Clinical outcomes of endovascular procedure using VIABAHN® VBX covered stent in complex aortoiliac artery disease: Result from AVOCADO study.

Objective: To investigate the safety and efficacy of a balloon-expandable covered stent in the treatment of complex aortoiliac artery disease.

Background: Peripheral intervention in complex aortoiliac disease still remains a challenge.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed symptomatic patients with aortoiliac disease who were treated with GORE® VIABAHN® VBX covered stent (W.

Impact of neointimal tissue characterization and heterogeneity of bare-metal stents and drug-eluting stents on the time course after stent implantation evaluated by integrated backscatter intravascular ultrasound.

Pathological studies have suggested the different process of in-stent restenosis (ISR) of bare-metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES). Here, we evaluated the components of neointimal tissue using integrated backscatter intravascular ultrasound (IB-IVUS) and focused on the time course after stent implantation and tissue signal distribution. We evaluated 125 lesions of 125 patients who underwent target lesion revascularization for ISR (BMS: n = 73, DES: n = 52).

One-Year Clinical Outcomes following Implantation of Innova Self-Expanding Nitinol Stents in Patients with Peripheral Artery Diseases Presenting Femoropopliteal Artery Lesions.

Aim: Although the Innova self-expanding nitinol stent (Boston Scientific, Marlborough, MA) exhibits acceptable performance in long-term safety and efficacy when used for the treatment of femoropopliteal (FP) lesions, clinical outcomes following its implantation have not been systematically studied in real-world settings. We investigated the one-year clinical outcomes after implantation of Innova self-expanding nitinol stents for the treatment of FP lesions in real-world settings.

Methods: In this multicenter study, 481 lesions in 453 consecutive patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) (74±9 years; male, 70%; diabetes mellitus, 61%; dialysis, 27%; critical limb ischemia, 37%) who underwent endovascular therapy with the implantation of Innova self-expanding nitinol stents for FP lesions were analyzed from February 2016 to April 2017.

Motion of left atrial appendage as a determinant of thrombus formation in patients with a low CHADS2 score receiving warfarin for persistent nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.

Background: The aim of this study was to define the independent determinants of left atrial appendage (LAA) thrombus among various echocardiographic parameters measured by Velocity Vector Imaging (VVI) in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) receiving warfarin, particularly in patients with a low CHADS2 score.

Methods: LAA emptying fraction (EF) and LAA peak longitudinal strain were measured by VVI using transesophageal echocardiography in 260 consecutive patients with nonvalvular persistent AF receiving warfarin. The patients were divided into two groups according to the presence (n=43) or absence (n=217) of LAA thrombus.

Effects of pitavastatin on cardiac structure and function and on prevention of atrial fibrillation in elderly hypertensive patients: a prospective study of 2-years' follow-up.

Background: The aim of this prospective study was to determine whether statin therapy (pitavastatin) has a beneficial effect on the prevention of new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) in elderly patients with hypertension (HTN) and to evaluate the relationships among statin treatment, the development of AF, and left atrial (LA) and ventricular (LV) structure and function.

Methods And Results: We enrolled eligible elderly patients (≥65 years old) with HTN and LV hypertrophy until the number of patients reached 110 in both groups. The 110 patients with HTN who needed statin therapy (HTN with statin group) were started on pitavastatin (1-2 mg/day), and both groups continued with appropriate medication for HTN.

Left atrial global and regional function in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation has already been impaired before enlargement of left atrium: velocity vector imaging echocardiography study.

Aims: Left atrial volume (LAV) has been proposed as a predictor of atrial fibrillation (AF) and LA function has been investigated by velocity vector imaging (VVI) echocardiography. The aim of this study was to determine whether LA function was associated with the existence of AF.

Methods And Results: We examined emptying function (EF) as a global function and strain rate (SR) as a regional function of LA function during three phases of the cardiac cycle (reservoir, conduit, and booster pump phase).

Over 10 years clinical outcomes in patients with mitral stenosis with unilateral commissural calcification treated with catheter balloon commissurotomy: single-center experience.

Objectives: Treatment of mitral valve stenosis with catheter balloon commissurotomy (CBC) yields acceptable immediate results even when one commissure shows calcification. However, the long-term outcomes in such cases remain unclear.

Methods: We examined the immediate and long-term (mean: 11+/-5 years) outcomes of 57 patients who underwent 58 CBC procedures.

Association of a polymorphism of ABCB1 with obesity in Japanese individuals.

The aim of the present study was to identify gene polymorphisms that confer susceptibility to obesity. A total of 5448 unrelated Japanese individuals from two independent populations were examined: subject panel A comprised 4252 individuals who visited participating hospitals; subject panel B comprised 1196 community-dwelling elderly individuals. The genotypes for 95 polymorphisms of 67 candidate genes were determined.

Prospective randomized trial comparing a nitinol self-expanding coronary stent with low-pressure dilatation and a high-pressure balloon expandable bare metal stent.

The recent SCORES trial demonstrated that lower dilatation pressures seen with self-expanding (SE) stents may be associated with lower rates of target lesion revascularization (TLR). To determine whether SE stents with low-pressure dilatation are as safe and effective as balloon expandable (BE) stents. We randomly assigned 254 patients with 279 coronary lesions to groups receiving either SE with low-pressure dilatation <12 atm (n = 143) or conventional BE stents (n = 136).

Prevention of no-reflow/slow-flow phenomenon during rotational atherectomy--a prospective randomized study comparing intracoronary continuous infusion of verapamil and nicorandil.

Background: The potential exists for microcirculatory impairment during rotational coronary atherectomy (RA) due to embolization of plaque debris, platelet aggregation, or vasospasm. This prospective randomized pilot study aimed to confirm favorable effects of nicorandil during RA compared with verapamil.

Methods: We randomly assigned 200 patients with 219 coronary lesions planned to undergo RA with intracoronary infusion of nicorandil cocktail (100 patients, 109 lesions), which contained nicorandil 24 mg, nitroglycerin 5 mg, and heparin 10,000 U in 1000 mL saline, or verapamil cocktail (100 patients, 110 lesions), which contained verapamil 10 mg instead of nicorandil.