Aims
It has been proposed that an increase of myocardial adiposity is related to left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction. The specific roles of myocardial steatosis including epicardial fat and ...intramyocardial fat for diastolic function are unknown in those patients suffering heart failure (HF) with reduced (HFrEF) or preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). This study aims to determine the complex relationship between myocardial adiposity in patients with HFrEF or HFpEF.
Methods and results
Using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI), myocardial steatosis was measured in 305 subjects (34 patients with HFrEF, 163 with HFpEF, and 108 non‐HF controls). We also evaluated cardiac structure and diastolic and systolic function by echocardiography and CMRI. Patients with HFpEF had significantly more intramyocardial fat than HFrEF patients or non‐HF controls intramyocardial fat content (%), 1.56 (1.26, 1.89) vs. 0.75 (0.50, 0.87) and 1.0 (0.79, 1.15), P < 0.05. Intramyocardial fat amount (%) was higher in HFpEF women than in men 1.91% (1.17%, 2.32%) vs. 1.22 (0.87%, 2.02%), P = 0.01. When estimated by CMRI (left ventricular peak filling rate), echocardiographic E/e′ level, or left atrial volume index, intramyocardial fat correlated with LV diastolic dysfunction parameters in HFpEF patients, and this was independent of age, co‐morbidities, body mass index, gender, and myocardial fibrosis (standardized coefficient: β = −0.34, P = 0.03; β = 0.29, P = 0.025; and β = 0.25, P = 0.02, respectively).
Conclusions
Patients with HFpEF had significantly more intramyocardial fat than HFrEF patients or non‐HF controls. Independent of risk factors or gender, intramyocardial fat correlated with LV diastolic dysfunction parameters in HFpEF patients.
There exists a great knowledge gap in terms of long-term effects of various surgical and pharmacological treatments on outcomes among primary aldosteronism (PA) patients. Using a validated algorithm, ...we extracted longitudinal data for all PA patients diagnosed in 1997-2010 and treated in the Taiwan National Health Insurance. We identified 3362 PA patients for whom the mean length of follow-up was 5.75 years. PA has higher major cardiovascular events (MACE) than essential hypertension (23.3% vs 19.3%, p = 0.015). Results from the Cox model suggest a strong effect of adrenalectomy on lowering mortality (HR = 0.23 with residual hypertension and 0.21 with resolved hypertension). While need for receptor antagonist (MRA) MRA after diagnosis suggests that a defined daily dose (DDD) of MRA between 12.5 and 50 mg may alleviate risk of death in a U-shape pattern. A specificity test identified patients who has aldosterone producing adenoma (HR = 0.50, p = 0.005) also confirmed adrenalectomy attenuated all-cause mortality. Adrenalectomy decreases long-term all-cause mortality independently from PA cure from hypertension. Prescription corresponding to a DDD between 12.5 and 50 mg may decrease mortality for patients needing MRA. It calls for more attention on early diagnosis, early treatment and prescription of appropriate dosage of MRA for PA patients.
Background
Atrial fibrillation (AF) recurrence rates in 1 year after cryoballoon ablation catheter (CBCA) are still high. We purposed to identify strong predictors for AF recurrence after the ...successful CBCA procedure and develop a new scoring system based only on pre‐procedural parameters.
Methods
In the derivation phase, a systematic review and meta‐analysis identified the strong predictors of AF recurrence after the CBCA. The pooled hazard ratio (HR) was used to create the new scoring system. The second phase validated the new scoring system in the cohort population.
Results
A meta‐analysis including 29 cohort studies with 16196 participants confirmed that persistent AF, stroke, heart failure, and left atrial diameter (LAD) >40 mm were powerful predictors for AF recurrence after the CBCA procedure. The HeLPS‐Cryo (heart failure 1, left atrial dilatation 1, persistent AF 2, and stroke 2) was developed based on those pre‐procedural predictors. It was validated in 140 patients receiving CBCA procedures and revealed excellent predictive performance for 1‐year AF recurrence (AUC = 0.8877; 95% CI = 0.8208 to 0.9546). The HeLPS‐Cryo score of ≥3 could predict 1‐year AF recurrence with sensitivity and specificity of 78.9% and 87.9%, respectively. The positive predictive value was 66.7%, and the negative predictive value was 93.1%.
Conclusion
The HeLPS‐Cryo score can help the physician estimate the probability of 1‐year AF recurrence after the successful CBCA procedure. Patients with HeLPS‐Cryo score <3 are good candidates for the CBCA procedure.
This study aimed to evaluate whether quantitative analysis of wrist photoplethysmography (PPG) could detect atrial fibrillation (AF). Continuous electrocardiograms recorded using an electrophysiology ...recording system and PPG obtained using a wrist-worn smartwatch were simultaneously collected from patients undergoing catheter ablation or electrical cardioversion. PPG features were extracted from 10, 25, 40, and 80 heartbeats of the split segments. Machine learning with a support vector machine and random forest approach were used to detect AF. A total of 116 patients were evaluated. We annotated > 117 h of PPG. A total of 6475 and 3957 segments of 25-beat pulse-to-pulse intervals (PPIs) were annotated as AF and sinus rhythm, respectively. The accuracy of the 25 PPIs yielded a test area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.9676, which was significantly better than the AUC for the 10 PPIs (0.9453; P < .001). PPGs obtained from another 38 patients with frequent premature ventricular/atrial complexes (PVCs/PACs) were used to evaluate the impact of other arrhythmias on diagnostic accuracy. The new AF detection algorithm achieved an AUC of 0.9680. The appropriate data length of PPG for optimizing the PPG analytics program was 25 heartbeats. Algorithm modification using a machine learning approach shows robustness to PVCs/PACs.
OBJECTIVE: Perfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFCs) have been used worldwide in a variety of consumer products. The effect of PFCs on glucose homeostasis is not known. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We examined ...474 adolescents and 969 adults with reliable serum measures of metabolic syndrome profile from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2000 and 2003-2004. RESULTS: In adolescents, increased serum perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) concentrations were associated with hyperglycemia (odds ratio OR 3.16 95% CI 1.39-7.16, P < 0.05). Increased serum PFNA concentrations also have favorable associations with serum HDL cholesterol (0.67 0.45-0.99, P < 0.05). Overall, increased serum PFNA concentrations were inversely correlated with the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome (0.37 0.21-0.64, P < 0.005). In adults, increased serum perfluorooctanoic acid concentrations were significantly associated with increased β-cell function (β coefficient 0.07 ± 0.03, P < 0.05). Increased serum perfluorooctane sulfate (PFOS) concentrations were associated with increased blood insulin (0.14 ± 0.05, P < 0.01), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (0.14 ± 0.05, P < 0.01), and β-cell function (0.15 ± 0.05, P < 0.01). Serum PFOS concentrations were also unfavorably correlated with serum HDL cholesterol (OR 1.61 95% CI 1.15-2.26, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Serum PFCs were associated with glucose homeostasis and indicators of metabolic syndrome. Further clinical and animal studies are warranted to clarify putative causal relationships.
Abstract Objectives The purpose of this study was to investigate diffuse myocardial fibrosis in patients with systolic heart failure (SHF) and in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection ...fraction (HFpEF) and the association with diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle (LV). Background Increased diffuse myocardial fibrosis may impair LV diastolic function. However, no study has verified the association between the degree of diffuse myocardial fibrosis and the severity of impaired diastolic function in SHF and HFpEF. Methods Forty patients with SHF, 62 patients with HFpEF, and 22 patients without HF underwent cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), including T1 mapping and cine CMR on a 3-T system. Extracellular volume fraction (ECV), a measure of diffuse myocardial fibrosis, was quantified from T1 mapping. Systolic and diastolic functions of the LV were assessed by cine CMR. The ECV values and LV functional indexes were compared among the 3 groups. Associations between ECV and LV diastolic function were also investigated. Results Compared with patients without HF, significantly higher ECV was found in patients with SHF (31.2% interquartile range (IQR): 29.0% to 34.1% vs. 27.9% IQR: 26.2% to 29.4%, p < 0.001) and HFpEF (28.9% IQR: 27.8% to 31.3% vs. 27.9% IQR: 26.2% to 29.4%, p = 0.006). Peak filling rate, a diastolic functional index assessed by cine CMR, was significantly decreased in patients with SHF (1.00 s−1 IQR: 0.79 to 1.49 s−1 vs. 3.86 s−1 IQR: 3.34 to 4.48 s−1 , p < 0.001) and HFpEF (2.89 s−1 IQR: 2.13 to 3.50 s−1 vs. 3.86 s−1 IQR: 3.34 to 4.48 s−1 , p < 0.001). Myocardial ECV was significantly correlated with peak filling rate in the HFpEF group (r = −0.385, p = 0.002), but no correlation was found in the SHF and non-HF groups (r = 0.030, p = 0.856 and r = −0.238, p = 0.285, respectively). Conclusions In patients with HF, only those with HFpEF show a significant correlation between increased diffuse myocardial fibrosis and impaired diastolic function. Diffuse myocardial fibrosis plays a unique role in the pathogenesis of HFpEF.
Prediabetes, an intermediate stage between normal blood sugar levels and a diabetes mellitus diagnosis, is increasing in prevalence. Severe prediabetes is associated with a similar risk of ...complications as diabetes, but its relationship with peripheral arterial disease remains underexplored.
We conducted a retrospective cohort study involving 36,950 adult patients, utilizing electronic medical records from the National Taiwan University Hospital between 2014 and 2019. We employed multivariable Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis with the log-rank test to analyze major adverse limb events (MALE) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in relation to normal glucose regulation (NGR) and prediabetes.
During the 131,783 person-years follow-up, 17,754 cases of prediabetes and 19,196 individuals with normal glucose regulation (NGR) were identified. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed an increased incidence of both MALE and MACE in individuals with prediabetes. (log-rank p = 0.024 and < 0.001). Prediabetes exhibited a significant association with an elevated risk of MALE (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 1.26 95% CI 1.10-1.46, p = 0.001) and MACE (aHR 1.46 1.27-1.67, p < 0.001). Furthermore, in individuals with prediabetes, the elevation in the risk of MALE commenced before HbA1c levels surpassed 5.0% (for HbA1c 5.0-5.5%: aHR 1.78 (1.04-3.04), p = 0.036; HbA1c 5.5-6.0%: aHR 1.29 1.06-1.58, p = 0.012; aHbA1c 6.0-6.5%: aHR 1.39 1.14-1.70, p < 0.001). Similarly, the onset of increased MACE risk was observed when HbA1c levels exceeded 5.5% (for HbA1c 5.5-6.0%: aHR 1.67 1.39-2.01, p < 0.001; HbA1c 6.0-6.5%: HR 2.10 1.76-2.51, p < 0.001). Factors associated with both MALE and MACE in prediabetes include advanced age, male gender, higher body mass index, and a history of heart failure or atrial fibrillation.
We demonstrated higher susceptibility to MALE and MACE in prediabetes compared to normoglycemic counterparts, notwithstanding lower HbA1c levels. Complications may manifest at an earlier prediabetes trajectory. Intensive lifestyle modification may improve the prognosis of severe prediabetes.
The glycemic continuum often indicates a gradual decline in insulin sensitivity leading to an increase in glucose levels. Although prediabetes is an established risk factor for both macrovascular and ...microvascular diseases, whether prediabetes is independently associated with the risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF), particularly the occurrence time, has not been well studied using a high-quality research design in combination with statistical machine-learning algorithms.
Using data available from electronic medical records collected from the National Taiwan University Hospital, a tertiary medical center in Taiwan, we conducted a retrospective cohort study consisting 174,835 adult patients between 2014 and 2019 to investigate the relationship between prediabetes and AF. To render patients with prediabetes as comparable to those with normal glucose test, a propensity-score matching design was used to select the matched pairs of two groups with a 1:1 ratio. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to compare the cumulative risk of AF between prediabetes and normal glucose test using log-rank test. The multivariable Cox regression model was employed to estimate adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for prediabetes versus normal glucose test by stratifying three levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). The machine-learning algorithm using the random survival forest (RSF) method was further used to identify the importance of clinical factors associated with AF in patients with prediabetes.
A sample of 14,309 pairs of patients with prediabetes and normal glucose test result were selected. The incidence of AF was 11.6 cases per 1000 person-years during a median follow-up period of 47.1 months. The Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that the risk of AF was significantly higher in patients with prediabetes (log-rank p < 0.001). The multivariable Cox regression model indicated that prediabetes was independently associated with a significant increased risk of AF (HR 1.24, 95% confidence interval 1.11-1.39, p < 0.001), particularly for patients with HbA1c above 5.5%. The RSF method identified elevated N-terminal natriuretic peptide and altered left heart structure as the two most important risk factors for AF among patients with prediabetes.
Our study found that prediabetes is independently associated with a higher risk of AF. Furthermore, alterations in left heart structure make a significant contribution to this elevated risk, and these structural changes may begin during the prediabetes stage.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is prevalent in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Glycemic variability (GV) is associated with risk of micro- and macrovascular diseases. However, whether the GV ...can increase the risk of AF remains unknown.
The cohort study used a database from National Taiwan University Hospital, a tertiary medical center in Taiwan. Between 2014 and 2019, a total of 27,246 adult patients with T2DM were enrolled for analysis. Each individual was assessed to determine the coefficients of variability of fasting glucose (FGCV) and HbA1c variability score (HVS). The GV parameters were categorized into quartiles. Multivariate Cox regression models were employed to estimate the relationship between the GV parameters and the risk of AF, transient ischemic accident (TIA)/ischemic stroke and mortality in patients with T2DM.
The incidence rates of AF and TIA/ischemic stroke were 21.31 and 13.71 per 1000 person-year respectively. The medium follow-up period was 70.7 months. In Cox regression model with full adjustment, the highest quartile of FGCV was not associated with increased risk of AF Hazard ratio (HR): 1.12, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.96-1.29, p = 0.148 or TIA/ischemic stroke (HR: 1.04, 95% CI 0.83-1.31, p = 0.736), but was associated with increased risk of total mortality (HR: 1.33, 95% CI 1.12-1.58, p < 0.001) and non-cardiac mortality (HR: 1.41, 95% CI 1.15-1.71, p < 0.001). The highest HVS was significantly associated with increased risk of AF (HR: 1.29, 95% CI 1.12-1.50, p < 0.001), total mortality (HR: 2.43, 95% CI 2.03-2.90, p < 0.001), cardiac mortality (HR: 1.50, 95% CI 1.06-2.14, p = 0.024) and non-cardiac mortality (HR: 2.80, 95% CI 2.28-3.44, p < 0.001) but was not associated with TIA/ischemic stroke (HR: 0.98, 95% CI 0.78-1.23, p = 0.846). The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed significantly higher risk of AF, cardiac and non-cardiac mortality according to the magnitude of GV (log-rank test, p < 0.001).
Our data demonstrate that high GV is independently associated with the development of new-onset AF in patients with T2DM. The benefit of maintaining stable glycemic levels to improve clinical outcomes warrants further studies.
Empagliflozin, a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, significantly improves cardiovascular outcomes in diabetic patients; however, the mechanism is unclear. We hypothesized that ...empagliflozin might have beneficial effects on cardiac function, structure, adiposity, and myocardial diffuse fibrosis. This prospective study enrolled 35 patients (48.6% men, age 63.5 ± 9.7 years) with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) from June 1, 2017, to November 31, 2018. The patients received an SGLT2 inhibitor (empagliflozin 25 or 12.5 mg/d) for 6 months in addition to stable oral hypoglycaemic treatment. All patients underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) before and after empagliflozin treatment. Left ventricular (LV) function and structure were quantified using cine CMRI. Cardiac adiposity was defined based on pericardial fat and intracardiac triglyceride contents, whereas myocardial diffuse fibrosis was indicated by extracellular volume (ECV). The statistical significance of parameter changes was assessed using paired t-test and stepwise multiple linear regression. There were no significant differences in LV function and structure changes. Cardiac adiposity and diffuse fibrosis indices were also not different before and after empagliflozin treatment. Concerning clinical parameters, only a significant decrease in systolic blood pressure (by 6.4 mmHg) was observed (p = 0.013). Stepwise multiple linear regression revealed that worse baseline MRI parameters were associated with better improvements. Intracardiac triglyceride content decrease was inversely associated with baseline intracardiac triglyceride content (p < 0.001). Pericardial fat changes were negatively correlated with baseline pericardial fat (p < 0.001) and ECV changes (p = 0.028). ECV changes were inversely associated with baseline ECV (p < 0.001), baseline LV ejection fraction (p < 0.001), and LV mass index changes (p = 0.020). This study demonstrated that 6 months of empagliflozin treatment did not significantly improve the LV function, structure, adiposity, and diffuse fibrosis in patients with T2DM. Further, the beneficial effects of empagliflozin treatment might be more evident in patients with worse baseline LV substrate and structure.
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