An Audit of Recyclable and Contaminated Waste From Invasive Cardiac Procedures.

Background: Waste generation from health care facilities is significant. Quantifying and minimizing waste from cardiac catheterization laboratories (CCL) and cardiac operating theaters (COT) has received little attention in an effort to lessen its environmental impact. The purpose of this study was to assess the quantity of contaminated and recyclable waste resulting from invasive cardiac procedures.

Biomarker-enhanced cardiovascular risk prediction in patients with cancer: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Continuously improving cancer-specific survival puts a growing proportion of cancer patients at risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), but tailored tools for cardiovascular risk prediction remain unavailable.

Objectives: To assess a broad panel of cardiovascular biomarkers and risk factors for the prediction of MACE and cardiovascular death in cancer patients.

Methods: In total, 2192 patients with newly diagnosed or recurrent cancer were followed prospectively for the occurrence of 2-year MACE and 5-year cardiovascular death.

[The CARE (CArdiovasculaR prEvention) Score - an instrument for recording the quality of care of cardiovascular risk patients in the GP practice].

There is potential for improvement in the care of cardiovascular diseases in Switzerland, particularly when it comes to achieving target values defined in guidelines. Adherence scores such as the SGED score for diabetic care established in Switzerland can help to reduce the evidence-performance gap. The CARE score presented here is an adherence score that validly reflects the quality of care for patients with a cardiovascular risk using process and outcome indicators.

SGLT2 inhibitors: from glucose-lowering to cardiovascular benefits.

An increasing number of individuals are at high risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and its cardiovascular complications, including heart failure (HF), chronic kidney disease (CKD), and eventually premature death. The sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) protein sits in the proximal tubule of human nephrons to regulate glucose reabsorption and its inhibition by gliflozins represents the cornerstone of contemporary T2D and HF management. Herein, we aim to provide an updated overview of the pleiotropy of gliflozins, provide mechanistic insights and delineate related cardiovascular (CV) benefits.

Device innovation in cardiovascular medicine: a report from the European Society of Cardiology Cardiovascular Round Table.

Research performed in Europe has driven cardiovascular device innovation. This includes, but is not limited to, percutaneous coronary intervention, cardiac imaging, transcatheter heart valve implantation, and device therapy of cardiac arrhythmias and heart failure. An important part of future medical progress involves the evolution of medical technology and the ongoing development of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Nogo-A is secreted in extracellular vesicles, occurs in blood and can influence vascular permeability.

Nogo-A is a transmembrane protein with multiple functions in the central nervous system (CNS), including restriction of neurite growth and synaptic plasticity. Thus far, Nogo-A has been predominantly considered a cell contact-dependent ligand signaling via cell surface receptors. Here, we show that Nogo-A can be secreted by cultured cells of neuronal and glial origin in association with extracellular vesicles (EVs).

Long non-coding RNAs H19 and NKILA are associated with the risk of death and lacunar stroke in the elderly population.

Introduction: Differential expression of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) is a hallmark of cardiovascular aging, cerebrovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders. This research article investigates the association between a panel of lncRNAs and the risk of death and ischemic stroke in a cohort of non-institutionalized elderly subjects.

Method: A total of 361 healthy individuals aged 75 years old, prospectively recruited in the Vienna Transdanube Aging (VITA) cohort, were included.

Treatment with recombinant Sirt1 rewires the cardiac lipidome and rescues diabetes-related metabolic cardiomyopathy.

Background: Metabolic cardiomyopathy (MCM), characterized by intramyocardial lipid accumulation, drives the progression to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Although evidence suggests that the mammalian silent information regulator 1 (Sirt1) orchestrates myocardial lipid metabolism, it is unknown whether its exogenous administration could avoid MCM onset. We investigated whether chronic treatment with recombinant Sirt1 (rSirt1) could halt MCM progression.

Circulating GDF11 exacerbates myocardial injury in mice and associates with increased infarct size in humans.

Aims: The heart rejuvenating effects of circulating growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11), a transforming growth factor-β superfamily member that shares 90% homology with myostatin (MSTN), remains controversial. Here, we aimed to probe the role of GDF11 in acute myocardial infarction (MI), a frequent cause of heart failure and premature death during ageing.

Methods And Results: In contrast to endogenous Mstn, myocardial Gdf11 declined during the course of ageing and was particularly reduced following ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, suggesting a therapeutic potential of GDF11 signalling in MI.

Modification of the GRACE Risk Score for Risk Prediction in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndromes.

Importance: The Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) risk score, a guideline-recommended risk stratification tool for patients presenting with acute coronary syndromes (ACS), does not consider the extent of myocardial injury.

Objective: To assess the incremental predictive value of a modified GRACE score incorporating high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) T at presentation, a surrogate of the extent of myocardial injury.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospectively designed longitudinal cohort study examined 3 independent cohorts of 9803 patients with ACS enrolled from September 2009 to December 2017; 2 ACS derivation cohorts (Heidelberg ACS cohort and Newcastle STEMI cohort) and an ACS validation cohort (SPUM-ACS study).

Growth differentiation factor-15 and prediction of cancer-associated thrombosis and mortality: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Patients with cancer are at increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and arterial thromboembolic/thrombotic events (ATEs). Growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) improves cardiovascular risk assessment, but its predictive utility in patients with cancer remains undefined.

Objectives: To investigate the association of GDF-15 with the risks of VTE, ATE, and mortality in patients with cancer and its predictive utility alongside established models.

Initial systolic blood pressure associates with systemic inflammation, myocardial injury, and outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Aims: Outcomes after acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are determined by baseline risk profiles, including initial systolic blood pressure (sBP) levels. Herein, we aimed to characterize ACS patients stratified by initial sBP levels and study their relation to inflammation, myocardial injury and post-ACS outcomes.

Methods And Results: We analysed 4724 prospectively recruited ACS patients according to invasively assessed sBP (<100, 100-139, and ≥140 mmHg) at admission.

Circulating Long Noncoding RNA Signatures Associate With Incident Diabetes in Older Adults: A Prospective Analysis From the VITA Cohort Study.

Objective: Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in diabetogenesis in experimental models, yet their role in humans is unclear. We investigated whether circulating lncRNAs associate with incident type 2 diabetes in older adults.

Research Design And Methods: A preselected panel of lncRNAs was measured in serum of individuals without diabetes (n = 296) from the Vienna Transdanube Aging study, a prospective community-based cohort study.

Myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccine: incidence, presentation, diagnosis, pathophysiology, therapy, and outcomes put into perspective. A clinical consensus document supported by the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the ESC Working Group on Myocardial and Pericardial Diseases.

Over 10 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines based on RNA technology, viral vectors, recombinant protein, and inactivated virus have been administered worldwide. Although generally very safe, post-vaccine myocarditis can result from adaptive humoral and cellular, cardiac-specific inflammation within days and weeks of vaccination. Rates of vaccine-associated myocarditis vary by age and sex with the highest rates in males between 12 and 39 years.

SGLT-2 inhibition by empagliflozin has no effect on experimental arterial thrombosis in a murine model of low-grade inflammation.

Aims: Low-grade inflammation couples dysmetabolic states to insulin resistance and atherosclerotic cardiovascular (CV) disease (ASCVD). Selective sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT-2) inhibition by empagliflozin improves clinical outcomes in patients with ASCVD independently of its glucose lowering effects. Yet, its mechanism of action remains largely undetermined.

Soluble lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 predicts premature death in acute coronary syndromes.

Aims: The lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 (LOX-1) and its shedding product [soluble LOX-1 (sLOX-1)] are implicated in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) pathogenesis. Herein, we examined the relationship of sLOX-1 with both fatal events and plaque progression in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS).

Methods And Results: Plasma sLOX-1 was assessed at baseline in ACS and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) patients prospectively recruited in the multicentre SPUM-ACS study, with sex- and age-matched healthy subjects serving as additional controls (n = 2924).

Twitter promotion is associated with higher citation rates of cardiovascular articles: the ESC Journals Randomized Study.

The association between the dissemination of scientific articles on Twitter and online visibility (as assessed by the Altmetric Score) is still controversial, and the impact on citation rates has never been rigorously addressed for cardiovascular medicine journals using a randomized design. The ESC Journals Study randomized 695 papers published in the ESC Journal Family (March 2018-May 2019) for promotion on Twitter or to a control arm (with no active tweeting from ESC channels) and aimed to assess whether Twitter promotion was associated with an increase in citation rates (primary endpoint) and of the Altmetric Score. This is the final analysis including 694 articles (one paper excluded due to retraction).

Inflammation, Aging, and Cardiovascular Disease: JACC Review Topic of the Week.

Aging and inflammation both contribute pivotally to cardiovascular (CV) and cerebrovascular disease, the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. The concept of inflamm-aging recognizes that low-grade inflammatory pathways observed in the elderly contribute to CV risk. Understanding the mechanisms that link inflammation and aging could reveal new therapeutic targets and offer options to cope with the growing aging population worldwide.

Inflammation in Metabolic Cardiomyopathy.

Overlapping pandemics of lifestyle-related diseases pose a substantial threat to cardiovascular health. Apart from coronary artery disease, metabolic disturbances linked to obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes directly compromise myocardial structure and function through independent and shared mechanisms heavily involving inflammatory signals. Accumulating evidence indicates that metabolic dysregulation causes systemic inflammation, which in turn aggravates cardiovascular disease.

Lifelong dietary omega-3 fatty acid suppresses thrombotic potential through gut microbiota alteration in aged mice.

Aging is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, including thrombotic events. The gut microbiota has been implicated in the development of thrombotic risk. Plant-derived omega-3 fatty acid ɑ-linolenic acid (ALA) confers beneficial anti-platelet and anti-inflammatory effects.