TransCatheter aortic valve implantation and fractional flow reserve-guided percutaneous coronary intervention versus conventional surgical aortic valve replacement and coronary bypass grafting for treatment of patients with aortic valve stenosis and complex or multivessel coronary disease (TCW): an international, multicentre, prospective, open-label, non-inferiority, randomised controlled trial.

Background: Patients with severe aortic stenosis present frequently (∼50%) with concomitant obstructive coronary artery disease. Current guidelines recommend combined surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) as the preferred treatment. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) represent a valid treatment alternative.

Cangrelor versus crushed ticagrelor in patients with acute myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock: rationale and design of the randomised, double-blind DAPT-SHOCK-AMI trial.

Cardiogenic shock (CS) is a devastating and fatal complication of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). CS can affect the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of medications. The unique properties of cangrelor make it the optimal P2Y12 inhibitor for CS-AMI, in terms of both efficacy and safety.

TransCatheter aortic valve implantation and fractional flow reserve-guided percutaneous coronary intervention versus conventional surgical aortic valve replacement and coronary bypass grafting for treatment of patients with aortic valve stenosis and multivessel or advanced coronary disease: The transcatheter valve and vessels trial (TCW trial): Design and rationale.

Background: Patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) frequently present with concomitant obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). In those, current guidelines recommend combined coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) as the preferred treatment option, although this surgical approach is associated with a high rate of clinical events. Combined transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with or without FFR have evolved as a valid alternative for cardiac surgery in patients with AS and multivessel or advanced CAD.

Outcomes of patients with myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock treated with culprit vessel-only versus multivessel primary PCI.

Introduction And Objectives: Multivessel primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI) is still often used in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and cardiogenic shock (CS). The study aimed to compare the characteristics and prognosis of patients with CS-STEMI and multivessel coronary disease (MVD) treated with culprit vessel-only pPCI or multivessel-pPCI during the initial procedure.

Material And Methods: From 2016 to 2020, 23,703 primary PCI patients with STEMI were included in a national all-comers registry of cardiovascular interventions.

Randomized comparison of 9-month stent strut coverage of biolimus and everolimus drug-eluting stents assessed by optical coherence tomography in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Long-term (5-years) clinical follow-up (ROBUST trial).

Background: The aim of the study was to compare healing (assessed by optical coherence tomography [OCT]) of biolimus A9 (BES) and everolimus drug-eluting stents (EES) at 9-month follow-up in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated by primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI). Nine-month clinical and angiographic data were also compared in both groups as well as clinical data at 5 years of follow-up.

Methods: A total of 201 patients with STEMI were enrolled in the study and randomized either to pPCI with BES or EES implantation.

4-Year Outcomes After Left Atrial Appendage Closure Versus Nonwarfarin Oral Anticoagulation for Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: The PRAGUE-17 (Left Atrial Appendage Closure vs Novel Anticoagulation Agents in Atrial Fibrillation) trial demonstrated that left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) was noninferior to nonwarfarin direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for preventing major neurological, cardiovascular, or bleeding events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who were at high risk.

Objectives: This study sought to assess the prespecified long-term (4-year) outcomes in PRAGUE-17.

Methods: PRAGUE-17 was a randomized noninferiority trial comparing percutaneous LAAC (Watchman or Amulet) with DOACs (95% apixaban) in patients with nonvalvular AF and with a history of cardioembolism, clinically-relevant bleeding, or both CHADS-VASc ≥3 and HASBLED ≥2.

Author Correction: Application and Evaluation of Highly Automated Software for Comprehensive Stent Analysis in Intravascular Optical Coherence Tomography.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Left Atrial Appendage Closure Versus Direct Oral Anticoagulants in High-Risk Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Percutaneous left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) is noninferior to vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) for preventing atrial fibrillation (AF)-related stroke. However, direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) have an improved safety profile over VKAs, and their effect on cardiovascular and neurological outcomes relative to LAAC is unknown.

Objectives: This study sought to compare DOACs with LAAC in high-risk patients with AF.

Application and Evaluation of Highly Automated Software for Comprehensive Stent Analysis in Intravascular Optical Coherence Tomography.

Intravascular optical coherence tomography (IVOCT) is used to assess stent tissue coverage and malapposition in stent evaluation trials. We developed the OCT Image Visualization and Analysis Toolkit for Stent (OCTivat-Stent), for highly automated analysis of IVOCT pullbacks. Algorithms automatically detected the guidewire, lumen boundary, and stent struts; determined the presence of tissue coverage for each strut; and estimated the stent contour for comparison of stent and lumen area.

Five-year outcomes in cardiac surgery patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing concomitant surgical ablation versus no ablation. The long-term follow-up of the PRAGUE-12 Study.

Background: The long-term effect of concomitant surgical ablation (SA) on clinical outcomes in an unselected population of patients has not been sufficiently reported in randomized studies.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess clinical outcomes of the SA after 5 years of follow-up.

Methods: The PRAGUE-12 study was a prospective, randomized clinical trial assessing cardiac surgery with ablation for AF vs cardiac surgery alone.

Endovascular management of an aortic rupture following transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

We report a case of aortic rupture during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) managed successfully by urgent stent-graft implantation.

1-Year Outcomes of Patients Undergoing Primary Angioplasty for Myocardial Infarction Treated With Prasugrel Versus Ticagrelor.

Background: Early outcomes of patients in the PRAGUE-18 (Comparison of Prasugrel and Ticagrelor in the Treatment of Acute Myocardial Infarction) study did not find any significant differences between 2 potent P2Y inhibitors.

Objectives: The 1-year follow-up of the PRAGUE-18 study focused on: 1) a comparison of efficacy and safety between prasugrel and ticagrelor; and 2) the risk of major ischemic events related to an economically motivated post-discharge switch to clopidogrel.

Methods: A total of 1,230 patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention were randomized to prasugrel or ticagrelor with an intended treatment duration of 12 months.

OCT guidance during stent implantation in primary PCI: A randomized multicenter study with nine months of optical coherence tomography follow-up.

Aims: To assess the possible merits of optical coherence tomography (OCT) guidance in primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI).

Methods And Results: 201 patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) were enrolled in this study. Patients were randomized either to pPCI alone (angio-guided group, n=96) or to pPCI with OCT guidance (OCT-guided group, n=105) and also either to biolimus A9 or to everolimus-eluting stent implantation.

Interventional left atrial appendage closure vs novel anticoagulation agents in patients with atrial fibrillation indicated for long-term anticoagulation (PRAGUE-17 study).

Unlabelled: Atrial fibrillation (AF), with a prevalence of 1% to 2%, is the most common cardiac arrhythmia. Without antithrombotic treatment, the annual risk of a cardioembolic event is 5% to 6%. The source of a cardioembolic event is a thrombus, which is usually formed in the left atrial appendage (LAA).

Prasugrel Versus Ticagrelor in Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction Treated With Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Multicenter Randomized PRAGUE-18 Study.

Background: No randomized head-to-head comparison of the efficacy and safety of ticagrelor and prasugrel has been published in the 7 years since the higher efficacy of these newer P2Y inhibitors were first demonstrated relative to clopidogrel.

Methods: This academic study was designed to compare the efficacy and safety of prasugrel and ticagrelor in acute myocardial infarction treated with primary or immediate percutaneous coronary intervention. A total of 1230 patients were randomly assigned across 14 sites to either prasugrel or ticagrelor, which was initiated before percutaneous coronary intervention.

[The user´s reporting from the national registry of catheter aortic valve implantations (Czech TAVI Registry): the possibilities of the analytical reports based on the database system TrialDB2].

Assessment of the treatment procedures and their results is increasingly important in current medicine. The emphasis is put on an effective use of the health technologies (HTA). Unlike randomised studies, which involve strictly selected groups of patients who meet inclusion and exclusion criterias, the multicentre clinical registries provide a real-life picture of the treatment safety and effectiveness.

[Optical coherence tomography, delayed stent implantation and primary percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with myocardial infarction and ST segment elevation].

Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is an effective treatment for myocardial infarction with ST-segment elevation. However, the stent may slow (slow-flow) or even interrupt the flow (no-reflow) in the infarct-related artery with an increase in short-term and long-term mortality. Due to these limitations there is an effort to search for alternative methods or certain modifications of existing PCI.

Optical coherence tomography-guided primary percutaneous coronary intervention in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction patients: a pilot study.

Background: The objective of our study was to assess whether optical coherence tomography (OCT) guidance could guide intervention to avoid balloon angioplasty and stenting during primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Methods: One hundred patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and thrombus-containing lesion were enrolled in this study. Thrombus aspiration was performed in all cases followed by an OCT study.

The incidence and outcomes of acute coronary syndromes in a central European country: results of the CZECH-2 registry.

Background: The incidence and treatment strategies of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) vary by region. Additionally, the clinical spectrum of ACS is changing and outcomes are improving.

Aim: We assessed the incidence, treatment strategies, and outcomes of ACS for a well-defined population within a well-established network of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) centers and non-PCI centers.

Comparison of cardiac surgery with left atrial surgical ablation vs. cardiac surgery without atrial ablation in patients with coronary and/or valvular heart disease plus atrial fibrillation: final results of the PRAGUE-12 randomized multicentre study.

Aims: Surgical ablation procedure can restore sinus rhythm (SR) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing cardiac surgery. However, it is not known whether it has any impact on long-term clinical outcomes.

Methods And Results: This multicentre study randomized 224 patients with AF scheduled for valve and/or coronary surgery: group A (left atrial surgical ablation, n = 117) vs.

Predictors of coronary intervention-related myocardial infarction in stable angina patients pre-treated with statins.

Introduction: Peri-procedural myocardial infarction (PMI) is a frequent and prognostically important complication of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). This study was designed to determine the predictors of PMI in patients pre-treated with statins.

Material And Methods: A total of 418 stable angina pectoris patients taking statins and aspirin were included.