F-Sodium Fluoride Uptake in Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms: The SoFIA Study.

Background: Fluorine-18-sodium fluoride (F-NaF) uptake is a marker of active vascular calcification associated with high-risk atherosclerotic plaque.

Objectives: In patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), the authors assessed whether F-NaF positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) predicts AAA growth and clinical outcomes.

Methods: In prospective case-control (n = 20 per group) and longitudinal cohort (n = 72) studies, patients with AAA (aortic diameter >40 mm) and control subjects (aortic diameter <30 mm) underwent abdominal ultrasound, F-NaF PET-CT, CT angiography, and calcium scoring.

Tranexamic acid is associated with less blood transfusion in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Tranexamic acid reduces blood loss and transfusion in on-pump coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. Compared with on-pump, off-pump surgery is associated with less blood loss and transfusion. Therefore, tranexamic acid may be less effective for off-pump surgery, and its safety profile may be different in this setting.