Non-invasive recanalization of first-generation sirolimus-eluting stent thrombosis due to stent fracture and coronary artery aneurysm after clopidogrel treatment 15 years after implantation.

Unlabelled: In 2020, a 48-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital due to unstable angina. In 2005, three first-generation sirolimus-eluting stents (1st-SESs) had been deployed to his right coronary artery (RCA). Over the past 10 years or so, the patient has been treated with single antiplatelet therapy using aspirin.

Corrigendum to "Oncostatin M mediates cardioprotection via angiogenesis in ischemic heart disease" [Am. Heart J. Plus Cardiol. Res. Pract. vol. 35, 2023, 100331].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.ahjo.

Oncostatin M mediates cardioprotection via angiogenesis in ischemic heart disease.

Objective: Oncostatin M (OSM) is an inflammatory cytokine belonging to the interleukin-6 family member, which plays an important role in various cardiovascular diseases. We recently reported increased serum OSM levels in patients with coronary artery disease. However, the specific role in HF with ischemic heart disease (IHD) remains unclear.

Takotsubo syndrome associated with coronary microvascular dysfunction: A case study.

Unlabelled: The patient, a 68-year-old man, presented to our emergency room with chest pain, prompting an emergency cardiac catheterization due to elevated cardiac troponin-I levels. While no obvious coronary artery stenosis was found, there was evidence of apical ballooning wall motion in the left ventricle, leading to a diagnosis of takotsubo syndrome. Three months later, he occasionally experienced chest pain at rest, prompting us to conduct another cardiac catheterization.

A case of ventricular fibrillation without left ventricular systolic dysfunction induced by trastuzumab emtansine for breast cancer.

Trastuzumab-induced cardiomyopathy is a known complication of its use in breast cancer treatment. However, cardiac complications of trastuzumab without left ventricular systolic dysfunction have been rarely reported. These include left bundle branch block, sinus node dysfunction, and ventricular tachycardia.

Unique left pulmonary vein isolation in straight common trunk based on longitudinal conduction of left lateral ridge.

Background: A left common pulmonary vein (LCPV) is the most common anatomical variation in the pulmonary vein (PV) and often influences strategies of PV isolation for atrial fibrillation (AF). Our objective was to elucidate the electrical properties of the specific shape of LCPV and to apply it to an ablation procedure.

Methods And Results: We investigated consecutive 12 out of 204 paroxysmal AF patients who had the shape of a straight common trunk in LCPV defined by the formation of a single conduit with parallel cranial and caudal walls after the coalescence of superior and inferior PVs on the distal side.

A case of vasospastic angina with exertional sign.

We herein report a case of a 56-year-old woman with angina pectoris. She visited our emergency room because of chest pain. She finally underwent emergency percutaneous coronary intervention in right coronary artery due to acute coronary syndrome.

Oncostatin M is a novel biomarker for coronary artery disease - A possibility as a screening tool of silent myocardial ischemia for diabetes mellitus.

Objective: Oncostatin M (OSM) is an inflammatory cytokine of the interleukin-6 family which plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Therefore, we tested our hypothesis that serum OSM levels are increased in patients with coronary artery diseases (CAD).

Methods And Results: Serum OSM level was measured by sandwich technique immunoassay in 315 consecutive patients and who underwent coronary angiography at the International University of Health and Welfare Hospital from April 2019 to March 2021.

Risk of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in Aged Individuals in Relation to Cold Ambient Temperature - A Report From North Tochigi Experience.

Background: The impact of cold ambient temperature on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in aged individuals caused by cardiovascular events in indoor environments has not been investigated sufficiently.

Methods and results: We conducted a case-crossover study. The relationship between OHCA caused by cardiovascular events and exposure to minimum temperature <0℃ was analyzed.

Impaired glucose tolerance and albuminuria in patients with chronic heart failure: a subanalysis of the SUPPORT trial.

Aims: The study aims to evaluate the prognostic significance of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) with reference to albuminuria in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).

Methods And Results: We examined 535 CHF patients (mean 66 years, women 25%) in the control arm of our SUPPORT trial, in which we examined additive impact of olmesartan in hypertensive patients with symptomatic CHF treated with β-blockers and/or angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors. We examined the association between glycaemic abnormality (assessed by 75 g of oral glucose tolerance test) and albuminuria for a composite outcome of all-cause death, myocardial infarction, stroke, and HF hospitalization.

Stent collapse caused by balloon occlusion and aspiration system in saphenous vein graft intervention.

We present the case of an 82-year-old male patient with unstable angina pectoris referred for percutaneous coronary intervention in the saphenous vein graft (SVG) to left circumflex coronary artery. An everolimus-eluting cobalt chrome stent was successfully deployed, using an embolic protection device with balloon occlusion and aspiration system. During the procedure of aspiration thrombectomy, the deployed stent unexpectedly collapsed.

Influence of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction on the Effects of Supplemental Use of Angiotensin Receptor Blocker Olmesartan in Hypertensive Patients With Heart Failure.

Background: There is no robust evidence of pharmacological interventions to improve mortality in heart failure (HF) patients with preserved left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (HFpEF). In this subanalysis study of the SUPPORT Trial, we addressed the influence of LVEF on the effects of olmesartan in HF.

Methods and results: Among 1,147 patients enrolled in the SUPPORT Trial, we examined 429 patients with reduced LVEF (HFrEF, LVEF <50%) and 709 with HFpEF (LVEF ≥50%).

Clinical impacts of additive use of olmesartan in hypertensive patients with chronic heart failure: the supplemental benefit of an angiotensin receptor blocker in hypertensive patients with stable heart failure using olmesartan (SUPPORT) trial.

We examined whether an additive treatment with an angiotensin receptor blocker, olmesartan, reduces the mortality and morbidity in hypertensive patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) treated with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, β-blockers, or both. In this prospective, randomized, open-label, blinded endpoint study, a total of 1147 hypertensive patients with symptomatic CHF (mean age 66 years, 75% male) were randomized to the addition of olmesartan (n = 578) to baseline therapy vs. control (n = 569).

Prevalence, predictors and prognosis of patients with heart failure requiring nursing care.

Background: Although the need for nursing care (NC) in heart failure (HF) patients is recognized, detailed information on the current status in Japan is lacking. METHODS AND RESULTS: In the CHART-2 Study, we obtained information on daily life, physical ability, nutrition and mental status for 4,174 patients (mean age, 67.1±10.

Usefulness of combined risk stratification with heart rate and systolic blood pressure in the management of chronic heart failure. A report from the CHART-2 study.

Background: The appropriate target ranges of heart rate (HR) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) for the management of chronic heart failure (CHF) patients remain to be elucidated in a large-scale cohort study.

Methods And Results: We examined 3,029 consecutive CHF patients with sinus rhythm (SR) (mean age, 67.9 years) registered in the Chronic Heart Failure Analysis and Registry in the Tohoku District-2 Study (CHART-2; NCT00418041).

Prognostic impact of nutritional status in asymptomatic patients with cardiac diseases: a report from the CHART-2 Study.

Background: The prognostic impact of nutritional status is poorly understood in asymptomatic patients with structural and/or functional heart diseases, classified as stage B in the ESC/AHA/ACC chronic heart failure (HF) guidelines.

Methods And Results: We evaluated the impact of nutrition, using the controlling nutritional status (CONUT) score, calculated by the serum albumin and total cholesterol levels,and lymphocyte number, in 3,421 stage B patients from the Chronic Heart Failure Analysis and Registry in the Tohoku District-2 Study (mean age: 66.9±12.

Supplemental benefit of an angiotensin receptor blocker in hypertensive patients with stable heart failure using olmesartan (SUPPORT) trial--rationale and design.

Background: Although angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are now one of the first-line drug classes for the management of hypertension, recommendations for the management of chronic heart failure (CHF) are limited. The supplemental benefit of angiotensin receptor blocker in hypertensive patients with stable heart failure using olmesartan (SUPPORT) trial investigates whether an additive treatment with an ARB, olmesartan, reduces the mortality and morbidity in hypertensive patients with stable chronic heart failure.

Methods And Results: The SUPPORT trial is a prospective randomized open-label blinded endpoint study.

Statins exert the pleiotropic effects through small GTP-binding protein dissociation stimulator upregulation with a resultant Rac1 degradation.

Objective: The pleiotropic effects of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase inhibitors (statins) independent of cholesterol-lowering effects are thought to be mediated through inhibition of the Rho/Rho-kinase pathway. However, we have previously demonstrated that the pleiotropic effects of regular-dose statins are mediated mainly through inhibition of the Rac1 signaling pathway rather than the Rho/Rho-kinase pathway, although the molecular mechanisms of the selective inhibition of the Rac1 signaling pathway by regular-dose statins remain to be elucidated. In this study, we tested our hypothesis that small GTP-binding protein GDP dissociation stimulator (SmgGDS) plays a crucial role in the molecular mechanisms of the Rac1 signaling pathway inhibition by statins in endothelial cells.

Prognostic impact of blood urea nitrogen changes during hospitalization in patients with acute heart failure syndrome.

Background: Elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) observed in patients hospitalized for acute heart failure syndrome (AHFS) may represent increased neurohumoral activation. The purpose of this study was to examine the prognostic impact of BUN changes during hospitalization on the long-term prognosis of AHFS patients.

Methods And Results: The Tohoku Acute Heart Failure Registry (n=497) is a multicenter retrospective cohort study enrolling AHFS patients who were admitted in 2007.

A case report of very late stent thrombosis with peri-stent coronary artery aneurysm and stent-related coronary vasospasm.

We describe a 42-year-old man with very late stent thrombosis (VLST) 35 months after implantation of a sirolimus-eluting stent (SES). Three months after the VLST episode, a follow-up angiography showed a formation of peri-stent coronary artery aneurysm. Sixty-five months after SES implantation, the patient suffered an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Prospective care of heart failure in Japan: lessons from CHART studies.

There are approximately 23 million patients with heart failure (HF) worldwide. The prognosis of patients with HF is still poor and a prospective approach for preventing and treating HF is necessary. The number of HF patients in Japan has been increasing since 1950 mainly because of a rapidly aging population.

Ezetimibe improves endothelial function and inhibits Rho-kinase activity associated with inhibition of cholesterol absorption in humans.

Background: Ezetimibe is an inhibitor of cholesterol absorption in the intestine. We examined whether ezetimibe improves endothelial function, and if so, what mechanisms are involved.

Methods And Results: Nineteen healthy subjects (male/female 14/5; mean age, 31±3 [SD] years-old) were randomized to receive ezetimibe (10mg/day) or pravastatin (10mg/day) for 4 weeks in a cross-over manner with a 4-week washout interval.