The most important prognostic factors for predicting major adverse cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and renal events during 5-year follow-up of patients with chronic kidney disease with or without haemodialysis.

Objective: Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have an increased risk of adverse cardio-cerebrovascular events. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the prognostic predictors over 5 years in patients with CKD including haemodialysis.

Methods: In this multicenter, prospective cohort study performed with the Gunma-CKD SPECT Study protocol, 311 patients with CKD [estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 min/ml/1.

Risk of Post-Transplant Malignancy After Isolated Heart Transplant Among Adult Patients With Congenital Heart Disease.

Introduction: Patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) are at increased risk of cancer. In patients with CHD and advanced heart failure, isolated heart transplantation (HT) can be considered. In the overall HT population, immunosuppression after HT increases the risk of post-transplant malignancy (PTM).

Heart failure outpatient clinics resources in Italy: a viewpoint of Italian Society of Cardiology organization.

The current paper reports the model organization, level of health care, and type of medical and research activities related to the existing heart failure centers of the Italian Society of Cardiology. Of note, we conduced an internal survey among the members of heart failure working group and related hospital and territorial sites about the quality of care and assistance levels according to the local hospital resources and type of diagnostic therapeutic and management resources. Thirty-two hospital ambulatorial structures have been identified, the centers were equally distributed within the national ground, with similar concentration between north and south regions of the Italian country.

Longest Known Survivor With HeartMate II Continuous-Flow Left Ventricular Assist System-A Case Report of the 16-Year Success Story.

Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have been used as a bridge to transplantation in patients with advanced heart failure. In this case, LVAD therapy was used as a destination therapy for 16 years, representing the longest documented and continuously ongoing support with the original implanted device.

Advances in the Treatment of Neonatal Coarctation of the Aorta.

Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is a potentially life-threatening congenital and obstructive anomaly of the distal aortic arch. After constriction of the ductus arteriosus, neonates may develop critical CoA in the isthmus area and present with severe left ventricular dysfunction or even cardiac failure. Low cardiac output and abdominal hypoperfusion (distal to the coarctation) may lead to metabolic derangements and clinical deterioration.

The uses of right heart catheterization in cardio-pulmonary disease: State-of-the-art.

The right heart catheterization (RHC) remains an important diagnostic tool for a spectrum of cardiovascular disease processes including pulmonary hypertension (PH), shock, valvular heart disease, and unexplained dyspnea. While it gained widespread utilization after its introduction, the role of the RHC has evolved to provide valuable information for the management of advanced therapies in heart failure (HF) and cardiogenic shock (CS) to name a few. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview on the indications, utilization, complications, interpretation, and calculations associated with RHC.

Maintenance Immunosuppression With Tacrolimus and Everolimus in Heart Transplantation Compared With the Usual Tacrolimus and Micophenolate Protocol: Results From a Retrospective Registry.

Introduction: Real-life data on the long-term use of a maintenance immunosuppressive protocol in heart transplant patients using delayed Everolimus + Tacrolimus are scarce.

Methods: This is a retrospective study that included all heart transplant patients from 2011 to 2021 in two Spanish hospitals. In Hospital A, the preferred immunosuppressive strategy included Everolimus initiation at 2 months post-transplant combined with Tacrolimus and was compared with the results of Hospital B, where a standard Tacrolimus and Mycophenolate mofetil protocol was used.

Predicting Sarcopenia and Frailty Risk in Patients Post Heart Transplantation.

Introduction: Currently, there is little evidence on the prevalence and factors associated with sarcopenia risk or frailty risk in patients post heart transplantation (HTx). The objective of this study was to analyze the influence of sociodemographic, lifestyle, physical, and psychological factors on sarcopenia and frailty risk in patients post-HTx.

Methods: 133 patients post-HTx (59.

Medical and advanced heart failure therapies in Türkiye.

Background/aim: Effective management of heart failure involves evidence-based use of multiple medications and their combinations. Furthermore, dosage escalation of the recommended medications is advised. In cases of advanced heart failure, long-term mechanical assistance devices or heart transplantation surgery may be necessary.

Current approaches to optimize the donor heart for transplantation.

Heart transplantation remains a critical therapy for patients with end-stage heart failure, offering incremental survival and improved quality of life. One of the key components behind the success of heart transplantation is the condition and preservation of the donor's heart. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of ischemic reperfusion injury, risk factors associated with primary graft dysfunction, current use of various preservation solutions for organ procurement, and recent advancements in donor heart procurement technologies.

Tailored Therapies for Cardiogenic Shock in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Navigating Emerging Strategies.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a complex and heterogeneous cardiac disorder, often complicated by cardiogenic shock, a life-threatening condition marked by severe cardiac output failure. Managing cardiogenic shock in HCM patients presents unique challenges due to the distinct pathophysiology of the disease, which includes dynamic left ventricular outflow tract obstruction, diastolic dysfunction, and myocardial ischemia. This review discusses current and emerging therapeutic strategies tailored to address the complexities of HCM-associated cardiogenic shock and other diseases with similar pathophysiology that provoke left ventricular outflow tract obstruction.

High-resolution DNA methylation changes reveal biomarkers of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction versus reduced ejection fraction.

Novel biomarkers are needed to better identify-and distinguish-heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) from other clinical phenotypes. The goal of our study was to identify epigenetic-sensitive biomarkers useful to a more accurate diagnosis of HFpEF. We performed a network-oriented genome-wide DNA methylation study of circulating CD4 T lymphocytes isolated from peripheral blood using reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) in two cohorts (i.

Long-term outcomes of unselected patients undergoing coronary angiography according to the presence or absence of type II diabetes mellitus.

Objective: The study investigates long-term outcomes of unselected inpatients undergoing invasive coronary angiography (CA) with and without diabetes mellitus type II (T2DM).

Background: Due to continual shifts in demographics and advancements in treating cardiovascular disease, there has been a notable evolution in the types of patients undergoing CA over the past decades. Comprehensive data on the extended outcomes of CA patients, both with and without concurrent T2DM, remains scarce.

Complications of Left Ventricular Assist Devices: A Case Study of Recurrent Bacteremia and Implications for Infection Management.

Heart failure (HF) is a complex clinical condition with symptoms that result from ineffective ejection of blood due to functional or structural impairment of the heart. The most common causes of HF include ischemic heart disease, myocardial infarction (MI), hypertension, and valvular heart disease (VHD). As HF progresses to advanced stages, interventions, like left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), become essential, especially for patients ineligible for heart transplantation.

Cardiac replacement therapy: Critical issues and future perspectives of heart transplantation and artificial heart.

Diagnostic and therapeutic advances in the cardiovascular field have caused a progressive reduction in mortality from acute causes, with an ever-increasing chronicity of cardiovascular pathologies. In recent years, mechanical supports have played a fundamental role, allowing the patient to be stabilized in the most critical phase of acute heart failure (AHF) and acting as a "bridge" for definitive therapies. Heart transplantation (HTx) is the gold-standard treatment for end-stage HF, but it is burdened by a series of critical issues that limit its use, first of all the shortage of grafts.

Two Coupled Continuous-Flow Ventricular Assist Devices as a Novel BIVAD With One Driveline-Acute Animal Study Results.

Background: The study assesses the feasibility of the DuoCor BiVAS, a novel biventricular assist system integrating magnetic levitation technology.

Methods: In an acute large animal model involving five sheep, each received the DuoCor BiVAS without cardiopulmonary bypass. Hemodynamic and device parameters were monitored continuously for 1-h post-implantation.

Cardiac evaluation of renal transplant candidates with heart failure.

Patients with advanced kidney disease are at elevated risk of developing heart failure and appropriate risk stratification is important to permit them to receive kidney transplantation. The American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology joint statement provides guidance on risk stratification for the major cause of heart failure for these patients in its recommendations for coronary heart disease. Herein we provide an overview of the available literature on risk stratification for nonischemic heart failure and functional heart disease states such as pulmonary hypertension.

Pulmonary hypertension as a prognostic marker in low-flow low-gradient aortic stenosis: Insights from invasive hemodynamics and post-TAVR outcomes.

Introduction: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a common and significant comorbidity in patients with low-flow low-gradient (LF-LG) aortic stenosis, impacting prognosis after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Non-invasive tools often fail to capture PH's full clinical impact due to inherent limitations. This study evaluates the prognostic significance of PH measured invasively and explores its implications on post-TAVR outcomes.

The Prognostic Role of Pulmonary Arterial Elastance in Patients Undergoing Left Ventricular Assist Device Implantation: A Pilot Study.

: Pulmonary arterial elastance (Ea) is a helpful parameter to predict the risk of acute postoperative right ventricular failure (RVF) after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation. A new method for calculating Ea, obtained by the ratio between transpulmonary gradient and stroke volume (Ea), has been proposed as a more accurate measure than the Ea obtained as the ratio between pulmonary artery systolic pressure and stroke volume (Ea). However, the role of Ea in predicting acute RVF post-LVAD implantation remains unclear.

Validity of heart failure diagnoses, treatments, and readmissions in the Danish National Patient Registry.

Background: The Danish National Patient Registry (DNPR) is a valuable resource for population-based research, but the validity of routine registration of advanced heart failure (HF) treatments within the registry is unknown. We, therefore, investigated the validity of HF, advanced HF treatments, and HF readmissions in the DNPR.

Methods: We randomly sampled patients registered at a Danish University Hospital during 2017-2021 from the DNPR.