Cardiac implantable electronic device implantation and device-related infection.

AIMS: Cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) are important tools for managing arrhythmias, improving hemodynamics, and preventing sudden cardiac death. Device-related infections (DRI) remain a significant complication of CIED and are associated with major adverse outcomes. We aimed to assess the trend in CIED implantations, and the burden and morbidity associated with DRI. METHODS AND RESULTS: The 2011-2018 National Inpatient Sample database was searched for admissions for CIED implantation and DRI. A total of 1 604 173 admissions for CIED implantations and 71 007 (4.4%) admissions for DRI were reported. There was no significant change in annual admission rates for DRI (3.96-4.59%, P value for trend = 0.98). Those with DRI were more likely to be male (69.3 vs. 57%, P < 0.001) and have a Charlson comorbidity index score ≥3 (46.6 vs. 36.8%, P < 0.001). The prevalence of congestive heart failure (CHF) increased in those admitted with DRI over the observation period. Pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis, and post-procedural hematoma were the most common complications in those with DRI (4.1, 3.6, and 2.90%, respectively). Annual in-hospital mortality for those with DRI ranged from 3.9 to 5.8% (mean 4.4%, P value for trend = 0.07). Multivariate analysis identified CHF [odds ratio (OR) = 1.67; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.35-2.07], end-stage renal disease (OR = 1.90; 95% CI = 1.46-2.48), coagulopathy (OR = 2.94; 95% CI = 2.40-3.61), and malnutrition (OR = 2.50; 95% CI = 1.99-3.15) as the predictors of in-hospital mortality for patients admitted with DRI. CONCLUSION: Device-related infection is relatively common and continues to be associated with high morbidity and mortality. The prevalence of DRI has not changed significantly despite technical and technological advances in cardiac devices and their implantation.

Loperamide-Induced Cardiac Events: Case Reports and Review.

Reports of cardiac arrhythmia secondary to loperamide toxicity have become increasingly common in the literature. We present two patients in their mid-20s, each having overdosed on loperamide and subsequently manifesting life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias not otherwise explained by known pathology. An analysis of the limited research available indicates that loperamide's capacity to block ion channels may be responsible for these events. A better mechanistic understanding of loperamide's effects can help inform clinical management of patients with these life-threatening symptoms as at this time no set guidelines for management have yet been established.

Ischemia-induced Brugada phenocopy.

A 65-year-old man with history of schizoaffective disorder was admitted with a suspicion for syncope. ECG changes consistent with type-1 Brugada pattern were noted on admission. A personal history of angina was reported but a family history of sudden cardiac death or ICD implantation was denied. A fixed perfusion defect and hypokinesis of the distal infero-lateral wall were reported on a pharmacological stress test prompting a coronary angiography. A stent was deployed across a 95% stenosis of the dominant mid right coronary artery with satisfactory results. Resolution of the Brugada type pattern was noted on ECGs repeated after the stenting.

Catheter ablation of scar-based ventricular tachycardia: Relationship of procedure duration to outcomes and hospital mortality.

BACKGROUND: Ablation has become an important option for treatment of ventricular tachycardia (VT). The influence of procedure duration on outcomes remains unexamined. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of procedure duration on outcomes and complications over an 8-year period METHODS: Patients referred for scar-mediated VT ablation from 2004 to 2011 were retrospectively analyzed. Procedure duration was defined as the time from the insertion of catheters through the femoral vein to the time of their withdrawal. Procedure duration was analyzed in relationship with baseline and intraoperative covariates, acute procedural outcomes, complications, and 6-month clinical outcomes. RESULTS: One hundred forty-eight patients underwent VT ablation with mean procedure duration of 5.7 ± 1.8 hours. VT recurrence and survival at 6 months were 46% and 82%, respectively, and were not associated with procedure duration. Hospital mortality increased with intraoperative intraaortic balloon pump insertion (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 13.7, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.35-79.94, P = .004) and was improved with successful ablation of the clinical VT as a procedural end-point (adjusted OR 0.13, 95% Cl 0.03-0.54, P = .005). The association between procedure duration and hospital mortality remained after adjusting for significant baseline variables (adjusted OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.14-2.68, P = .0098) and intraoperative variables (adjusted OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.12-2.29, P = .0104). CONCLUSION: Hospital mortality was significantly increased by unsuccessful clinical VT ablation as a procedural end-point and intraoperative intraaortic balloon pump insertion. However, after adjusting for significant baseline and intraoperative covariates, procedure duration still was associated with increased hospital mortality. Procedure duration had no impact on VT recurrence and survival at 6 months.

Device artifact reduction for magnetic resonance imaging of patients with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators and ventricular tachycardia: late gadolinium enhancement correlation with electroanatomic mapping.

BACKGROUND: Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of ventricular scar has been shown to be accurate for detection and characterization of arrhythmia substrates. However, the majority of patients referred for ventricular tachycardia (VT) ablation have an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), which obscures image integrity and the clinical utility of MRI. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a wideband LGE MRI technique for device artifact removal. METHODS: A novel wideband LGE MRI technique was developed to allow for improved scar evaluation on patients with ICDs. The wideband technique and the standard LGE MRI were tested on 18 patients with ICDs. VT ablation was performed in 13 of 18 patients with either endocardial and/or epicardial approach and the correlation between the scar identified on MRI and electroanatomic mapping (EAM) was analyzed. RESULTS: Hyperintensity artifact was present in 16 of 18 of patients using standard MRI, which was eliminated using the wideband LGE and allowed for MRI interpretation in 15 of 16 patients. All patients had ICD lead characteristics confirmed as unchanged post-MRI and had no adverse events. LGE scar was seen in 11 of 18 patients. Among the 15 patients in whom wideband LGE allowed visualization of myocardium, 10 had LGE scar and 5 had normal myocardium in the regions with image artifacts when using the standard LGE. The left ventricular scar size measurements using wideband MRI and EAM were correlated with R(2) = 0.83 and P = .00003. CONCLUSION: Wideband LGE MRI improves the ability to visualize myocardium for clinical interpretation, which correlated well with EAM findings during VT ablation.

A Case Of Difficult Epicardial Access For Ablation Of Ventricular Tachcyardia.

We present a case of a 67-year-old patient with nonischemic cardiomyopathy and recurrent sustained ventricular tachycardia of epicardial origin referred for ablation. Due to two previous episodes of cardiac tamponade secondary to implantable cardioverter-defibrillator lead perforation at the time of device implant, the patient had significant pericardial adhesions making epicardial access and ablation challenging.

Meta-analysis of obstructive sleep apnea as predictor of atrial fibrillation recurrence after catheter ablation.

The association between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and atrial fibrillation (AF) is strong and is now well established. However, studies on the role of OSA on AF recurrence after catheter ablation have yielded conflicting results. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of OSA on AF recurrence after catheter-based pulmonary vein isolation. We performed a data search on the PubMed, Web of Science, and the Cochrane databases for studies published by August 2010. In addition, we manually searched the conference proceedings of the European Society of Cardiology, American College of Cardiology, and American Heart Association for related abstracts. After the initial search returned 402 reports, we identified 6 studies with a total of 3,995 patients that met our inclusion criteria. Overall, patients with OSA have a 25% greater risk of AF recurrence after catheter ablation than those without OSA (risk ratio 1.25, 95% confidence interval 1.08 to 1.45, p = 0.003). Subgroup analysis showed that OSA diagnosed using polysomnography is a strong predictor of AF recurrence (risk ratio 1.40, 95% confidence interval 1.16 to 1.68, p = 0.0004) but not when OSA was diagnosed using the Berlin questionnaire (risk ratio 1.07, 95% confidence interval 0.91 to 1.27, p = 0.39). In conclusion, patients with OSA have significantly greater AF recurrence rates after pulmonary vein isolation. In addition to other factors, a diagnosis of OSA merits special consideration when evaluating patients for catheter-based AF ablation.

Giant saphenous vein graft aneurysm causing left atrial compression and cardiogenic shock.

Saphenous vein graft aneurysm is a rare complication of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery that is challenging to manage and is associated with catastrophic consequences. We present the case of a 72-year-old woman with prior CABG surgery who presented with chest pain and was found to have a giant saphenous vein graft pseudoaneurysm. Further evaluation revealed that a vein graft pseudoaneurysm was causing significant compression of the left atrium. The pseudoaneurysm was successfully excluded from the blood flow with a covered stent; however, despite intra-aortic balloon pump and supportive therapy, the patient succumbed to cardiogenic shock and sepsis.

Development of an echocardiographic risk-stratification index to predict heart failure in patients with stable coronary artery disease: the Heart and Soul study.

OBJECTIVES: We sought to determine which transthoracic echocardiographic (TTE) measurements most strongly predict heart failure (HF) and to develop an index for risk stratification in outpatients with coronary artery disease (CAD). BACKGROUND: Many TTE measurements have been shown to be predictive of HF, and they might be useful if aggregated into a risk-prediction index. METHODS: We performed TTE in 1,024 outpatients with stable CAD enrolled in the Heart and Soul study and followed them for 4.4 years. With Cox proportional hazard models, we evaluated the association of 15 TTE measurements with subsequent HF hospital stay. Those measurements that independently predicted HF were combined into an index. Variables were defined as normal or abnormal on the basis of dichotomous cutoffs determined from the American Society of Echocardiography. Abnormal variables in each measurement were assigned points on the basis of strength of association with HF. RESULTS: Of the 15 variables, 5 measurements were independent predictors of HF: left ventricular mass index (LVMI), left atrial volume index (LAVI), mitral regurgitation (MR), left ventricular outflow tract velocity-time integral (VTI(LVOT)), and diastolic dysfunction (DD). In multivariate analysis, each of the 5 measurements independently predicted HF: LVMI >90 g/m(2) (hazard ratio [HR]: 4.1; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.3 to 7.2, p < 0.0001); pseudo-normal or restrictive DD (HR: 2.9; 95% CI: 1.8 to 4.5, p < 0.0001); VTI(LVOT) <22 mm (HR: 2.2; 95% CI: 1.4 to 3.5, p = 0.0004); mild, moderate, or severe MR (HR: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.2 to 2.8, p = 0.009); and LAVI >29 ml/m(2) (HR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.0 to 2.5, p < 0.06). Combining these measurements, the Heart Failure Index ranged from 0 to 8, representing risk as follows: 3 points for LVMI, 2 points for DD, and 1 point for VTI(LVOT), MR, and LAVI. Among participants with 0 to 2 points: 4% had HF hospital stays (reference); 3 to 4 points: 10% (HR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.3 to 4.4, p = 0.003); 5 to 6 points: 24% (HR: 6.2; 95% CI: 3.6 to 10.6, p < 0.0001); 7 to 8 points: 48% (HR: 13.7; 95% CI: 7.2 to 25.9, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: We identified 5 TTE measurements that independently predict HF in patients with stable CAD and combined them as an index that might be useful for risk stratification and serial observations.