Effect of tafamidis therapy on physical function in patients with wild-type transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis.

Background: Tafamidis is used as disease-modifying treatment for patients with wild-type transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTRwt CA). However, the effects of tafamidis on exercise tolerance are unclear.

Methods: This single-center, prospective, observational study aimed to assess the effect of tafamidis on exercise tolerance in 36 patients with ATTRwt CA.

Hemoglobin is an independent predictor of improvement exercise tolerance in male patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy.

Exercise intolerance is a symptom of chronic heart failure (CHF). The magnitude of exercise tolerance, as measured by peak oxygen uptake (peak VO), is strongly associated with prognosis in patients with CHF. We aimed to evaluate the factors associated with improved exercise tolerance in patients with HF.

Severe Left Main Coronary Artery Stenosis and Aortic Regurgitation in a Patient Presenting with Takayasu Arteritis.

We herein report the case of a 46-year-old woman with Takayasu arteritis (TA), severe stenosis in the left main coronary artery (LMCA), and severe aortic regurgitation. Prednisolone and tacrolimus were initiated as TA treatments. Two months after initiating medical therapy, the aortic regurgitation severity improved to a moderate grade, although there was no obvious improvement in LMCA stenosis.

Elevation of end-tidal CO during exercise is attenuated in patients with cardiac amyloidosis.

Reduced exercise tolerance is one of the hallmarks of patients with cardiac amyloidosis (CA), but detailed biological responses during exercise were not investigated. The purpose of this study was to compare the cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPX) parameters between CA patients and propensity-matched heart failure patients. This was a single-center, retrospective, observational study of patients diagnosed with CA.

Epicardial adipose tissue volume is an independent predictor of left ventricular reverse remodeling in patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy.

Background: In some patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy, left ventricular (LV) contraction is improved by optimal medical therapy, leading to LV reverse remodeling (RR). Patients with heart failure with improved ejection fraction and LVRR have a good prognosis, but the factors that predict RR are not fully understood. The relationship between body composition and cardiovascular disease has been reported.

Thigh Intramuscular Fat on Prognosis of Patients With Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy.

Skeletal muscle atrophy is an independent prognostic predictor for patients with chronic heart failure, and the concept of sarcopenia is drawing attention. Furthermore, the importance of not only muscle mass but also ectopic fat has been pointed out. However, there is a lack of consensus on the implications of ectopic fat for the prognosis in patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy.