Diagnostic Agreement of Quantitative Flow Ratio With Fractional Flow Reserve and Instantaneous Wave-Free Ratio.

Background Quantitative flow ratio ( QFR ) has a high diagnostic accuracy in assessing functional stenoses relevance, as judged by fractional flow reserve ( FFR ). However, its diagnostic performance has not been thoroughly evaluated using instantaneous wave-free ratio ( iFR ) or coronary flow reserve as the reference standard. This study sought to evaluate the diagnostic performance of QFR using other reference standards beyond FFR .

Magnetocardiography detects left atrial dysfunction in paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.

Background: Magnetocardiography (MCG) is a non-invasive technique and to characterize the magnetic field, a pseudo-current conversion was used. The role of MCG in detecting left atrial (LA) dysfunction in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) is unknown.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate LA function using MCG in patients with PAF and healthy subjects, to identify possible indices to diagnose PAF.

Comparison of exercise electrocardiography and magnetocardiography for detection of coronary artery disease using ST-segment fluctuation score.

Background: Exercise electrocardiography (ECG) is frequently used as a diagnostic measure in patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). However, it has low sensitivity for the detection of CAD. Magnetocardiography (MCG) has been proposed as an alternative tool to accurately diagnose CAD.

Plaque modification and stabilization after paclitaxel-coated balloon treatment for de novo coronary lesions.

This study aimed to assess the healing response, as evidenced through temporal morphological and functional changes, following paclitaxel-coated balloon (PCB) treatment of de novo coronary lesions. This retrospective, observational study, included patients with significant de novo coronary lesions who were treated with PCB and had serial angiographic, intravascular ultrasound virtual histology (IVUS-VH), fractional flow reserve (FFR) measurements, and optical coherence tomography (OCT) performed before balloon angioplasty (BA), after BA, and at 9-month follow-up. A total of 20 patients (21 lesions) were included in this study.

Coronary microvascular disease and clinical prognosis in deferred lesions: The index of microcirculatory resistance.

While fractional flow reserve (FFR) is a good diagnostic index to assess the myocardial ischemia, coronary flow reserve (CFR) and the index of microcirculatory resistance (IMR) can be used to address microvascular status without any significant epicardial disease. The independent predictors for FFR and IMR are totally different and acts differently on the macro- and micro-vascular dysfunction. In high FFR patients, low CFR and high IMR which indicates the presence of overt microvascular disease demonstrated poor prognosis.

Magnetocardiography scoring system to predict the presence of obstructive coronary artery disease.

Background: Magnetocardiography (MCG) has been proposed as a non-invasive and functional technique with high accuracy for diagnosis of myocardial ischemia.

Objective: This study sought to develop a novel scoring system of MCG for predicting the presence of significant obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods: In a training set of 108 subjects, predictors of ≥70% stenosis in at least one major coronary vessel were prospectively identified from MCG variables.