Detailed Lipid Profiles and Lipid-related Residual Risk after 12-week 10 mg Rosuvastatin Treatment for Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Objective We aimed to reveal detailed on-treatment lipid profiles, lipid-related surrogate markers, and factors predicting failure to achieve the guideline-recommended lipid management goal following guideline-recommended statin treatment in Japanese patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods Sixty AMI patients who underwent coronary intervention and had received rosuvastatin 10 mg/day since the start of their hospitalization were assessed for on-treatment lipid-related profiles, including high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, small dense low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (sd LDL-C), and lipoprotein (a), at the 12-week follow-up. Patients who failed to achieve the guideline-recommended lipid management at 12 weeks were defined as the "unachieved group.

Evaluation of the thickness of coronary calcium by 60-MHz intravascular ultrasound: head-to-head comparison with optical frequency domain imaging.

The region behind the coronary calcium could not be visualized by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) because of acoustic shadow. However, some pathological studies have shown that IVUS delineated the vessel border behind thin coronary calcium sheets. This study aimed to reveal whether recent IVUS can visualize the region behind thin coronary calcium sheets.

Periprocedural and 30-day outcomes of robotic-assisted percutaneous coronary intervention used in the intravascular imaging guidance.

In recent years, there have been several reports on robotic-assisted percutaneous coronary intervention (R-PCI), but few studies have been conducted on R-PCI performed under intravascular imaging guidance. To elucidate the periprocedural and postoperative 30-day outcomes of intravascular imaging-guided R-PCI, we performed a retrospective observational study on all patients in 102 consecutive cases who underwent R-PCI under intravascular imaging guidance at a single center in Japan from June 12, 2019 to February 18, 2021. The primary end point was 30-day survival, and the secondary end point was the incidence of complications.

High-definition intravascular ultrasound versus optical frequency domain imaging for the detection of calcium modification and fracture in heavily calcified coronary lesion.

While optical frequency domain imaging (OFDI) can delineate calcium modification and fracture, the capability of high-definition intravascular ultrasound (HD-IVUS) for detecting these remains unclear. This study evaluated diagnostic accuracy of HD-IVUS for assessing calcium modification and fracture as compared to OFDI. HD-IVUS and OFDI were used during orbital or rotational atherectomy procedures conducted for 21 heavily calcified coronary lesions in 19 patients.

Coronary Flow Disturbance Phenomenon After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Is Associated with New-Onset Atrial Fibrillation in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common complication of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Although previous studies have investigated mortality rates and the incidences of adverse events associated with new-onset AF (NOAF) in patients with AMI, the effects of emergency percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on the incidence of NOAF in patients with AMI remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of clinical characteristics, medical history, and the coronary flow disturbance phenomenon (TIMI < 3) following emergency PCI with NOAF in patients with AMI.

A Low Early High-density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Level Is an Independent Predictor of In-hospital Death in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome.

Objective In patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in samples collected after an overnight fast are diagnostic indicators and well-established predictors of adverse outcomes. However, the relationship between the HDL-C levels in samples collected just after arrival (early HDL-C) and in-hospital mortality remains unknown. The purposes of the present ACS study were to (1) evaluate the association between the early HDL-C levels of patients and in-hospital mortality and (2) compare the early HDL-C level with other well-known determinants associated with in-hospital mortality.

Spontaneous healing of saccular type aneurysm with ventricular septal lacerations after blunt chest trauma.

We present a case of spontaneous healing of saccular type aneurysm with ventricular septal lacerations after blunt chest trauma. A 50-year-old Japanese man was transferred to our hospital diagnosed with ventricular septal lacerations after blunt chest trauma. Electrocardiogram (ECG) at admission showed ST elevations in I, II, III, aVL, aVF, V2-through to V6 were observed.

Elevated circulating levels of heat shock protein 70 are related to systemic inflammatory reaction through monocyte Toll signal in patients with heart failure after acute myocardial infarction.

Background: Recent studies have shown that heat shock protein (HSP) 70 may serve as a "damage signal" to the immune system and could be the endogenous ligand for Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 mediating synthesis of inflammatory cytokines.

Aims: To explore the relationship between circulating HSP70 levels and activation of monocyte TLR4 and myocardial damage after AMI.

Methods And Results: This study examined circulating HSP70 and monocyte TLR4 levels in 52 patients with AMI and 20 controls, and analyzed ex vivo inflammatory cytokine productions using HSP70-stimulated monocytes.

Myocardial osteopontin expression is associated with collagen fibrillogenesis in human dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: Osteopontin (OPN), an extracellular matrix (ECM) protein, plays an important role in myocardial remodeling by promoting collagen synthesis and accumulation in experimental animal models.

Aims: We hypothesized that OPN could be expressed in myocardial tissues and contribute to collagen accumulation and myocardial dysfunction in human dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM).

Methods And Results: Endomyocardial biopsy tissues were obtained from 51 patients with DCM and 15 controls by right ventricular endomyocardial biopsy.

C-reactive protein co-expresses with tumor necrosis factor-alpha in the myocardium in human dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: C-reactive protein (CRP) has recently been reported to be present in cardiac tissue and to stimulate the production of proinflammatory cytokines. Cardiac expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM).

Aims: To determine whether CRP co-expresses with TNF-alpha in the myocardium and to examine its association with clinical features in patients with DCM.

Activated toll-like receptor 4 in monocytes is associated with heart failure after acute myocardial infarction.

Peripheral monocytosis may affect the development of heart failure (HF) after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Activated toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 in monocytes plays an important role in the synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines. We examined TLR4 expression in monocytes, which may be a possible source of proinflammatory cytokines in AMI.

Activated tumour necrosis factor-alpha shedding process is associated with in-hospital complication in patients with acute myocardial infarction.

TACE [TNF-alpha (tumour necrosis factor-alpha)-converting enzyme] plays an essential role in the shedding of TNF-alpha, which could affect the outcome of AMI (acute myocardial infarction). To investigate the clinical significance of the TACE-TNF-alpha system in AMI, we examined TACE-mediated TNF-alpha synthesis in PBMCs (peripheral blood mononuclear cells), which are a possible source of TNF-alpha in AMI. Forty-one patients with AMI and 15 healthy subjects (HS) were enrolled in the present study.

Increased expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha converting enzyme and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients with advanced congestive heart failure.

Background: Tumor necrosis factor-alpha converting enzyme (TACE) has recently been identified as a metalloproteinase-disintegrin, which converts pro-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) to the mature form, and is an important mediator in the pathogenesis of CHF.

Aims: In order to establish the importance of TACE in the regulation of TNF-alpha synthesis in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), we analyzed mRNAs and protein-positive cells of both TACE and TNF-alpha in PBMC obtained from patients with congestive heart failure (CHF).

Methods And Results: PBMC were obtained from 46 patients with CHF and 22 controls.

Toll-like receptor 4 is expressed with enteroviral replication in myocardium from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy.

Expressions of innate immune response proteins, most notably proinflammatory cytokines, against enteroviral (EV) infection have been documented in the heart of human dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) activates signaling pathways leading to the expression of proinflammatory cytokines implicated the etiology of DCM. We sought to determine whether EV replication activates TLR4-dependent immune response in myocardium obtained from patients with DCM.

Expression of Toll-like receptor 4 is associated with enteroviral replication in human myocarditis.

Previous studies have demonstrated that inflammatory cytokine expression associated with enteroviral (EV) infection may play an important role in human myocarditis. However, the mechanism of the host immune response against viral pathogens has not been fully understood. The aim of the present study was to determine whether Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and EV RNA are present in human myocarditis.