[The impact of COVID-19 in patients with severe aortic stenosis: Artificial intelligence research]. / Impacto del COVID-19 en pacientes con estenosis aórtica severa: análisis basado en inteligencia artificial.

Introduction: Untreated, severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis is associated with an ominous diagnosis without intervention. This study aims to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mortality of patients with severe stenosis during the first wave and compare it with the same period last year. Methods: All patients who went to the hospitals in an Spanish region during the first wave, and in the same period of previous year, were analyzed using artificial intelligence-based software, evaluating the mortality of patients with severe aortic stenosis with and without COVID-19 during the pandemic and the pre-COVID era. Mortality of the 3 groups was compared. Regarding cardiac surgeries was a tendency to decrease (P = .07) in patients without COVID-19 between the pandemic and the previous period was observed. A significant decrease of surgeries between patients with COVID-19 and without COVID-19 was shown. Results: Data showed 13.82% less admitted patients during the first wave. A total of 1,112 of them had aortic stenosis and 5.48% were COVID-19 positive. Mortality was higher (P = .01), in COVID-19 negative during the pandemic (4.37%) versus those in the pre-COVID-19 era (2.57%); it was also in the COVID-19 positive group (11.47%), versus COVID-19 negative (4.37%) during the first wave (P = .01). Conclusions: The study revealed a decrease in patients who went to the hospital and an excess of mortality in patients with severe aortic stenosis without infection during the first wave, compared to the same period last year; and also, in COVID-19 positive patients versus COVID-19 negative.

The impact of COVID-19 in patients with severe aortic stenosis: Artificial intelligence research.

INTRODUCTION: Untreated, severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis is associated with an ominous diagnosis without intervention. This study aims to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mortality of patients with severe stenosis during the first wave and compare it with the same period last year. METHODS: All patients who went to the hospitals in a spanish region during the first wave, and in the same period of previous year, were analysed using Artificial Intelligence-based software, evaluating the mortality of patients with severe aortic stenosis with and without COVID-19 during the pandemic and the pre-COVID era. Mortality of the three groups were compared. Regarding cardiac surgeries was a tendency to decrease (p = .07) in patients without COVID-19 between the pandemic and the previous period was observed. A significant decrease of surgeries between patients with COVID-19 and without COVID-19 was shown. RESULTS: Data showed 13.82% less admitted patients during the first wave. 1112 of them, had aortic stenosis and 5.48% were COVID-19 positive. Mortality was higher (p = .01), in COVID-19 negative during the pandemic (4.37%) versus those in the pre-COVID19 era (2.57%); it was also in the COVID-19 positive group (11.47%), versus covid-19 negative (4.37%) during the first wave (p = .01). CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed a decrease in patients who went to the hospital and an excess of mortality in patients with severe AD without infection during the first wave, compared to the same period last year; and also, in COVID-19 positive patients versus COVID-19 negative.

[Impact of the management of a cardiac unit on cardiac care delivery. Evolution of clinical effectiveness indicators]. / Efecto de la gestión de un servicio de cardiología en la atención del paciente cardiológico. Evolución de los indicadores asistenciales.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Cardiac care is one of the most important and rapidly rising costs in the healthcare system. Therefore, any improvement can produce significant savings. We analyze the evolution of classical clinical effectiveness indexes in a cardiac unit after a change in clinical management. METHODS: We reviewed overall clinical effectiveness indexes and the most significant DRGs of a cardiac unit and general hospital between 1992 and 2000. A change in management (optimization of time for studies, responsibility of professionals for tasks, close follow-up, and preventive problem management) was introduced in September 1995 by team members without a parallel change in the hospital. Clinical effectiveness indexes were compared before and after the organizational change and compared with the rest of the hospital. RESULTS: There was a progressive improvement in clinical effectiveness indexes in the hospital (reduction of 22% in length of stay). On the other hand, a significant improvement was also noted in the cardiac unit starting the month after implementing the new management strategy (reduction of 54% in the duration of the hospital stay; 9.74 days preintervention vs 4.97 days postintervention; p < 0.001). Improvement has been progressive throughout the years of follow-up. Overall indexes and specific DRG indicators improved. CONCLUSIONS: A change in management strategy can have a significant impact on cardiac care and improve clinical effectiveness. Therefore, the attitude of a small team can have a significant impact on healthcare.

A randomized study to compare bioactive titanium stents and everolimus-eluting stents in diabetic patients (TITANIC XV): 1-year results.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Up to 25% of patients who undergo a percutaneous coronary intervention show some limitation in the use of drug-eluting stents. The aim of this study was to evaluate if titanium-nitride-oxide-coated stents could be a good alternative to everolimus-eluting stents in diabetic patients. METHODS: A total of 173 diabetic patients with lesions at moderate risk of restenosis (exclusion criteria: diameter < 2.5 mm or length > 28 mm in vessels < 3mm, chronic occlusion) were randomized to a titanium group (83 patients) or an everolimus group (90 patients). RESULTS: Baseline characteristics were well balanced; 28.3% of patients were insulin dependent. At 1 year, the incidence of major adverse cardiac events (death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, stroke, or repeat target vessel revascularization) was significantly higher in the titanium group than in the everolimus group (total, 14.5% vs 4.4%; P = .02; noninsulin-dependent subgroup, 9.7% vs 3.2%; P = .14; insulin-dependent subgroup, 28.6% vs 7.1%; P = .04). The incidence of death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, stroke, or any revascularization was 16.9% in the titanium group and 7.8% in the everolimus group (P = .06). Target lesion and vessel revascularizations occurred in 8.4% compared with 3.3% (P = .15) and in 13.3% compared with 3.3% (P = .01) in the titanium and everolimus groups, respectively. Angiographic follow-up at 9 months showed significantly less late lumen loss in the everolimus group (in-segment, 0.52 [standard deviation, 0.58) mm vs -0.05 [0.32] mm; in-stent, 0.76 [0.54] mm vs 0.13 [0.31] mm; P < .0001). CONCLUSIONS: The everolimus-eluting stent is superior to the titanium stent for clinical and angiographic end points in diabetic patients with lesions at moderate risk of restenosis.

[Interventional cardiology in 2005]. / Cardiología intervencionista 2005.

Drug-eluting stents have been shown to reduce the rate of restenosis significantly in all types of lesion, patient and clinical context without increasing thrombotic complications. Although their high cost limits the extent to which they can replace bare-metal stents, their use will increase inexorably in coming years. In addition to stents containing sirolimus and paclitaxel, which have already been approved, two additional drug-eluting stents have appeared on the market this year: one elutes tacrolimus and the other, ABT578 (a rapamycin analogue). Now that the restenosis rate has been dramatically reduced, the main limitations on percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) stem from problematic lesions such as those at bifurcations and chronic total occlusions. Although these lesions can be tackled more often and more successfully than in the past, the results obtained are very different from those achieved with other types of lesion. With improvements in safety and long-term efficacy, the number of indications for PCI has expanded to include patients with multivessel disease, left main coronary artery disease, left ventricular dysfunction, and diabetes, conditions in which surgical revascularization was thought necessary only a few years ago. Acute coronary syndromes now make up an increasing proportion of indications for PCI, both in absolute and relative terms. One future challenge is the early identification and treatment of vulnerable plaques before they manifest clinically in the form of irreversible complications such as sudden death or acute myocardial infarction. The use of multislice computed tomography, such as 64-slice detector systems, has considerably increased the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of diagnosis to around 90%, though diagnostic accuracy may be considerably less in patients with severe coronary calcification, stents, or cardiac arrhythmias. Although the technique is straightforward for patients, the image reconstruction process is time-consuming, few centers currently offer the technique, and radiation exposure is several times that with conventional invasive coronary angiography. It appears that the main application of the technique is in ruling out coronary disease in low-risk patients rather than being part of the diagnostic work-up in those with a high probability of coronary artery disease.