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Background and Aims: Over 404 million people worldwide have been infected with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), 145 million in the United States (77 million) and Europe (151 million) alone (as of February 10, 2022). This paper aims to analyze data from studies reporting gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) and/or endoscopic findings in COVID-19 patients in Western countries. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of articles on confirmed COVID-19 cases with GIB in Western countries published in PubMed and Google Scholar databases from June 20, 2020, to July 10, 2021. Results: A total of 12 studies reporting GIB and/or endoscopic findings in 808 COVID-19 patients in Western countries were collected and analyzed. Outcomes and comorbidities were compared with 18,179 non-GIB COVID-19 patients from Italy and the United States. As per our study findings, the overall incidence of GIB in COVID-19 patients was found to be 0.06%. When compared to the non-GIB cohort, the death rate was significantly high in COVID-19 patients with GIB (16.4% vs 25.4%, P < .001, respectively). Endoscopic treatment was rarely necessary, and blood transfusion was the most common GIB treatment. The most common presentation in GIB patients is melena (n = 117, 47.5%). Peptic, esophageal, and rectal ulcers were the most common endoscopic findings in upper (48.4%) and lower (36.4%) endoscopies. The GIB cohort had worse outcomes and higher incidence of hypertension (61.1%), liver disease (11.2%), and cancer (13.6%) than the non-GIB cohort. Death was strongly associated with hypertension (P < .001, r = 0.814), hematochezia (P < .001, r = 0.646), and esophagogastroduodenoscopy (P < .001, r = 0.591) in COVID-19 patients with GIB. Conclusions: Overall, the incidence of GIB in COVID-19 patients is similar to that estimated in the overall population, with melena being the most common presentation. The common endoscopic findings in GIB COVID-19 patients were ulcers, esophagitis, gastritis, and colitis. Patients with GIB were more prone to death than non-GIB COVID-19 patients.
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BACKGROUND AND AIM: Surgery is not recommended in asymptomatic patients with aortic stenosis (AS). However, prognosis of these patients is worse than retained. We built a simple score (named by the acronym "CAIMAN") for stratifying asymptomatic patients with AS according to the different risk for cardiovascular events. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data from 141 patients with moderate-to-severe AS followed up for 36 months were analyzed. The end point "outcome" was defined as death of all causes or aortic valve replacement imposed by symptoms or hospital admission for myocardial infarction and/or heart failure. The score was validated in 143 patients prospectively recruited in 2 different centers. RESULTS: The 40 events occurred in the original cohort were associated with higher aortic transvalvular peak jet velocity, calcium score, and observed/predicted left ventricular (LV) mass ratio. Based on the hazard ratios of Cox analysis, the score was calculated as follows: calcium score 1-3 = 1 point, 4 = 6 points; transvalvular peak jet velocity ≤3.6 m/sec = 1 point, 3.6 m/sec = 3 points, observed/predicted LV mass ratio ≤110% = 1 point, >110% = 3 points. After a mean period of 28 ± 18 months, event-free survival was 18%, 42%, 91%, and 96% in the 4 quartiles of echo score. The accuracy of the score in predicting events was 84% and 77% (P = 0.09) in the original and validation cohort, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The CAIMAN-ECHO score is a simple and feasible tool useful for an accurate prognostic stratification of patients with asymptomatic moderate-to-severe AS.