angiography, both of which correlate with disease burden on invasive angiography.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Patients with myocardial ischemia without obstructive coronary artery disease often have coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) and associated increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) events and anginal hospitalizations. Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) covers much of the myocardium and coronary arteries and when dysfunctional, secretes proinflammatory cytokines and is associated with CV events. While oxidative stress and systemic inflammation are associated with CMD, the relationship between EAT and CMD in women is not well known.
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- Vitamin D deficiency (VDD) is linked to higher cardiovascular mortality and adverse outcomes in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD), potentially due to inflammation and impaired cell function.
- In a study involving over 5,400 individuals, those with VDD showed significantly increased risk of cardiovascular issues, especially when combined with high levels of inflammation and low counts of circulating progenitor cells (CPCs).
- The findings suggest that targeted interventions might be needed for those with both VDD and other risk factors, but more research is required to determine if supplementation can help reduce risks in these groups.
Background: The management of revascularization of chronic total occlusions (CTOs) remains controversial. Whether specific patients gain survival benefit from CTO revascularization remains unknown.
Objectives: We investigated whether (i) patients with CTO have higher N terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT pro-BNP) levels than patients without CTO, (ii) in patients with CTO, NT pro-BNP levels predict adverse events, and (iii) those with elevated levels benefit from revascularization.
Background: A higher prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors has previously been shown to be associated with adverse social determinants of health (SDoH) and to explain some of their impact on cardiovascular risk. Whether there is a relationship between lipid parameters, specifically apolipoprotein B (apoB), apolipoprotein A1 (apoA1), their ratio (apoB/apoA1), and SDoH, and whether coronary artery disease (CAD) mortality risk associated with circulating apoB and apoA1 is modified by SDoH was unclear.
Methods: We investigated associations of apoA1, apoB, and apoB/apoA1 with the level of education and household income and their joint impact on CAD mortality in participants of the UK Biobank (UKB) with and without prevalent CAD at enrollment.
Purpose: Coronary artery plaque burden, low attenuation non-calcified plaque (LAP), and pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) on coronary CT angiography (CCTA), have been linked to future cardiac events. The purpose of this study was to evaluate intra- and inter reader reproducibility in the quantification of coronary plaque burden and its characteristics using an artificial intelligence-enhanced semi-automated software.
Materials And Methods: A total of 10 women and 6 men, aged 52 (IQR 49-58) underwent CCTA using a Siemens Somatom Force, Somatom Definition AS and Somatom Definition Flash scanners.
Background: The role of circulating progenitor cells (CPC) in collateral formation that occurs in the presence of chronic total occlusions (CTO) of a coronary artery is not well established. In stable patients with a CTO, we investigated whether CPC levels are associated with (a) collateral development and (b) ischemic burden, as measured by circulating high sensitivity troponin-I (hsTn-I) levels.
Methods: CPCs were enumerated by flow cytometry as CD45 blood mononuclear cells expressing CD34 and both CD34 and CD133 epitopes.
Although a chronic total occlusion (CTO) in the setting of an acute coronary syndrome is associated with greater risk, the prognosis of patients with a CTO and stable coronary artery disease (CAD) remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate adverse event rates in patients with stable CAD with and without a CTO. In 3,597 patients with stable CAD (>50% coronary luminal stenosis) who underwent cardiac catheterization, all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, and the composite major adverse cardiac event (MACE) rates for cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and heart failure hospitalization were evaluated.
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- - The study investigates the link between advanced hepatic fibrosis (AHF) and coronary artery disease (CAD), focusing on immune activation and systemic inflammation in affected patients.
- - Among 3,406 CAD patients, 479 had AHF, which was associated with older age, lower body mass index, and worse kidney function, and led to significantly higher levels of inflammatory markers and increased risk of death.
- - The research concluded that AHF is tied to increased inflammation and worse cardiovascular outcomes, with nearly half of the increased risk of cardiovascular death linked to immune activation, suggesting potential therapeutic targets to lower risks in CAD patients.
Background The survival benefit of revascularization of chronic total occlusion (CTO) of the coronary arteries remains a subject of controversy. We measured high sensitivity troponin-I (hsTn-I) levels as an estimate of myocardial ischemia in patients with stable coronary artery disease, with the hypothesis that (1) patients with CTO have higher levels of hsTn-I than patients without CTO, (2) hsTn-I levels will predict adverse cardiovascular events in patients with CTO, and (3) patients with elevated hsTn-I levels will have a survival benefit from CTO revascularization. Methods and Results In 428 patients with stable coronary artery disease and CTO undergoing coronary angiography, adverse event rates were investigated.
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- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) poses a significant health risk for women, with autoimmune conditions emerging as key contributors to CVD complications.* -
- Autoimmune disorders can lead to accelerated heart issues like atherosclerosis and thrombosis, with various factors such as disease duration and treatment affecting CVD risk.* -
- Early identification of CVD risks and a multi-disciplinary approach to treatment, including medications and collaborative research, are crucial for improving care for women with autoimmune conditions.*
The relationship between restless legs syndrome (RLS) and cardiovascular disease remains enigmatic in the general population, and its prognostic value in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown. In this study, the frequency of RLS-like symptoms was assessed using a validated instrument in 3,266 patients undergoing cardiac catheterization (mean age 64 years, 62% male, 23% Black, and 74% with obstructive CAD). Patients were followed for primary end points of cardiovascular death or incident myocardial infarction.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) risk factors are prevalent in black women, but when these risk factors arise is not clear. We aimed to determine when obesity, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia appear in black women within a community screening program.
Methods: 945 black women who enrolled in the 10,000 Women community screening project in the metro Atlanta area were included (2015-2018).
Comparing endoscopic resection and open resection for management of sinonasal mucosal melanoma.
Int Forum Allergy Rhinol
December 2019
Article Synopsis
- - Sinonasal mucosal melanoma (SMM) is a rare and aggressive cancer best treated with complete surgical removal, and this study compares outcomes of open versus endoscopic surgical methods in 686 cases from the National Cancer Database between 2010 and 2015.
- - After matching cases based on key variables, the study found no significant differences in 30-day or 90-day mortality rates between the two surgical approaches, but noted that endoscopic patients had higher rates of unplanned readmissions while open resection patients had a longer hospital stay.
- - Ultimately, the surgical technique used for SMM does not seem to impact overall survival, indicating both methods can be viable, but each comes with different implications for patient recovery.