CoreValve Prosthesis Depth: What is the Optimal Measurement Target?

Background And Aim Of The Study: A major drawback of the transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure using the self-expandable Medtronic CoreValve (MCV) prosthesis is the high incidence of conduction disturbances and the need for postprocedural permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation. The depth of prosthesis implantation may be an important contributing factor. The study aim was to determine the relationship between angiographic measurements of the MCV prosthesis depth and the occurrence of new conduction disturbances and need for PPM after TAVR.

Impact of South Asian Ethnicity on Long-Term Outcomes After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery: A Large Population-Based Propensity Matched Study.

Background: Ethnicity is an important predictor of coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) outcomes. South Asians (SA), one of the largest ethnic groups with a high burden of cardiovascular disease, are hypothesized to have inferior outcomes after CABG compared to other ethnic groups. Given the paucity and controversy of literature in this area, the objective of this study was to examine the impact of SA versus the general population (GP) on long-term outcomes following CABG.

Incidence and Risk Factors for Infection Following Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation.

We identified risk factors for infection following transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI); infection occurred in 35 (13.8%) of 253 patients. Variables associated with infection included chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (OR, 1.

Comparison of Radial Artery and Saphenous Vein Graft Stenosis More Than 5 Years After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting.

Background: Graft stenosis may be associated with future graft failure. The purpose of this investigation was to compare graft stenosis between radial artery (RA) grafts and saphenous vein grafts (SVGs) at least 5 years postoperatively using the multicenter Radial Artery Patency Study (RAPS) data.

Methods: Two hundred thirty-four patients underwent late invasive angiography after coronary artery bypass operations.

Preprocedure Anemia Management Decreases Transfusion Rates in Patients Undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation.

Background: Periprocedural blood transfusions are associated with long-term mortality in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). We sought to assess the impact of a preoperative blood conservation approach in treating anemia and preventing blood transfusions in patients undergoing TAVI.

Methods: Our cohort consisted of all patients evaluated in our structural heart clinic between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2014.

A Review of Propensity-Score Methods and Their Use in Cardiovascular Research.

Observational studies using propensity-score methods have been increasing in the cardiovascular literature because randomized controlled trials are not always feasible or ethical. However, propensity-score methods can be confusing, and the general audience may not fully understand the importance of this technique. The objectives of this review are to describe (1) the fundamentals of propensity score methods, (2) the techniques to assess for propensity-score model adequacy, (3) the 4 major methods for using the propensity score (matching, stratification, covariate adjustment, and inverse probability of treatment weighting [IPTW]) using examples from previously published cardiovascular studies, and (4) the strengths and weaknesses of these 4 techniques.

The long-term impact of diabetes on graft patency after coronary artery bypass grafting surgery: a substudy of the multicenter Radial Artery Patency Study.

Objectives: The study objective was to determine the impact of diabetes on radial artery and saphenous vein graft occlusion and clinical outcomes more than 5 years after coronary artery bypass surgery in the multicenter Radial Artery Patency Study (NCT00187356).

Methods: A total of 529 patients aged less than 80 years with triple-vessel disease undergoing coronary bypass surgery participated in this study. Angiographic follow-up occurred more than 5 years after surgery with annual clinical follow-up.

Impact of wait times on the effectiveness of transcatheter aortic valve replacement in severe aortic valve disease: a discrete event simulation model.

Background: There is increasing demand for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) as the primary treatment option for patients with severe aortic stenosis who are high-risk surgical candidates or inoperable. We used mathematical simulation models to estimate the hypothetical effectiveness of TAVR with increasing wait times.

Methods: We applied discrete event modelling, using data from the Placement of Aortic Transcatheter Valves (PARTNER) trials.

Functional cardiac paraganglioma associated with a rare SDHC mutation.

Paragangliomas are catecholamine-secreting tumors external to the adrenal glands, most commonly arising in the head and neck, followed by the abdominal and thoracic cavities. The heart is a rare location for paragangliomas to originate from, with fewer than 50 cases as described in the literature. Functional paragangliomas of the right atrium are even more unusual, with only five cases reported to date.

Clinical, biochemical, and genetic predictors of coronary artery bypass graft failure.

Objectives: To identify novel predictors for coronary artery bypass grafting failure, we probed for associations with known clinical and biochemical risk factors for atherosclerosis. We also used microarray analysis to identify novel single nucleotide polymorphisms to better understand the genetics and pathogenesis of graft occlusion.

Methods: The present study was a nested case-control substudy of the Radial Artery Patency Study 5-year follow-up data.

Pedicled no-touch saphenous vein graft harvest limits vascular smooth muscle cell activation: the PATENT saphenous vein graft study.

Objective: Neointimal hyperplasia secondary to vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) activation limits the long-term patency of saphenous vein grafts (SVGs). We compared markers of vascular injury and VSMC activation in SVGs harvested using the pedicled 'no-touch' (NT) vs the conventional (CON) technique.

Methods: Patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery were enrolled in the PATENT SVG trial (clinicaltrials.