Trajectories and determinants of left ventricular ejection fraction after the first myocardial infarction in the current era of primary coronary interventions.

Background: Left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) is an independent predictor of adverse outcomes after myocardial infarction (MI). However, current data on trajectories and determinants of EF are scarce. The present study aimed to describe the epidemiology of EF after MI.

On the clinical relevance of using complete high-resolution HLA typing for an accurate interpretation of posttransplant immune-mediated graft outcomes.

Complete and high-resolution (HR) HLA typing improves the accurate assessment of donor-recipient compatibility and pre-transplant donor-specific antibodies (DSA). However, the value of this information to identify immune-mediated graft events and its impact on outcomes has not been assessed. In 241 donor/recipient kidney transplant pairs, DNA samples were re-evaluated for six-locus (A/B/C/DRB1/DQB1+A1/DPB1) HR HLA typing.

Periprocedural safety profile of peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM)-a retrospective analysis of adverse events according to two different classifications.

Background: Peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is nowadays a standard method for treatment of achalasia; nevertheless, it remains an invasive intervention with corresponding risk of adverse events (AEs). The classification and grading of AEs are still a matter of discussion. The aim of our retrospective study was to assess the occurrence of all "undesirable" events and "true" adverse events in patients undergoing POEM and to compare the outcomes when either Clavien-Dindo classification (CDC) or American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) lexicon classification applied.

Metformin treatment is associated with improved outcome in patients with diabetes and advanced heart failure (HFrEF).

The role of metformin (MET) in the treatment of patients with advanced HFrEF and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is not firmly established. We studied the impact of MET on metabolic profile, quality of life (QoL) and survival in these patients. A total of 847 stable patients with advanced HFrEF (57.

Tacrolimus CYP3A Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms and Preformed T- and B-Cell Alloimmune Memory Improve Current Pretransplant Rejection-Risk Stratification in Kidney Transplantation.

Achieving fast immunosuppression blood exposure after kidney transplantation is key to abrogating both preformed and anti-donor humoral and cellular alloresponses. However, while tacrolimus (TAC) is the cornerstone immunosuppressant inhibiting adaptive alloimmunity, its blood exposure is directly impacted by different single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in CYP3A TAC-metabolizing enzymes. Here, we investigated how functional TAC-CYP3A genetic variants (/) influence the main baseline clinical and immunological risk factors of biopsy-proven acute rejection (BPAR) by means of preformed donor-specific antibodies (DSAs) and donor-specific alloreactive T cells (DSTs) in a large European cohort of 447 kidney transplants receiving TAC-based immunosuppression.

The European Registry for Patients with Mechanical Circulatory Support (EUROMACS): third Paediatric (Paedi-EUROMACS) report.

Objectives: A third paediatric report has been generated from the European Registry for Patients with Mechanical Circulatory Support (EUROMACS). The purpose of EUROMACS, which is operated by the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, is to gather data related to durable mechanical circulatory support for scientific purposes and to publish reports with respect to the course of mechanical circulatory support therapy. Since the first report issued, efforts to increase compliance and participation have been extended.

Pulmonary Vasculature Responsiveness to Phosphodiesterase-5A Inhibition in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction: Possible Role of Plasma Potassium.

Introduction: Phosphodiesterase-5a inhibition (PDE5i) leads to favorable changes in pulmonary hemodynamic and cardiac output (CO) in patients with advanced heart failure (HF) and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). The hemodynamic response to PDE5i could be heterogeneous and the clinical variables associated with these changes are scarcely investigated.

Materials And Methods: Of 260 patients with advanced HFrEF referred for advanced therapies [cardiac transplant/left ventricular assist device (LVAD)], 55 had pulmonary hypertension (PH) and fulfilled the criteria for the PDE5i vasoreactivity test.

Global longitudinal strain and outcome after endoscopic mitral valve repair.

Aims: Identification of heart failure (HF) patients with secondary mitral regurgitation (SMR) that benefit from mitral valve (MV) repair remains challenging. We have focused on the role of left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LV-GLS) and reservoir left atrial longitudinal strain (LASr) for the prediction of long-term survival and reverse remodelling in patients with SMR undergoing endoscopic MV repair.

Methods And Results: The study population consisted of 110 patients (age 67 ± 11 years, 66% men) with symptomatic SMR undergoing isolated MV repair using a minimally invasive surgical approach.

Case Report: Repeated Stereotactic Radiotherapy of Recurrent Ventricular Tachycardia: Reasons, Feasibility, and Safety.

Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) has been reported as an attractive option for cases of failed catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT) in structural heart disease. However, even this strategy can fail for various reasons. For the first time, this case series describes three re-do cases of SBRT which were indicated for three different reasons.

Vascular Remodeling of Clinically Used Patches and Decellularized Pericardial Matrices Recellularized with Autologous or Allogeneic Cells in a Porcine Carotid Artery Model.

Background: Cardiovascular surgery is confronted by a lack of suitable materials for patch repair. Acellular animal tissues serve as an abundant source of promising biomaterials. The aim of our study was to explore the bio-integration of decellularized or recellularized pericardial matrices in vivo.

Heart failure-related quality-of-life impairment after myocardial infarction.

Aims: Recent advances in therapy led to a significant decrease in mortality and morbidity after myocardial infarction (MI). However, little is known about quality of life (QoL) after MI. We examined heart failure (HF)-related quality-of-life (QoL) impairment, its trajectories, and determinants after MI.

The Effect of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists on Postprandial Lipaemia.

Purpose Of Review: To review the currently available data on the effect of Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) on postprandial lipaemia.

Recent Findings: Out of the available studies that examined the respective lipid parameter, exenatide reduced postprandial triacyglycerol (TAG) in 4/6, apolipoprotein B-48 in 3/3, non-esterified fatty acids in 2/2, and apolipoprotein C-III and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) in 1/1 studies. Liraglutide reduced postprandial TAG in 2/2, apolipoprotein B-48 in 3/3 and apolipoprotein C-III, chylomicron-TAG and VLDL-TAG in 1/1 studies.

A Prospective Multicenter Trial to Evaluate Urinary Metabolomics for Non-invasive Detection of Renal Allograft Rejection (PARASOL): Study Protocol and Patient Recruitment.

In an earlier monocentric study, we have developed a novel non-invasive test system for the prediction of renal allograft rejection, based on the detection of a specific urine metabolite constellation. To further validate our results in a large real-world patient cohort, we designed a multicentric observational prospective study (PARASOL) including six independent European transplant centers. This article describes the study protocol and characteristics of recruited better patients as subjects.

HeartMate 3: new challenges in ventricular tachycardia ablation.

Aim: To describe clinical characteristics, procedural details, specific challenges, and outcomes in patients with HeartMate3™ (HM3), a left ventricular assist device system with a magnetically levitated pump, undergoing ventricular tachycardia ablation (VTA).

Methods And Results: Data were collected from patients with an HM3 system who underwent VTA in seven tertiary centres. Data included baseline patient characteristics, procedural data, mortality, and arrhythmia-free survival.

An update on the safety of insulin-GLP-1 receptor agonist combinations in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Introduction: Recent development of novel antidiabetic drugs with proven cardiovascular (CV) and renal benefit and positive effect on body weight enable to take a more complex approach toward the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Fixed-ratio combinations of insulin-GLP-1 receptor agonist (FRC) utilize complementary mechanisms of action of their individual components and address multiple pathologies linked with T2DM at the same time.

Areas Covered: There are currently three FRCs on the market: iGlarLixi (glargine and lixisenatide in 2 different formulations) and IDegLira (degludec and liraglutide).