Aortic Regurgitation, Time to Aortic Valve Reintervention, and Mortality in Degenerated Trifecta Versus Non-Trifecta Bioprosthesis.

On July 31, 2023, the Trifecta valve was withdrawn from the market after concerns regarding early (≤5 years) structural valve deterioration (SVD), mainly as aortic regurgitation (AR). Our aim was to determine the timing, mechanism, and impact of bioprosthetic SVD in patients who underwent redo aortic valve replacement (redo-AVR) with either redo-SAVR or valve-in-valve transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using Trifecta versus other bioprosthetic valves. Patients who underwent redo-AVR for SVD at our institution were categorized into 2 groups based on the valve type: Trifecta versus non-Trifecta. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard model and Kaplan-Meier curves were used to compare mortality. A total of 171 patients were included; 58 (34%) had previous SAVR with a Trifecta valve and 113 (66%) with non-Trifecta valve. A total of 103 patients (60%) underwent valve-in-valve TAVR and 68 redo-SAVR (40%). The age, gender, and Society of Thoracic Surgeons score were similar between Trifecta and non-Trifecta groups. In patients with bioprosthetic valves requiring redo-AVR, Trifecta valves had an earlier onset of greater than moderate AR (4.5 vs 11.9 years, p <0.001) and earlier time to redo-AVR (5.5 vs 12 years, p <0.001). AR was more common as the mechanism of SVD in Trifecta versus non-Trifecta valves (55.2% vs 30.1%, p = 0.006). All-cause adjusted mortality from index SAVR was higher in the Trifecta than in non-Trifecta group (hazard ratio 4.1, 95% confidence interval 1.5 to 11.5, p = 0.007). In conclusion, compared with non-Trifecta valves, Trifecta valves exhibit early SVD primarily as AR and progress rapidly to significant SVD requiring redo-AVR. Mortality is significantly higher with Trifecta than in non-Trifecta valves, potentially impacting the results of SAVR versus TAVR studies.

Valve-in-Mitral Annular Calcification Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement After Thrombosis of Extracardiac Valved Conduit.

We report a patient with severe mitral annular calcification, mitral stenosis/regurgitation, hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, and subaortic membrane treated with valved left atrium-left ventricle conduit, septal myectomy, and membrane resection. Subsequent thrombosis of the conduit prompted successful valve-in- mitral annular calcification transcatheter mitral valve replacement and laceration of the anterior mitral leaflet to prevent outflow obstruction. (Level of Difficulty: Advanced.).

Diaphragmatic Pacing as an Initial Presentation of Delayed Ventricular Lead Perforation.

Ventricular lead perforation is an infrequent and potentially fatal complication of pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillators that typically presents shortly following device implantation. Delayed lead perforations occurring 1 month after implantation are not widely reported and can have a wide range of presentations ranging from asymptomatic to potentially fatal cardiac tamponade. We describe a case of successful percutaneous lead extraction and revision in a patient who presented 9 months following implantation with an active fixation right ventricular pacing lead with apical perforation. Perforation was suspected when device interrogation showed ventricular sensing without ventricular capture, but with diaphragm stimulation. After an initial X-ray and transthoracic echocardiogram failed to detect it, computed tomography angiography confirmed the myocardial perforation. This case demonstrates the importance of recognizing such a complication following cardiac implantable electronic device implantation regardless of the timeline of presentation. It also serves to highlight the importance of clinical suspicion and awareness of the limitations of imaging for perforation. Transvenous percutaneous lead extraction and revision remains a favored approach due to reduced patient trauma when compared to the open surgical approach.

Transthoracic echocardiographic findings in patients admitted with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

INTRODUCTION: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2)-infected patients commonly have elevated troponin and D-dimer levels, but limited imaging exists to support most likely etiologies in efforts to avoid staff exposure. The purpose of this study was to report transthoracic echocardiographic (TTE) findings in SARS-CoV-2 patients with correlating troponin and D-dimer levels. METHODS: We identified 66 SARS-CoV-2 patients (mean age 60 ± 15.7 years) admitted within a large, eight-hospital healthcare system over a 6-week period with a TTE performed. TTE readers were blinded to laboratory data with intra-observer and inter-observer analysis assessed. RESULTS: Sixty-six of 1780 SARS-CoV-2 patients were included and represented a high-risk population as 38 (57.6%) were ICU-admitted, 47 (71.2%) had elevated D-dimer, 41 (62.1%) had elevated troponin, and 25 (37.9%) died. Right ventricular (RV) dilation was present in 49 (74.2%) patients. The incidence and average D-dimer elevation was similar between moderate/severe vs. mild/no RV dilation (69.6% vs 67.6%, P = 1.0; 3736 ± 2986 vs 4141 ± 3351 ng/mL, P = .679). Increased left ventricular (LV) wall thickness was present in 46 (69.7%) with similar incidence of elevated troponin and average troponin levels compared to normal wall thickness (66.7% vs 52.4%, P = .231; 0.88 ± 1.9 vs 1.36 ± 2.4 ng/mL, P = .772). LV dilation was rare (n = 6, 9.1%), as was newly reduced LV ejection fraction (n = 2, 3.0%). CONCLUSION: TTE in SARS-CoV-2 patients is scarce, technically difficult, and reserved for high-risk patients. RV dilation is common in SARS-CoV-2 but does not correlate with elevated D-dimer levels. Increased LV wall thickness is common, while newly reduced LV ejection fraction is rare, and neither correlates with troponin levels.

Strategic Deployment of Cardiology Fellows in Training Using the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Coronavirus Disease 2019 Framework.

Coronavirus disease 2019 is a global pandemic affecting >3 million people in >170 countries, resulting in >200 000 deaths; 35% to 40% of patients and deaths are in the United States. The coronavirus disease 2019 crisis is placing an enormous burden on health care in the United States, including residency and fellowship training programs. The balance between mitigation, training and education, and patient care is the ultimate determinant of the role of cardiology fellows in training during the coronavirus disease 2019 crisis. On March 24, 2020, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education issued a formal response to the pandemic crisis and described a framework for operation of graduate medical education programs. Guidance for deployment of cardiology fellows in training during the coronavirus disease 2019 crisis is based on the principles of a medical mission, and adherence to preparation, protection, and support of our fellows in training. The purpose of this review is to describe our departmental strategic deployment of cardiology fellows in training using the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education framework for pandemic preparedness.

Coronary Sinus Stenosis With Right Coronary Artery to Coronary Sinus Fistula.

Coronary artery fistula is a rare congenital cardiac anomaly. We report a 34-year-old woman who presented with a recurrent large pericardial effusion during pregnancy. She was found to have a right coronary artery to coronary sinus fistula. The coronary sinus was severely dilated due to coronary sinus ostial stenosis. Primary surgical closure of coronary artery fistula was performed with resection of coronary sinus ostial stenosis.

A remarkable case of late-onset biatrial bacterial endocarditis of the Gore HELEX septal occluder.

The HELEX septal occluder (W.L. Gore & Associates, Newark, DE, USA) is a popular closure device for patent foramen ovale (PFO) and secundum atrial septal defect (ASD). Composed of a versatile polymer and a wire frame, it has been used for nearly a decade. A 50-year-old African American man with a PFO repaired 5 years previously with the HELEX was admitted to our hospital with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia. A transesophageal echocardiogram demonstrated large mobile vegetations on the left and right atrial aspects of the occluder. Cardiothoracic surgery was consulted for removal of the vegetations and device, but hesitated owing to concurrent foot osteomyelitis and concern for re-infection of a potential replacement device. The patient was persistently bacteremic, his course complicated by septic pulmonary and cerebral emboli, but eventually cleared his infection on antibiotic therapy. Seventy days since admission, the patient was discharged to a rehabilitation facility. The case illustrates that infection is possible years after PFO/ASD closure despite a theoretical neoendothelialization within 6 months of implantation. Furthermore, it accentuates the success of timely and aggressive medical treatment, thereby averting high-risk open cardiac surgery. .

Atrial septal defect repair gone wrong.

Isolated atrial septal defect (ASD) accounts for 13% of congenital heart disorders. The anatomic location, size, and coexistence of other cardiac anomalies determine outcomes of repair. Surgical closure was the first-choice treatment until the 1990s and remains the only treatment for large defects. We describe a case of a 64-year-old woman who underwent surgical repair for an ASD as a child in 1959. She presented with dyspnea to the hospital almost 53 years after the surgery. Diagnostic cardiac imaging revealed interesting anatomy of the repair surgery. Transthoracic echocardiography showed areas of flow signal across the patch consistent with surgical perforation of the patch to reduce symptoms of superior vena cava (SVC) syndrome. Despite intervention, severe dilation of the SVC along with a thrombus is seen. CT angiography of the heart showed the ASD patch occluding the ostium of the SVC instead of patching the ASD. Transesophageal echocardiography showed malpositioned patch allowing the sinus venosus ASD to remain patent.

Thermodynamic contribution and nearest-neighbor parameters of pseudouridine-adenosine base pairs in oligoribonucleotides.

Pseudouridine (Ψ) is the most common noncanonical nucleotide present in naturally occurring RNA and serves a variety of roles in the cell, typically appearing where structural stability is crucial to function. Ψ residues are isomerized from native uridine residues by a class of highly conserved enzymes known as pseudouridine synthases. In order to quantify the thermodynamic impact of pseudouridylation on U-A base pairs, 24 oligoribonucleotides, 16 internal and eight terminal Ψ-A oligoribonucleotides, were thermodynamically characterized via optical melting experiments. The thermodynamic parameters derived from two-state fits were used to generate linearly independent parameters for use in secondary structure prediction algorithms using the nearest-neighbor model. On average, internally pseudouridylated duplexes were 1.7 kcal/mol more stable than their U-A counterparts, and terminally pseudouridylated duplexes were 1.0 kcal/mol more stable than their U-A equivalents. Due to the fact that Ψ-A pairs maintain the same Watson-Crick hydrogen bonding capabilities as the parent U-A pair in A-form RNA, the difference in stability due to pseudouridylation was attributed to two possible sources: the novel hydrogen bonding capabilities of the newly relocated imino group as well as the novel stacking interactions afforded by the electronic configuration of the Ψ residue. The newly derived nearest-neighbor parameters for Ψ-A base pairs may be used in conjunction with other nearest-neighbor parameters for accurately predicting the most likely secondary structure of A-form RNA containing Ψ-A base pairs.

Computational model for predicting experimental RNA and DNA nearest-neighbor free energy rankings.

Hydrogen-bonding, intrastrand base-stacking, and interstrand base-stacking energies were calculated for RNA and DNA dimers at the MP2(full)/6-311G** level of theory. Standard A-form RNA and B-form DNA geometries from average fiber diffraction data were employed for all base monomer and dimer geometries, and all dimer binding energies were obtained via single-point calculations. The effects of water solvation were considered using the PCM model. The resulting dimer binding energies were used to calculate the 10 unique RNA and 10 unique DNA computational nearest-neighbor energies, and the ranking of these computational nearest neighbor energies are in excellent agreement with the ranking of the experimental nearest-neighbor free energies. These results dispel the notion that average fiber diffraction geometries are insufficient for calculating RNA and DNA stacking energies.