3D mitral annulus echocardiography assessment in patients affected by degenerative mitral regurgitation who underwent mitral valve repair with flexible band.

BACKGROUND: Degenerative mitral valve (MV) regurgitation (DMR) shows significative mitral annulus (MA) alterations; mitral valve repair (MVR) seeks to restore annular geometry and function, and the current use of flexible band seams to respect most annular mobility reducing parietal stress. Parameters of MV geometry obtained by 3D transesophageal echocardiography (3D-TTE) analysis are crucial for surgical planning and postoperative success. The aim of this study was to assess, by means of a dedicated software, the variations of MA geometry and function in patients affected by DMR compared to controls and after MVR with flexible band. METHODS: We enrolled 32 patients (cases) with severe DMR who underwent MVR using flexible band; we compare this group with 20 controls. The TEE with 3D MV images acquisition was performed in both groups and then analyzed in postprocessing by using a dedicated software. RESULTS: There were no anthropometrics differences between cases and controls, both presented normal left ventricular ejection fraction. DMR group showed a significant increase of annulus dimensional parameters (p = .001) and alteration of nonplanarity comparing to controls (p < .05). The annuloplasty with flexible band induces a considerable reduction of MV dimensions comparing to preoperative data and restores physiological mobility and nonplanarity. There were no statistical differences between postoperative DMR and controls data, except for nonplanarity parameters (p ~.05), maybe influenced by hemodynamic settings. CONCLUSIONS: MVR with annuloplasty using flexible band appears able to reinstate a more physiological anatomic conformation of the MA, without compromising its dynamic properties.

Critical subaortic stenosis due to fibromuscular ridge in a 66-year-old woman: 2D-3D echocardiography findings.

Subvalvular aortic stenosis (SAS) can be either a fixed stenosis resulting from subaortic anatomical obstacle or a dynamic stenosis because of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Here, we report a patient with a rare subaortic circumferential fibromuscular tunnel who became unusually symptomatic in her sixth decade of life. Transthoracic and mostly transesophageal echocardiography with 3D application is the preferred diagnostic modality. Indications for surgery include symptoms and LVOT gradient of 50 mm Hg. Our purpose is an image focus on this infrequent case.

Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk: Systematic Intervention Is the Key for Prevention.

Obesity is a serious public health issue and associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease events and mortality. The risk of cardiovascular complications is directly related to excess body fat mass and ectopic fat deposition, but also other obesity-related complications such as pre-type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnoea, and non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases. Body mass index and waist circumference are used to classify a patient as overweight or obese and to stratify cardiovascular risk. Physical activity and diet, despite being key points in preventing adverse events and reducing cardiovascular risk, are not always successful strategies. Pharmacological treatments for weight reduction are promising strategies, but are restricted by possible safety issues and cost. Nonetheless, these treatments are associated with improvements in cardiovascular risk factors, and studies are ongoing to better evaluate cardiovascular outcomes. Bariatric surgery is effective in reducing the incidence of death and cardiovascular events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. Cardiac rehabilitation programs in obese patients improve cardiovascular disease risk factors, quality of life, and exercise capacity. The aim of this review was to critically analyze the current role and future aspects of lifestyle changes, medical and surgical treatments, and cardiac rehabilitation in obese patients, to reduce cardiovascular disease risk and mortality, and to highlight the need for a multidisciplinary approach to improving cardiovascular outcomes.

An Overview of Sport Participation and Exercise Prescription in Mitral Valve Disease.

The incidence of heart valve disease (HVD) has been rising over the last few decades, mainly due to the increasing average age of the general population, and mitral valve (MV) disease is the second most prevalent HVD after calcific aortic stenosis, but MV disease is a heterogeneous group of different pathophysiological diseases. It is widely proven that regular physical activity reduces all-cause mortality rates, and exercise prescription is part of the medical recommendations for patients affected by cardiovascular diseases. However, changes in hemodynamic balance during physical exercise (including the increase in heart rate, preload, or afterload) could favor the progression of the MV disease and potentially trigger major cardiac events. In young patients with HVD, it is therefore important to define criteria for allowing competitive sport or exercise prescription, balancing the positive effects as well as the potential risks. This review focuses on mitral valve disease pathophysiology, diagnosis, risk stratification, exercise prescription, and competitive sport participation selection, and offers an overview of the principal mitral valve diseases with the aim of encouraging physicians to embody exercise in their daily practice when appropriate.

An overview of the electrocardiographic monitoring devices in sports cardiology: Between present and future.

BACKGROUND: Athletes represent a mainly healthy population, which however could be considered at risk of major arrhythmic events, especially in case of undiagnosed cardiomyopathies. For this reason, the periodical sports medicine examination and the electrocardiography are essential tools in the cardiovascular screening, even though they do not always succeed in identifying rhythm disturbances, particularly when asymptomatic or rarely symptomatic. HYPOTHESIS: Prolonged cardiac monitoring often enables clinicians to stratify the arrhythmic risk and reach the diagnosis. The technological progress of the last decades has produced an always-increasing number of heart rhythm monitoring devices, starting from the 24-hour electrocardiogram Holter monitoring and ending with the wide world of wearable devices. METHODS: In the literature, the extreme utility of this equipment in the patients affected by cardiovascular diseases and in the general population is well established. On the contrary, athletes-based randomized trials or large-scale epidemiological studies targeting the frequency of cardiac symptoms and the use of cardiac monitoring are missing, while an ever-growing number of case series and small observational studies are flourishing in recent years. RESULTS: The present review showcases the available electrocardiographic monitoring options, principally in the medical setting, listing their characteristics, their indications, their supporting evidence, and their general pros and cons. CONCLUSIONS: The ultimate goal of this review is guiding physicians through the wide variety of heart rhythm monitoring options in the specific subfield of sports cardiology, when an arrhythmia is suspected in an athlete, to tailor the diagnostic process and favor the best diagnostic accuracy.

Current knowledge on the association between cardiovascular and periodontal disease: an umbrella review.

INTRODUCTION: Periodontal disease (PD) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are among the most common pathologies in the world and their relationship has long been studied. Both conditions lead to a chronic inflammatory process with degenerative characteristics and their biunivocal correlation is now well established. The aim of this umbrella review on cardiovascular and periodontal disease was to evaluate the real degree of association between these two pathological conditions. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: We conducted a comprehensive literature search on PubMed/Medline and in the Cochrane Library for systematic reviews focused on clinical evidence regarding the relationship between PD and CVD. The internal validity of systematic reviews and meta-analyses was formally analyzed using the Overview Quality Assessment Questionnaire (OQAQ) Tool. The umbrella review was planned in accordance with current international recommendations and was described as specified by the PRISMA Guidelines. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: Thirty-one systematic reviews, including 8 meta-analyses for a total of 507 clinical studies and over 3,549,966 patients were included. PD resulted to be associated with a higher risk of developing CVD (acute coronary syndrome, acute myocardial infarction) and cerebrovascular diseases (ischemic stroke); however, if the treatment of periodontitis reduces the risk of CVD events related is yet to be investigated. CONCLUSIONS: To date, the relationship between CVD and PD provides heterogeneous data. There is an association between PD and CVD, but a causal relationship cannot be established. Further research with properly designed long-term follow-up studies are needed in order to examine various physiopathological aspects of their association.

Molecular mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of exercise and dietary interventions in the prevention of cardiometabolic diseases.

Cardiometabolic diseases still represent a major cause of mortality worldwide. In addition to pharmacological approaches, lifestyle interventions can also be adopted for the prevention of these morbid conditions. Lifestyle changes include exercise and dietary restriction protocols, such as calorie restriction and intermittent fasting, which were shown to delay cardiovascular ageing and elicit health-promoting effects in preclinical models of cardiometabolic diseases. Beneficial effects are mediated by the restoration of multiple molecular mechanisms in heart and vessels that are compromised by metabolic stress. Exercise and dietary restriction rescue mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress and inflammation. They also improve autophagy. The result of these effects is a marked improvement of vascular and heart function. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the molecular mechanisms involved in the beneficial effects of exercise and dietary restriction in models of diabetes and obesity. We also discuss clinical studies and gap in animal-to-human translation.

Appraising features and outlook of women and men discharged after an acute coronary syndrome: evidence from the 23,700-patient PRAISE International Registry.

BACKGROUND: Acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are a common cause of morbidity and mortality. Several studies have focused on ACS at admission, but limited evidence is available on sex-based comparison of patients discharged after ACS. We appraised the outlook of women and men discharged after ACS. METHODS: Details on women enrolled in the PRAISE registry, an international cohort study spanning 23,700 patients included between 2003 and 2019, were systematically collected. We focused on patient and procedural features, medications at discharge, and 1-year outcomes. The primary endpoint was the composite of death, myocardial infarction, or major bleeding after discharge. RESULTS: A total of 17,804 (76.5%) men and 5466 (23.5%) women were included. Several baseline differences were found, including risk factors and prior revascularization (all P<0.05). Men underwent more frequently radial access, and at discharge they received more commonly dual antiplatelet therapy and guideline-directed medical therapy (P<0.001). At 1-year follow-up, risks of death, reinfarction, major bleeding, and non-fatal major bleeding, jointly or individually, were all significantly higher in women (all P≤0.01). All such differences however did not hold true at multivariable analysis, with the exception of major bleeding, which appeared surprisingly less common in females at fully adjusted analysis (P=0.017). CONCLUSIONS: Women, albeit only apparently, had worse outcomes 1 year after discharge for ACS, but adjusted analysis suggested instead that they faced a lower risk of major bleeding after discharge. These findings support the call for more aggressive management of women after ACS.

Natural Activators of Autophagy Reduce Oxidative Stress and Muscle Injury Biomarkers in Endurance Athletes: A Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Oxidative stress and impaired autophagy are directly and indirectly implicated in exercise-mediated muscle injury. Trehalose, spermidine, nicotinamide, and polyphenols possess pro-autophagic and antioxidant properties, and could therefore reduce exercise-induced damage to skeletal muscle. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a mixture of these compounds was able to improve muscle injury biomarkers in endurance athletes through the modulation of oxidative stress and autophagic machinery. METHODS AND RESULTS: sNOX2-dp; H2O2 production; H2O2 breakdown activity (HBA); ATG5 and p62 levels, both markers of autophagic process; and muscle injury biomarkers were evaluated in five endurance athletes who were allocated in a crossover design study to daily administration of 10.5 g of an experimental mixture or no treatment, with evaluations conducted at baseline and after 30 days of mixture consumption. Compared to baseline, the mixture intake led to a remarkable reduction of oxidative stress and positively modulated autophagy. Finally, after the 30-day supplementation period, a significant decrease in muscle injury biomarkers was found. CONCLUSION: Supplementation with this mixture positively affected redox state and autophagy and improved muscle injury biomarkers in athletes, allowing for better muscle recovery. Moreover, it is speculated that this mixture could also benefit patients suffering from muscle injuries, such as cancer or cardiovascular patients, or elderly subjects.

Tricuspid leaflet flail after Micra™ leadless pacemaker implantation: a case report.

Background: Currently, the leadless pacemaker indications are limited to few and highly selected cases. Case summary: We describe the first reported case of an atrioventricular Micra™ leadless pacemaker implantation complicated by tricuspid posterior leaflet flail with severe regurgitation in a 29-year-old man affected by asymptomatic and progressive high degree atrio-ventricular block. The patient was then treated with endoscopic tricuspid valve repair, leadless pacemaker removal and implantation of an epicardial pacemaker. Discussion: Leadless pacemaker complications are multiple, hence it is essential to ensure a safe procedure, especially in the younger patients. We thought that the application of a transesophageal echocardiography guidance might mitigate the risk of major complications.

Accuracy of the "International Criteria" for ECG screening in athletes in comparison with previous published criteria: rationale and design of a diagnostic meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: The impact of the International Criteria for ECG interpretation in athletes has further improved the diagnostic accuracy of the 12-lead ECG use for preparticipation screening (PPS); moreover, these criteria have been evaluated in different populations of athletes and settings proving good results. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: We aimed to perform a comprehensive review of the use of the International Criteria for ECG interpretation in athletes, stemming from a systematic review to diagnostic meta-analysis, limiting our inclusion only to observational studies to determine the diagnostic accuracy of ECG for detecting cardiac anomalies related to sudden cardiac death in athletes. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: This meta-analysis is expected to include several important studies related to PPS on different populations of athletes comparing different ECG criteria and detail important data on the diagnostic accuracy of ECG in PPS. Furthermore, we intend to highlight the advantage of using ECG in PPS. CONCLUSIONS: The present diagnostic meta-analysis results will aid sports medicine physicians and cardiologist in adhering to the most accurate criteria for ECG evaluation in athletes and it may help to solve controversies aroused regarding the excess cost of ECG in PPS related to the amount of false positive cases.

Natural Activators of Autophagy Increase Maximal Walking Distance and Reduce Oxidative Stress in Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease: A Pilot Study.

Trehalose, spermidine, nicotinamide, and polyphenols have been shown to display pro-autophagic and antioxidant properties, eventually reducing cardiovascular and ischemic complications. This study aimed to investigate whether a mixture of these components improves maximal walking distance (MWD) in peripheral artery disease (PAD) patients. Nitrite/nitrate (NOx), endothelin-1, sNOX2-dp, H2O2 production, H2O2 break-down activity (HBA), ATG5 and P62 levels, flow-mediated dilation (FMD), and MWD were evaluated in 20 PAD patients randomly allocated to 10.5 g of mixture or no-treatment in a single-blind study. The above variables were assessed at baseline and 60 days after mixture ingestion. Compared with baseline, mixture intake significantly increased MWD (+91%; p < 0.01) and serum NOx (+96%; p < 0.001), whereas it significantly reduced endothelin-1 levels (−30%, p < 0.01). Moreover, mixture intake led to a remarkable reduction in sNOX2dp (−31%, p < 0.05) and H2O2 (−40%, p < 0.001) and potentiated antioxidant power (+110%, p < 0.001). Finally, mixture ingestion restored autophagy by increasing ATG5 (+43%, p < 0.01) and decreasing P62 (−29%, p < 0.05). No changes in the above-mentioned variables were observed in the no-treatment group. The treatment with a mixture of trehalose, spermidine, nicotinamide, and polyphenols improves MWD in PAD patients, with a mechanism possibly related to NOX2-mediated oxidative stress downregulation and autophagic flux upregulation. Clinical Trial Registration unique identifier: NCT04061070.

The Sodium-Glucose Co-Transporter-2 (SGLT2) Inhibitors Reduce Platelet Activation and Thrombus Formation by Lowering NOX2-Related Oxidative Stress: A Pilot Study.

Sodium−glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors or gliflozins, the newest anti-hyperglycemic class, induce cardioprotective benefits in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). As platelet activation and oxidative stress play a key role in atherothrombotic-related complications, we hypothesized that gliflozins might modulate oxidative stress, platelet activation and thrombus formation. We performed an interventional open-label single-arm before-after study in 32 T2D patients on top of their ongoing metformin therapy. The population was divided into two groups: treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA, Group A) and gliflozins (Group B). Oxidative stress, platelet activation and thrombus growth were assessed before and after 15 days of treatment. Compared to the baseline, gliflozins treatment significantly decreased sNOX2-dp (−45.2%, p < 0.001), H2O2 production (−53.4%, p < 0.001), TxB2 (−33.1%, p < 0.001), sP-selectin (−49.3%, p < 0.001) and sCD40L levels (−62.3%, p < 0.001) as well as thrombus formation (−32%, p < 0.001), whereas it potentiated anti-oxidant power (HBA, +30.8%, p < 0.001). Moreover, a significant difference in oxidative stress, platelet activation and thrombus formation across groups A and B was found. In addition, an in vitro study on stimulated platelets treated with gliflozins (10−30 µM) showed a reduction in oxidative stress, platelet activation and thrombus growth. Our results showed that gliflozins have antiplatelet and antithrombic activity related to an NOX2 down-regulation, suggesting a new mechanism responsible for cardiovascular protection.

Age-Related Electrocardiographic Characteristics of Male Junior Soccer Athletes.

INTRODUCTION: Very limited data exist on normal age-related ECG variations in adolescents and no data have been published regarding the ECG anomalies induced by intensive training, which are relevant in pre-participation screening for sudden cardiac death prevention in the adolescent athletic population. The purpose of this study was to establish normal age-related electrocardiographic measurements (P wave duration, PR interval, QRS duration, QT, and QTc interval) grouped according to 2-year age intervals. METHODS: A total of 2,151 consecutive healthy adolescent Soccer athletes (trained for a mean of 7.2 ± 1.1 h per week, 100% male Caucasians, mean age 12.4 ± 1.4 years, range 7-18) underwent pre-participation screening, which included ECG and transthoracic echocardiography in a single referral center. RESULTS: Their heart rate progressively slowed as age increased (p < 0.001, ranging from 80.8 ± 13.2 to 59.5 ± 10.2 bpm), as expected. The P wave, PR interval, and QRS duration significantly increased in older age classes (p = 0.019, p = 0.001, and p < 0.001, respectively), and after Bonferroni's correction, the difference remained significant in all age classes for QRS duration. The QTc interval diminished progressively with increasing age (p = 0.003) while the QT interval increased progressively (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Significant variations in the normal ECG characteristics of young athletes exist between different age groups related to increasing age and training burden, thus, age-specific reference values could be adopted, as already done for echocardiographic measurements, and may help to further discriminate potentially pathologic conditions.

An overview of cycling as active transportation and as benefit for health.

Active transportation is defined as travelling on foot, by bicycle or other non-motorized means, sometimes in combination with other forms of public transportation, in contrast with the use of motor vehicles. The prevalence of sedentary lifestyle and physical inactivity is a growing epidemic in most developed countries that spread over the last three decades; active transportation may be a promising approach to increase physical activity and reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases improving cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic health. The health benefits of physical activity in reducing mortality and morbidity have been proved by several publications. Cardiorespiratory fitness can be improved by regular physical activity with an amelioration of insulin sensitivity, blood lipid profile, body composition, inflammation, and blood pressure. Active transportation as a daily physical activity is less expensive compared to motor vehicle use. The advantages are remarkable in terms of contrasting obesity and sedentary lifestyle, decrease motor traffic congestion and mitigate climate change. Massive investments in policies and interventions aimed to increase active transportation are not generally promoted and there are differences in the prevalence of active transportation in the daily routine among different areas. As in the literature several studies as randomized trials or observational studies have been published, with different end-points, in order to investigate if active commuting may be the right answer to improve cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic health, we aimed to review the available evidences of cycling as an active transportation and to consider its benefits on health.