Active Margins, Plexitis, and Granulomas Increase Postoperative Crohn's Recurrence: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Rates of postoperative Crohn's disease recurrence remain high, although the ability to predict this risk of recurrence remains limited. As such, we aimed to determine the association of histologic features at the time of resection with postoperative recurrence. METHODS: Electronic databases were searched through February 2020 for studies that reported risk of clinical, endoscopic, or surgical postoperative recurrence in patients with positive resection margins, plexitis, or granulomas in the index specimen. Pooled risk ratios (RRs) with 95% CIs were calculated for this risk in patients with and without these histologic features. RESULTS: Twenty-one studies (2481 patients) assessed positive resection margins, 10 studies (808 patients) assessed plexitis, and 19 studies (1777 patients) assessed granulomas. Positive resection margins increased the risk of clinical (RR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.06-1.49; I2 = 41%) and surgical (RR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.14-3.08; I2 = 71%) recurrence, with a trend toward endoscopic recurrence (RR, 1.56; 95% CI, 0.79-3.05; I2 = 85%). Granulomas increased the risk of clinical (RR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.05-1.64; I2 = 36%) and endoscopic (RR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.00-1.87; I2 = 49%) recurrence, with a trend toward surgical recurrence (RR, 1.58; 95% CI, 0.89-2.80; I2 = 75%). Plexitis increased the risk of endoscopic recurrence (RR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.00-1.72; I2 = 20%), with a trend toward clinical recurrence (RR, 1.34; 95% CI, 0.95-1.91; I2 = 46%). CONCLUSIONS: Positive resection margins, granulomas, and plexitis are predictive of postoperative Crohn's disease recurrence and should be recorded at the time of index resection.

Association between low-grade chronic inflammation and depressed left atrial compliance in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: A retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND: A novel paradigm of diastolic heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) proposed the induction of coronary microvascular dysfunction by HFpEF comorbidities via a systemic pro-inflammatory state and associated oxidative stress. The consequent nitric oxide deficiency would increase diastolic tension and favor fibrosis of adjacent myocardium, which implies not only left ventricular (LV), but all-chamber myocardial stiffening. Our aim was to assess relations between low-grade chronic systemic inflammation and left atrial (LA) pressure-volume relations in real-world HFpEF patients. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed medical records of 60 clinically stable HpEFF patients in sinus rhythm with assayed high-sensitive C-reactive protein (CRP) during the index hospitalization. Subjects with CRP >10 mg/L or coexistent diseases, including coronary artery disease, were excluded. LV and LA diameters and mitral E/E' ratio (an index of LA pressure) were extracted from routine echocardiographic records. A surrogate measure of LA stiffness was computed as the averaged mitral E/e' ratio divided by LA diameter. RESULTS: With ascending CRP tertiles, we observed trends for elevated mitral E/e' ratio (p <0.001), increased relative LV wall thickness (p = 0.01) and higher NYHA functional class (p = 0.02). The LA stiffness estimate and log-transformed CRP levels (log-CRP) were interrelated (r = 0.38, p = 0.003). On multi- variate analysis, the LA stiffness index was independently associated with log-CRP (ß ± SEM: 0.21 ± 0.07, p = 0.007) and age (ß ± SEM: 0.16 ± 0.07, p = 0.03), which was maintained upon adjustment for LV mass index and relative LV wall thickness. CONCLUSIONS: Low-grade chronic inflammation may contribute to LA stiffening additively to age and regardless of the magnitude of associated LV hypertrophy and concentricity. LA stiffening can exacerbate symptoms of congestion in HFpEF jointly with LV remodeling.

Left atrial compliance: an overlooked predictor of clinical outcome in patients with mitral stenosis or atrial fibrillation undergoing invasive management.

In the assessment of cardiovascular disease, the clinical significance of left atrial (LA) pressure-volume relations has largely been overlooked in contrast to left ventricular (LV) compliance. However, LA compliance has recently gained more attention. Net atrioventricular compliance (Cn), a joint measure of LA and LV compliance, can be calculated non-invasively by a previously validated method using parameters from standard echocardiography. Compliance measurement may be of relevance in selected clinical settings. First, subjects with low Cn are more likely to have their mitral valve area overestimated by the traditional mitral pressure half-time method. Consequently, low Cn in mitral stenosis, usually resulting from reduced LA compliance, can be mistaken for mild mitral stenosis. Second, low Cn independently predicted pulmonary hypertension and disease progression in medically treated mitral stenosis, and late cardiovascular complications after successful percutaneous mitral valvuloplasty. Decreased LA compliance also accounts for stiff LA syndrome, a rare complication of radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation, manifesting as otherwise unexplained heart failure with elevated LA pressure and pulmonary hypertension. Finally, depressed pre-ablation LA stiffness index, i.e. the ratio of the change in LA pressure to the corresponding change in LA volume during passive LA filling, was an independent predictor of arrhythmia recurrence. Thus, LA stiffening translates into adverse clinical outcomes in patients with mitral stenosis or atrial fibrillation undergoing interventional procedures. Whether reduced LA compliance after LA appendage occlusion can result in the LA stiff syndrome, has not been reported so far.