Abstract only
The diagnosis of infective endocarditis (IE) is sometimes difficult when there are discrepancies between blood cultures, transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) and clinical judgment. ...The aim of this study was to assess the incremental diagnostic value of
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F-FDG-PET/CT in 45 consecutive patients (73% male, mean age 61 ± 26 years) with suspected IE and inconclusive tests at admission. In 28 patients (19 with a cardiac valvular (15) or nonvalvular (4) device) with blood cultures positive for germs typically involved in IE the initial TEE was negative or inconclusive. In 10 patients presenting with fever TEE identified cardiac lesion possibly related to IE (ruptured mitral chordae, thickened valve leaflet, thickened prosthetic annulus), but blood cultures were persistently negative. Finally, 7 patients had metastatic or embolic lesions and a predisposing cardiac condition, but TEE was negative. When previous unknown lesions detected by PET/CT were confirmed by succeeding examinations, they were considered true positives. When PET/CT was negative, it was compared with the final diagnosis that was defined according to the modified Duke criteria determined during a 6-month follow-up. Thirty patients had definite IE at the end of the follow-up, 3 had possible IE, and in 12 patients the diagnosis was rejected. Twenty-seven patients (60%) exhibited abnormal FDG uptake around the cardiac valves, and 12 (27%) had extracardiac accumulation. In 5 patients the initial negative TEE became positive a mean 5 ±7 days after PET/CT had been performed The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of PET/CT were as follows (95% confidence interval): 87% (68% to 95%), 67% (38% to 87%), 84% (65% to 94%), and 71% (42% to 92%), respectively. Adding abnormal FDG uptake as a new major criterion significantly increased the sensitivity of the modified Duke criteria at admission (68% 53% to 82% vs. 96% 88% to 99%, p = 0.01). This result was due to a significant reduction (p < 0.001) in the number of possible IE cases. In conclusion PET/CT increases the diagnostic accuracy for IE in the subset of patients with possible IE and may help to manage a challenging situation.
The objective of this study was to investigate mid-term clinical outcomes of patients treated with ‘full-plastic jacket’ (FPJ) everolimus-eluting Absorb bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BRS) ...implantation.
FPJ with BRS may represent an interesting option for patient with diffuse coronary artery disease (CAD), but data on the clinical impact of FPJ using the Absorb BRS are scant.
FPJ was defined as the implantation of >56 mm of overlapping BRS in at least one vessel. We compared outcomes of patients receiving Absorb FPJ vs. non-FPJ within the multicenter prospective RAI Registry.
Out of 1505 consecutive patients enrolled in the RAI registry, 1384 were eligible for this analysis. Of these, 143 (10.3%) were treated with BRS FPJ. At a median follow-up of 649 days, no differences were observed between FPJ and non-FPJ groups in terms of the device-oriented composite endpoint (DoCE) (5.6% vs. 4.4%, p = 0.675) or the patient-related composite endpoint (PoCE) (20.9% vs. 15.9%, p = 0.149). Patients receiving FPJ had higher rates of target vessel repeat revascularization (TVR) (11.2% vs. 6.3%, p = 0.042). In the FPJ group, there was no cardiac death and only one (very late) stent thrombosis (ST) (0.7%).
Mid-term outcomes of a FPJ PCI strategy in the setting of diffuse CAD did not show a significant increase in composite device- and patient-related events, with rates of cardiac death and ST comparable to non-FPJ Absorb BRS implantation. However, these findings are hypothesis generating and requiring further validation.
•FPJ treatment might be feasible in a population with a high clinical and angiographic risk profile.•A high adherence to the BRS specific implantation protocol remains crucial.•The treatment of CTO by FPJ might be a predictor of adverse outcome.
When performing epicardial ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT), caution must be taken not to damage the coronary arteries. We report a case in which a new, nonfluoroscopic technique for ...incorporating an accurate, real‐time reconstruction of the main coronary vessels into a three‐dimensional electroanatomic map was used for epicardial VT ablation.
The regurgitation of the native aortic valve in patient with previous David operation may represent a clinical challenge because the morbidity and mortality risk of re-operation is not negligible. ...Here we describe the case of a patient suffering from late severe aortic regurgitation, many years after David operation, efficaciously treated with transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve implantation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first description of such treatment in a patient with aortic regurgitation and previous David operation.
•David operation is frequently used in patients with aortic root pathology and normal aortic valve•Despite the favourable mid-term outcome, during the late follow-up regurgitation of the native aortic valve may develop•The morbidity and mortality risk of re-operation is not negligible•We describe the case of a patient with aortic regurgitation after David operation, treated with transfemoral TAVI.•To the best of our knowledge, this is the first description of such TAVI in a patient with previous David operation
Objective To describe the evolution of clinical characteristics, in-hospital management and early outcome of elderly patients with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Methods We analysed ...data from five consecutive Italian nationwide registries, conducted between 2001 and 2010, including patients with acute coronary syndromes admitted to cardiac care units (CCUs). Results Of 10 983 patients with NSTEMI enrolled in the 5 surveys, 4350 (39.6%) were ≥75 years old (mean age 81±5 years). Some clinical characteristics such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, renal dysfunction and previous percutaneous coronary intervention increased significantly, whereas a history of stroke, myocardial infarction and heart failure decreased over time. An invasive approach increased from 26.6% in 2001 to 68.4% in 2010 (p<0.0001) and revascularisation rates increased from 9.9% to 51.7% (p<0.0001). Early use and prescription at discharge of β-blockers, statins and dual antiplatelet treatment increased significantly (p<0.0001). Thirty-day observed mortality decreased from 14.6% (95% CI 9.9 to 20.4) to 9.5% (95% CI 7.7 to 11.6). At the multivariate logistic regression analyses adjusted for baseline characteristics, compared with 2001, the risk of death was significantly lower in all the other studies performed at different times with reductions in adjusted mortality between 66% and 45%. Conclusions Over the past decade, substantial changes have occurred in the clinical characteristics and management of elderly patients admitted with NSTEMI in Italian CCUs, with a greater use of revascularisation therapy and recommended medications. These variations have been associated with a reduction in 30-day adjusted mortality rate.
A 74-year-old hypertensive woman presented with shortness of breath. There was no associated coughing, chest pain or fever. ECG identified atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response. A ...transoesophageal echocardiogram was scheduled to exclude thrombus before cardioversion (Figure 1A); however, an echogenic structure was seen (Figure 1B arrow, see online supplementary video 1) between the left atrium, the pulmonary artery and the aortic root.
Which of the following is the most likely diagnosis? A. Aortic valve endocarditis with annular abscess. B. Left atrial appendage thrombus. C. Left atrial myxoma. D. Pulmonary embolism.
Even in the modern era of advanced diagnostic imaging, improved antibiotic therapy and potentially curative surgery, infective endocarditis remains a serious disease with high rates of morbidity and ...mortality. Reasons for such a persistently poor outcome may be represented by the changing epidemiology and microbiology, with new groups of patients at risk and new and more aggressive microorganisms. However, the inadequate use of both diagnostic (blood cultures and echocardiography) and therapeutic (antibiotics and surgery) means can influence the generally delayed diagnosis and poor prognosis seen in patients with infective endocarditis. We tried to identify the critical points in the management of patients with infective endocarditis and to elaborate a formal multidisciplinary approach based on the strict collaboration of specialists in infectious diseases, microbiology, cardiology and cardiac surgery. We hypothesized that this approach could increase the adherence to the published guidelines, and could represent a means to improve the outcome of patients with infective endocarditis.
We sought to investigate the success rate and the acute and 12-month clinical outcome of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for chronic total occlusion (CTO) in the contemporary era.
The ...technique of PCI involving CTO has improved over time. However, limited data on acute and follow-up results in patients treated with PCI on CTO in recent years are available.
Four hundred nineteen consecutive patients scheduled for PCI of CTO of ≥30 days of duration were enrolled in 29 centers; 390 CTOs were confirmed in 376 patients in an independent core laboratory. The end points were technical and procedural success, in-hospital and 12-month major adverse cardiac events (MACE) occurrence, and 12-month symptomatic status.
Technical and procedural success was obtained in 77.2% and 73.3% of lesions, respectively. In-hospital major adverse cardiac events occurred in 5.1% of patients. Multivariate analysis identified CTO length >15 mm or not measurable, moderate to severe calcifications, duration ≥180 days, and multivessel disease as significant predictors of PCI failure. At 12 months, patients with a successful procedure experienced a lower incidence of cardiac deaths or myocardial infarction (1.05% vs. 7.23%, p = 0.005), a reduced need for coronary artery bypass surgery (2.45% vs. 15.7%, p < 0.0001), and were more frequently free of angina (88.7% vs. 75.0%, p = 0.008) compared with patients who had an unsuccessful procedure.
Successful PCI was achieved in a high percentage of CTOs with a low incidence of complications. At one-year follow-up, patients with successful PCI of a CTO had a significantly better clinical outcome than those whose PCI was unsuccessful.
We aimed to investigate whether the expression of the OPG/RANK/RANKL triad in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and circulating levels of markers of ectopic mineralization (OPG, FGF-23, PPi) ...are modified in patients with calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD). We found that patients affected by CAVD (
n
= 50) had significantly higher circulating levels of OPG as compared to control individuals (
p
= 0.003). No differences between the two groups were found in FGF-23 and PPi levels. RANKL expression was higher in the PBMC from CAVD patients (
p
= 0.018) and was directly correlated with the amount of valve calcification (
p
= 0.032). In vitro studies showed that treatment of valve interstitial cells (VIC) with RANKL plus phosphate was followed by increase in matrix mineralization (
p
= 0.001). In conclusion, RANKL expression is increased in PBMC of patients with CAVD, is directly correlated with the degree of valve calcification, and promotes pro-calcific differentiation of VIC.
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