Riociguat in children with pulmonary arterial hypertension: The PATENT-CHILD study.

Riociguat, a soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator, is approved for treatment of adults with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of oral riociguat in a pediatric population with PAH was assessed in PATENT-CHILD (NCT02562235), a multicenter, single-arm, 24-week, open-label, Phase 3 study. Patients aged 6-17 years in World Health Organization functional class (WHO-FC) I-III treated with stable endothelin receptor antagonists and/or prostacyclin analogs received riociguat equivalent to 0.

Nationwide Registry-Based Analysis of Infective Endocarditis Risk After Pulmonary Valve Replacement.

Background Infective endocarditis (IE) after pulmonary valve replacements in congenital heart disease is a significant concern. This study aimed to identify specific long-term risk factors for IE after percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation or surgical pulmonary valve replacement. Methods and Results All patients with congenital heart disease from the National Register for Congenital Heart Defects with at least 1 pulmonary valve replacement before January 2018 were included.

Multi-parametric assessment of left ventricular hypertrophy using late gadolinium enhancement, T1 mapping and strain-encoded cardiovascular magnetic resonance.

Aim: To evaluate the ability of single heartbeat fast-strain encoded (SENC) cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) derived myocardial strain to discriminate between different forms of left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy (LVH).

Methods: 314 patients (228 with hypertensive heart disease (HHD), 45 with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), 41 with amyloidosis, 22 competitive athletes, and 33 healthy controls) were systematically analysed. LV ejection fraction (LVEF), LV mass index and interventricular septal (IVS) thickness, T1 mapping and atypical late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) were assessed.

Fast Strain-Encoded Cardiac Magnetic Resonance for Diagnostic Classification and Risk Stratification of Heart Failure Patients.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the ability of fast-strain encoded magnetic resonance (fast-SENC) cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) to classify and risk stratify all-comer patients with different stages of chronic heart failure (Stages of heart failure A to D) based on American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines with standard clinical and CMR imaging data.

Background: Heart failure is a major cause of morbidity and mortality, resulting in millions of deaths and hospitalizations annually.

Methods: The study population consisted of 1,169 consecutive patients between September 2017 and February 2019 who underwent CMR for clinical reasons, and 61 healthy volunteers.

Less invasive ventricular reconstruction for ischaemic heart failure.

Aims: Surgical ventricular reconstruction to remodel, reshape, and reduce ventricular volume is an effective therapy in selected patients with chronic heart failure (HF) of ischaemic aetiology. The BioVentrix Revivent TC System offers efficacy comparable to conventional surgical ventricular reconstruction and is less invasive utilizing micro-anchor pairs to exclude scarred myocardium on the beating heart. Here, we present 12-months follow-up data of an international multicenter study.

Strain-encoded magnetic resonance: a method for the assessment of myocardial deformation.

This study aims to assess the usefulness of strain-encoded magnetic resonance (SENC) for the quantification of myocardial deformation ('strain') in healthy volunteers and for the diagnostic workup of patients with different cardiovascular pathologies. SENC was initially described in the year 2001. Since then, the SENC sequence has undergone several technical developments, aiming at the detection of strain during single-heartbeat acquisitions (fast-SENC).

Diastolic stress test echocardiography in patients with suspected heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: a pilot study.

Aims: The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the potential usefulness of diastolic stress test (DST) echocardiography in patients with suspected heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).

Methods And Results: Patients with suspected HFpEF (left ventricular ejection fraction ≥ 50%, exertional dyspnoea, septal E/e' at rest 9-14, and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) at rest < 220 pg/mL; n = 13) and a control group constituted from asymptomatic patients with arterial hypertension (n = 19) and healthy subjects (n = 18) were included. All patients were analysed by two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography at rest and during exercise (DST) and underwent cardiopulmonary exercise testing and NT-proBNP analysis during exercise.