OBJECTIVESUsing French transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) registries linked with the nationwide administrative databases, the study compared the rates of long-term mortality, bleeding, and ...ischemic events after TAVR in patients requiring oral anticoagulation with direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) or vitamin K antagonists (VKAs). BACKGROUNDThe choice of optimal drug for anticoagulation after TAVR remains debated. METHODSData from the France-TAVI and FRANCE-2 registries were linked to the French national health single-payer claims database, from 2010 to 2017. Propensity score matching was used to reduce treatment-selection bias. Two primary endpoints were death from any cause (efficacy) and major bleeding (safety). RESULTSA total of 24,581 patients who underwent TAVR were included and 8,962 (36.4%) were treated with OAC. Among anticoagulated patients, 2,180 (24.3%) were on DOACs. After propensity matching, at 3 years, mortality (hazard ratio HR: 1.37; 95% confidence interval CI: 1.12-1.67; P < 0.005) and major bleeding including hemorrhagic stroke (HR: 1.64; 95% CI: 1.17-2.29; P < 0.005) were lower in patients on DOACs compared with those on VKAs. The rates of ischemic stroke (HR: 1.32; 95% CI: 0.81-2.15; P = 0.27) and acute coronary syndrome (HR: 1.17; 95% CI: 0.68-1.99; P = 0.57) did not differ among groups. CONCLUSIONSIn these large multicenter French TAVR registries with an exhaustive clinical follow-up, the long-term mortality and major bleeding were lower with DOACs than VKAs at discharge. The present study supports preferential use of DOACs rather than VKAs in patients requiring oral anticoagulation therapy after TAVR.
Objective
To evaluate the incidence and risk factors for ICE during a PV.
Materials and methods
Single-center retrospective analysis of 1512 consecutive patients who underwent 1854 PV procedures for ...osteoporotic (34 %), malignant (39.9 %) or other cause (26.1 %) of vertebral compression fractures (VCFs)/spine tumor lesions. Only thoracic or lumbar PVs were included. PVs were performed with polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) low-viscosity bone cement under fluoroscopic guidance. Chest imaging (X-ray or CT) was performed the same day after PV in patients with high clinical suspicion of ICE. All post-procedural chest-imaging examinations were reviewed, and all ICEs were agreed upon in consensus by two radiologists.
Results
ICEs were detected in 72 patients (92 cement embolisms). In 86.1 % of the cases, concomitant pulmonary artery cement leakage was detected. Symptomatic ICEs were observed in six cases (8.3% of all ICEs; 0.32% of all PV procedures). No ICE led to death or permanent sequelae. Multiple levels treated during the same PV session were associated with a higher ICE rate OR: 3.59, 95% CI: (1.98-6.51);
p
< 0.001; the use of flat panel technology with a lower ICE occurrence OR: 0.51, 95% CI: (0.32-0.83);
p
= 0.007.
Conclusion
Intracardiac cement embolism after PV has a low incidence (3.9 % in our study). Symptomatic complications related to ICE are rare (0.3%); none was responsible for clinical sequelae in our series.
Key Points
• The incidence of intracardiac cement embolism (ICE) during PVP is low (3.9%).
•
Having a high number of treated vertebrae during the same session is a significant risk factor for ICE.
•
Symptomatic intracardiac cement embolisms have a low incidence (8.3% of patients with ICE).
A few decades ago, the understanding of the pathophysiological processes involved in the coronary artery thrombus formation has placed anticoagulant and antiplatelet agents at the core of the ...management of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Increasingly potent antithrombotic agents have since been evaluated, in various association, timing, or dosage, in numerous randomized controlled trials to interrupt the initial thrombus formation, prevent ischemic complications, and ultimately improve survival. Primary percutaneous coronary intervention, initial parenteral anticoagulation, and dual antiplatelet therapy with potent P2Y
inhibitors have become the hallmark of ACS management revolutionizing its prognosis. Despite these many improvements, much more remains to be done to optimize the onset of action of the various antithrombotic therapies, for further treating and preventing thrombotic events without exposing the patients to an unbearable hemorrhagic risk. The availability of various potent P2Y
inhibitors has opened the door for individualized therapeutic strategies based on the clinical setting as well as the ischemic and bleeding risk of the patients, while the added value of aspirin has been recently challenged. The strategy of dual-pathway inhibition with P2Y
inhibitors and low-dose non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant has brought promising results for the early and late management of patients presenting with ACS with and without indication for oral anticoagulation. In this updated review, we aimed at describing the evidence supporting the current gold standard of antithrombotic management of ACS. More importantly, we provide an overview of some of the ongoing issues and promising therapeutic strategies of this ever-evolving topic.
Patients' responses to oral antiplatelet therapy are subject to variation. Bedside monitoring offers the opportunity to improve outcomes after coronary stenting by individualizing therapy.
We ...randomly assigned 2440 patients scheduled for coronary stenting at 38 centers to a strategy of platelet-function monitoring, with drug adjustment in patients who had a poor response to antiplatelet therapy, or to a conventional strategy without monitoring and drug adjustment. The primary end point was the composite of death, myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis, stroke, or urgent revascularization 1 year after stent implantation. For patients in the monitoring group, the VerifyNow P2Y12 and aspirin point-of-care assays were used in the catheterization laboratory before stent implantation and in the outpatient clinic 2 to 4 weeks later.
In the monitoring group, high platelet reactivity in patients taking clopidogrel (34.5% of patients) or aspirin (7.6%) led to the administration of an additional bolus of clopidogrel, prasugrel, or aspirin along with glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors during the procedure. The primary end point occurred in 34.6% of the patients in the monitoring group, as compared with 31.1% of those in the conventional-treatment group (hazard ratio, 1.13; 95% confidence interval CI, 0.98 to 1.29; P=0.10). The main secondary end point, stent thrombosis or any urgent revascularization, occurred in 4.9% of the patients in the monitoring group and 4.6% of those in the conventional-treatment group (hazard ratio, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.74 to 1.52; P=0.77). The rate of major bleeding events did not differ significantly between groups.
This study showed no significant improvements in clinical outcomes with platelet-function monitoring and treatment adjustment for coronary stenting, as compared with standard antiplatelet therapy without monitoring. (Funded by Allies in Cardiovascular Trials Initiatives and Organized Networks and others; ARCTIC ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00827411.).
Objectives We sought to analyze the composition of coronary thrombus in vivo in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients. Background The dynamic process of intracoronary thrombus ...formation in STEMI patients is poorly understood. Methods Intracoronary thrombi (n = 45) were obtained by thromboaspiration in 288 consecutive STEMI patients presenting for primary percutaneous intervention, and analyzed using high-definition pictures taken with a scanning electron microscope. Plasma biomarkers (TnI, CRPus, IL-6, PAI-1, sCD40 ligand, and TNF-α) and plasma fibrin clot viscoelastic properties were measured simultaneously on peripheral blood. Results Thrombi were mainly composed of fibrin (55.9 ± 18%) with platelets (16.8 ± 18%), erythrocytes (11.5 ± 9%), cholesterol crystals (5.2 ± 8.4%), and leukocytes (1.3 ± 2.0%). The median ischemic time was 175 min (interquartile range: 140 to 297). Ischemic time impacted thrombi composition, resulting in a positive correlation with intracoronary thrombus fibrin content, r = 0.38, p = 0.01, and a negative correlation with platelet content, r = −0.34, p = 0.02. Thus, fibrin content increased with ischemic time, ranging from 48.4 ± 21% (<3 h) up to 66.9 ± 9% (>6 h) (p = 0.02), whereas platelet content decreased from 24.9 ± 23% (<3 h) to 9.1 ± 6% (>6 h) (p = 0.07). Soluble CD40 ligand was positively correlated to platelet content in the thrombus (r = 0.40, p = 0.02) and negatively correlated with fibrin content (r = −0.36; p = 0.04). Multivariate analysis indicated that ischemic time was the only predictor of thrombus composition, with a 2-fold increase of fibrin content per ischemic hour (adjusted odds ratio: 2.00 95% confidence interval: 1.03 to 3.7; p = 0.01). Conclusions In acute STEMI, platelet and fibrin contents of the occlusive thrombus are highly dependent on ischemia time, which may have a direct impact on the efficacy of drugs or devices used for coronary reperfusion.
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