Meta-analysis comparing direct oral anticoagulants versus vitamin K antagonists in patients with left ventricular thrombus.

Current American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for stroke or ST-elevation myocardial infarction recommend the use of oral vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) as a first-line anticoagulant. Although several studies have compared the use of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) to VKAs for left ventricular thrombus (LVT) anticoagulation therapy, they are small scale and have produced conflicting results. Thus, this meta-analysis was performed to aggregate these studies to better compare the efficacy and safety of DOACs with VKAs in patients with LVT.

Gender-based outcomes of coronary bifurcation stenting: A report from the National Readmission Database.

Background: There is a paucity of data focusing on women's outcomes after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) for coronary bifurcation lesions (CBLs).

Methods: Patients who received PCI for CBLs in the context of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) during the period of 01 October 2015- 31 December 2017, were identified from the United States National Readmission Database. The primary endpoint of this study was in-hospital major adverse events (MAEs).

A Network-Based "Phenomics" Approach for Discovering Patient Subtypes From High-Throughput Cardiac Imaging Data.

Objectives: The authors present a method that focuses on cohort matching algorithms for performing patient-to-patient comparisons along multiple echocardiographic parameters for predicting meaningful patient subgroups.

Background: Recent efforts in collecting multiomics data open numerous opportunities for comprehensive integration of highly heterogenous data to classify a patient's cardiovascular state, eventually leading to tailored therapies.

Methods: A total of 42 echocardiography features, including 2-dimensional and Doppler measurements, left ventricular (LV) and atrial speckle-tracking, and vector flow mapping data, were obtained in 297 patients.

Trends, Outcomes, and Predictors of Revascularization in Cardiogenic Shock.

Cardiogenic shock (CS) carries high mortality and morbidity. Early revascularization is an important strategy in management of these patients. We sought to determine the outcomes and predictors of revascularization among patients with CS.

Isolated Pulmonic Valve Endocarditis: Case Report and Review of Existing Literature on Diagnosis and Therapy.

• Pulmonic valve endocarditis (PVE) is a rare complication of infective endocarditis. • It is occasionally associated with significant pulmonic insufficiency (PI). • PVE usually has a benign course, but it can sometimes be complicated.

Meta-Analysis Comparing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation With Balloon Versus Self-Expandable Valves.

Two transcatheter aortic valve systems are currently in use in the United States; balloon-expandable valves (BEV) and the self-expanding valve (SEV). However, comparative data outcomes between the 2 systems are limited, as only one randomized trial (RCT) performed a head-to-head comparison between BEVs and SEVs. However, there are several RCTs comparing BEV or SEV to surgical valve replacement.

Myocardial Mechanics in Patients With Normal LVEF and Diastolic Dysfunction.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a complex clinical entity that is poorly understood yet present in up to 5.5% of the general population. Proven therapies for this disorder are lacking, even though it has a similar prognosis to that of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).

Meta-Analysis of Outcomes of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Among Patients With Low Gradient Severe Aortic Stenosis.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has emerged as an effective therapy for patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS). However, data on TAVI outcomes in patients with low gradient (LG) AS are limited. We performed a meta-analysis of studies comparing TAVI outcomes between patients with classic high gradient (HG) and LG AS through November 2018.

A case of Hirayama disease in Pakistan.

We report a case of Hirayama disease in a 23 year old male presenting with weakness of right hand and forearm. The weakness started gradually, progressed over a period of 12 months and stabilized. Few months after the onset of right-sided weakness, he noticed weakness in the left hand and forearm which increased over a period of 3 months before stabilizing.