Ticagrelor Alone Versus Dual Antiplatelet Therapy From 1 Month After Drug-Eluting Coronary Stenting.

Background: The GLOBAL LEADERS (GLOBAL LEADERS: A Clinical Study Comparing Two Forms of Anti-platelet Therapy After Stent Implantation) study randomly assigned 15,991 patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention to 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) followed by 23-month ticagrelor monotherapy or conventional 12-month DAPT followed by 12-month aspirin. Apart from Q-wave myocardial infarction (MI), all study endpoints were analyzed as investigator reported.

Objectives: This was a pre-specified ancillary study assessing whether experimental therapy is noninferior, and if met, superior, to conventional treatment for the coprimary efficacy endpoint of all-cause death, nonfatal MI, nonfatal stroke, or urgent target vessel revascularization and superior in preventing BARC 3 (Bleeding Academic Research Consortium) or 5 bleeding (coprimary safety endpoint) at 2 years with a 0.

The role of chemokine CCL5/RANTES and metalloproteinase-9 as inflammatory modulators in symptomatic internal carotid artery stenosis.

Up to 80% of all ischemic strokes (IS) attributed to internal carotid athero-occlusive artery stenosis (ICAS) are related to a thromboembolic mechanism. One athero-occlusive ischemic event increases the risk for ischemia in another vascular territory, resulting from inflammation within the atherosclerotic plaque induced by cytokines. Thus, ultrasonographic characteristics of vulnerable plaques in ICAS, including plaque echolucency and ulceration might correspond to cytokine activity.

Effectiveness and safety of transvenous extraction of single- versus dual-coil implantable cardioverter-defibrillator leads at single-center experience.

The available literature lacks data concerning direct comparison of the effectiveness and safety of single- versus dual-coil implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) leads transvenous extraction. Certainly, additional shocking coil in superior vena cava adds to the amount of metal in the vascular system. Adhesions developing around the superior vena cava coil add to the difficulty of extraction of ICD lead if lead removal is required.

Coexisting Frailty With Heart Failure.

People over 65 years of age constitute over 80% of patients with heart failure (HF) and the incidence of HF is 10 per 1,000 in people aged above 65 years. Approximately 25% of older patients with HF exhibit evidence of frailty. Frail patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) have a worse prognosis than non-frail patients, and frailty is an independent risk factor for incident HF among older people.

Association of NT-proBNP and GDF-15 with markers of a prothrombotic state in patients with atrial fibrillation off anticoagulation.

We investigated whether growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15), also known as macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 (MIC-1), levels are associated with a prothrombotic state in atrial fibrillation (AF) as compared to N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (cTnI-hs). In 103 patients with AF assessed off anticoagulation (age: 71.0 [65.

Comorbidities and Health-Related Quality of Life Following Revascularization for Asymptomatic Critical Internal Carotid Artery Stenosis Treated with Carotid Endarterectomy or Angioplasty with Stenting.

BACKGROUND This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between existing comorbidities and the effectiveness of revascularization of asymptomatic critical internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis treated with carotid endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid artery stenting (CAS) and short-term and long-term outcome in terms of health-related quality of life (HRQoL). MATERIAL AND METHODS Patients with asymptomatic critical ICA stenosis (n=62) included a group treated with CEA (n=31) and a group treated with CAS (n=31). A Health Assessment Questionnaire designed for this study was used to assess ten comorbidities, and the Short Form 36 Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36) was used to evaluate HRQoL following CEA and CAS.

Morphology of the Vieussens valve and its imaging in cardiac multislice computed tomography.

Introduction: To deliver accurate morphological descriptions of the Vieussens valve (VV) and to investigate whether this structure could be visualized using standard contrast-enhanced electrocardiogram-gated multislice computed tomography (MSCT).

Methods: A total of 145 human autopsied hearts and 114 cardiac MSCT scans were examined.

Results: The VV was observed in both study groups, however, the detection rate was significantly worse in the MSCT examination (18.

[Cardiac remodelling and function after cardiovascular implantable electronic devices implantation].

Cardiovascular implantable electronic devices (CIED) encompass permanent cardiac pacemakers (PM) and implantable cardioverterdefibrillators (ICD). CIED play an important role in treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, including significant bradyarrhythmias and tachyarrhythmias. The conventional right ventricular endocardial leads as well as right ventricular pacing may increase valvular defects (especially dysfunction of tricuspid and mitral valve), cause adverse cardiac remodelling and lead to a decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction.

Transvenous extraction of very old (over 20-year-old) pacemaker leads using mechanical systems: Effectiveness and safety.

Objective: To analyze and compare the effectiveness and safety of transvenous lead extraction (TLE) with mechanical systems of pacing leads older than 20 years (group A) versus younger leads (group B).

Methods: We performed TLE of 591 pacing leads in 377 patients. Fifty (8.

The role of serial carotid intima-media thickness assessment as a surrogate marker of atherosclerosis control in patients with recent myocardial infarction.

Introduction: Despite percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), patients after their first myocardial infarction (MI) are at high risk of ischemic event recurrence. Therefore, there is a need for objective markers of adequate atherosclerosis control, independent of prescribed pharmacotherapy and patients' compliance. Such a potential indicator of major adverse cerebral and coronary event (MACCE) risk might be change in carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), which indicates atherosclerosis growth.

Differences in patients and lesion and procedure characteristics depending on the age of the coronary chronic total occlusion.

Introduction: Whether duration of chronic total occlusion (CTO) affects lesion and procedural characteristics remains largely unknown.

Aim: To investigate whether CTO duration influences lesion characteristics and revascularization success.

Material And Methods: EuroCTO Registry data on patients who had CTO percutaneous coronary intervention between January 2015 and April 2017 were analyzed.

Prothrombotic State in Atrial Fibrillation Patients With One Additional Risk Factor of the CHADS-VASc Score (Beyond Sex).

Background: It is unclear whether a prothrombotic state occurs in atrial fibrillation (AF) with low stroke risk.

Methods: We studied 118 patients with AF with the Congestive Heart Failure, Hypertension, Age (≥ 75 years), Diabetes, Stroke/Transient Ischemic Attack/Systemic Embolism, Vascular Disease, Age (65-74 years), Sex (Female) (CHADS-VASc) score of 1 in men or 2 in women vs 52 patients with AF with the CHADS-VASc score of 0 in men or 1 in women. Plasma clot permeability (K), a measure of fibrin clot density, and clot lysis time (CLT), endogenous thrombin potential (ETP), von Willebrand factor antigen, and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 were evaluated in nonanticoagulated subjects.

[Przezskórne zamknięcie ubytku w przegrodzie międzyprzedsionkowej: wpływ na prawy przedsionek, dyspersję załamka P i zaburzenia rytmu serca w obserwacji średnioterminowej].

Unlabelled: The size of the right atrium (RA) reduces after transcatheter closure of the atrial septal defect (ASD). Inverse structural and electrical remodeling is observed.

Aim: The aim of study was to analyze the parameters predisposing to the lack of normalization of enlarged RA after transcatheter closure of ASD during 6-month follow-up.

Switch between AAI and DDD mode pacing-What is the mechanism?

The electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretation in patients with implantable pacemaker is often a perplexing problem. The difficulty in the device evaluation increases in the presence of novel timing cycles and additional functions. Authors describe a special function frequently encountered in Medtronic dual-chamber pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator devices called managed ventricular pacing (MVP) and demonstrate its performance in the patient with undersensing episodes in ventricular channel.

Rationale and design of a prospective substudy of clinical endpoint adjudication processes within an investigator-reported randomised controlled trial in patients with coronary artery disease: the GLOBAL LEADERS Adjudication Sub-StudY (GLASSY).

Introduction: The GLOBAL LEADERS is an open-label, pragmatic and superiority randomised controlled trial designed to challenge the current treatment paradigm of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) for 12 months followed by aspirin monotherapy among patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. By design, all study endpoints are investigator reported (IR) and not subject to formal adjudication by an independent Clinical Event Committee (CEC), which may introduce detection, reporting or ascertainment bias.

Methods And Analysis: We designed the GLOBAL LEADERS Adjudication Sub-StudY (GLASSY) to prospectively implement, in a large sample of patients enrolled within the GLOBAL LEADERS trial (7585 of 15 991, 47.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy with His bundle pacing.

Aims: A novel therapy offering cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) with an additional lead placed in His bundle has been reported in a few case reports and case series as improving the hemodynamical and clinical condition of patients with permanent atrial fibrillation (AF) in whom other therapeutic methods have not been successful.

Methods: Fourteen consecutive patients with permanent AF, heart failure (HF), bundle branch block (BBB) with QRS complex width >130 ms, and impaired left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) underwent implantation of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)/CRT systems with His bundle pacing (HBP). During the follow-up, we assessed the efficacy of ICD/CRT systems with HBP in HF treatment.

Serum rantes, transforming growth factor-β1 and interleukin-6 levels correlate with cardiac muscle fibrosis in patients with aortic valve stenosis.

Regulated on Activation Normal T Expressed and Secreted (RANTES) chemokine is involved in the initiation of inflammation and immune-cell recruitment. Interleukin -6 (IL-6) is used as a general index of severity of the chronic inflammatory process. Finally, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) is an immune biomarker potentially involved in the regulation of valve fibrosis and calcification.

Antithrombotic medications and their impact on fibrin clot structure and function.

Fibrin constitutes a major protein component of intravascular thrombi in all locations. Fibrin formation and its functions are essential for physiological hemostasis and the pathologic thrombosis. Formation of dense fibrin networks which are relatively resistant to lysis is observed in patients with venous or arterial thromboembolism, including myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke and venous thromboembolism.