Bisphosphonates for cardiovascular risk reduction: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Bisphosphonates might be effective in reducing cardiovascular events due to their ability to reduce calcification in arterial walls. We aimed to investigate the effects of treatment with bisphosphonates on the prevention of atherosclerotic processes and cardiovascular disease. METHODS: Pubmed, Embase and the Cochrane Library were systematically reviewed by two independent investigators for randomized controlled studies published up to January 2016, in which the effect of bisphosphonates on arterial wall disease, cardiovascular events, cardiovascular mortality or all-cause mortality were reported. There was no restriction for the type of population used in the trials. Random-effects models were used to calculate the pooled estimates. RESULTS: 61 trials reporting the effects of bisphosphonates on the outcomes of interest were included. Bisphosphonates had beneficial effects on arterial wall disease regarding arterial calcification (pooled mean percentage difference of 2 trials -11.52 (95% CI -16.51 to -6.52, p < 0.01, I(2) 13%), but not on arterial stiffness (pooled mean percentage difference of 2 trials -2.82; 95% CI -10.71-5.07; p = 0.48, I(2) 59%). No effect of bisphosphonate treatment on cardiovascular events was found (pooled RR of 20 trials 1.03; 95% CI 0.91-1.17, I(2) 16%), while a lower risk for cardiovascular mortality was observed in patients treated with bisphosphonates (pooled RR of 10 trials 0.81; 95% CI 0.64-1.02; I(2) 0%) although not statistically significant. Patients treated with bisphosphonates had a reduced risk of all-cause mortality (pooled RR of 48 trials 0.90; 95% CI 0.84-0.98; I(2) 53%). CONCLUSIONS: In this systematic review and meta-analysis it is shown that bisphosphonates reduce arterial wall calcification but have no effect on arterial stiffness or on cardiovascular events. Bisphosphonates tend to reduce the risk of cardiovascular mortality and reduce all-cause mortality in various patient groups, including osteoporosis and cancer patients.

Mortality after cardiac surgery in patients with liver cirrhosis classified by the Child-Pugh score.

Liver cirrhosis is a known risk factor for postoperative mortality in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Clinical assessment of liver cirrhosis using the widely accepted Child-Pugh (CP) score is thus vital for evaluation of surgical options and perioperative care. However, detailed mortality rates as a consequence of liver cirrhosis are unclear. This review aimed to stratify the risk of short-term (<30 days) and overall (up to 10 years) mortality after cardiac surgery in patients with liver cirrhosis, classified by the CP score. Thus, PubMed, Embase, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library were systematically reviewed by two independent investigators for studies published up to February 2014, in which mortality in cirrhotic patients, classified by the CP classification, undergoing cardiac surgery was evaluated postoperatively. A total of 993 articles were identified. After critical appraisal of 21 articles, 19 were selected for final analysis. Weighted short-term mortality of cirrhotic patients undergoing cardiac surgery was 19.3% [95% confidence interval (CI): 16.4-22.5%]. Across the different CP groups, short-term mortality appeared to be 9.0% (95% CI: 6.6-12.2%), 37.7% (95% CI: 30.8-44.3%) and 52.0% (95% CI: 33.5-70.0%) in Groups A, B and C, respectively. Weighted overall mortality within 1 year was 42.0% (95% CI: 36.0-48.3%) in all cirrhotic patients. Subdivided in groups, overall mortality within that 1 year was 27.2% (95% CI: 20.9-34.7%), 66.2% (95% CI: 54.3-76.3%) and 78.9% (95% CI: 56.1-92.1%) in Groups A, B and C, respectively. In conclusion, short-term mortality is considerably increased in patients with liver cirrhosis CP class B and C. Overall mortality is significantly high in all classes of liver cirrhosis.

Abnormally high failure rate for femoral angioplasty in patients with pseudoxanthoma elasticum.

Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is an inherited disease characterized by skin lesions, central blindness, and progressive peripheral occlusive disease. Severe claudication is a frequent symptom for which angioplasty represents a possible therapeutic avenue. We report the outcomes of four patients with PXE treated by angioplasty and stenting of the superficial femoral artery in two centers. These patients exhibited an abnormal failure rate for angioplasty and stenting of the superficial femoral artery, suggesting an as yet unknown susceptibility in such patients. In the absence of further evidence, we do not recommend arterial angioplasty with stenting as a primary surgical approach in PXE patients with femoral artery lesions.

Identifying frailty: do the Frailty Index and Groningen Frailty Indicator cover different clinical perspectives? a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Early identification of frailty is important for proactive primary care. Currently, however, there is no consensus on which measure to use. Therefore, we examined whether a Frailty Index (FI), based on ICPC-coded primary care data, and the Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI) questionnaire identify the same older people as frail. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional, observational study of 1,580 patients aged ≥ 60 years in a Dutch primary care center. Patients received a GFI questionnaire and were surveyed on their baseline characteristics. Frailty-screening software calculated their FI score. The GFI and FI scores were compared as continuous and dichotomised measures. RESULTS: FI data were available for 1549 patients (98%). 663 patients (42%) returned their GFI questionnaire. Complete GFI and FI scores were available for 638 patients (40.4%), mean age 73.4 years, 52.8% female. There was a positive correlation between the GFI and the FI (Pearson's correlation coefficient 0.544). Using dichotomised scores, 84.3% of patients with a low FI score also had a low GFI score. In patients with a high FI score, 55.1% also had a high GFI score. A continuous FI score accurately predicted a dichotomised GFI score (AUC 0.78, 95% CI 0.74 to 0.82). Being widowed or divorced was an independent predictor of both a high GFI score in patients with a low FI score, and a high FI score in patients with a low GFI score. CONCLUSIONS: The FI and the GFI moderately overlap in identifying frailty in community-dwelling older patients. To provide optimal proactive primary care, we suggest an initial FI screening in routine healthcare data, followed by a GFI questionnaire for patients with a high FI score or otherwise at high risk as the preferred two-step frailty screening process in primary care.