Is diversity harmful?-Mixed-brand cardiac implantable electronic devices undergoing magnetic resonance imaging.

BACKGROUND: Many patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); however, a relevant proportion have a CIED system that has not been classified as MRI-conditional because of generators and leads from different brands (mixed-brand group). The available data concerning the outcome of these mixed patients undergoing MRI is limited. METHODS: A retrospective single center study, including all patients with CIEDs undergoing MRI between January 2013 until May 2020, was performed. Primary endpoints were defined as death or any adverse event necessitating hospitalization or CIED revision. Secondary endpoints were the occurrence of any sign for beginning device or lead failure or patient discomfort during MRI. RESULTS: A total of 227 MRI examinations, including 10 thoracic MRIs, were carried out in 158 patients, with 1-9 MRIs per patient. Of the patients 38 underwent 54 procedures in the mixed-brand group and 89 patients underwent 134 MRIs in the MRI-conditional group. Of the patients 31 were excluded since the MRI conditionality could not be determined. No primary endpoints occurred within the mixed-brand group but in 2.2% of the MRI-conditional group (p = 1.000), with 2 patients developing new atrial fibrillation during MRI, of whom one additionally had a transient CIED dysfunction. No secondary endpoints were met in the mixed-brand group compared to 3.4% in the MRI-conditional group (p = 0.554). No complications occurred in the excluded patients. CONCLUSION: The complication rate of CIED patients undergoing MRI was low. Patients with a mixed CIED system showed no signs of increased risk of adverse events compared to patients with MRI-conditional CIED systems.

Neurotensin and Adverse Cardiovascular Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Background: Neurotensin is involved in fatty acid and glucose metabolism and promotes the development of obesity and diabetes. These associations appear to be more pronounced in women. We investigated the association of neurotensin with long-term major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients presenting with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: We included 452 consecutive patients [144 (31.9%) females] undergoing PCI for ACS or CCS. Plasma samples drawn after PCI were analyzed for neurotensin with an enzyme-linked immunoassay. As primary endpoint, a composite of MACE including all-cause death, non-fatal myocardial infarction and non-fatal stroke during 7 years of follow-up was investigated. As secondary endpoint, we investigated all-cause death. Results: Neurotensin levels did not differ between male and female patients (p = 0.560). MACE occurred in 150 (33.2%) patients. Restricted cubic splines demonstrated a U-shaped association of log-transformed neurotensin with the primary and secondary endpoint. Therefore, we dichotomized our cohort according to tertiles of log-transformed neurotensin. In Kaplan-Meier analysis including the total cohort and restricted to male patients log- neurotensin tertiles were not associated with MACE (both p > 0.05). Moreover, in the overall cohort and in male patients multivariable Cox regression analysis log-neurotensin tertiles were not associated with MACE or with all-cause death (all p > 0.05). However, in female patients log-neurotensin was associated with MACE in Kaplan-Meier analysis (log-rank p = 0.013). Also, after multivariable adjustment female patients in the first tertile had a significantly increased risk for MACE compared to female patients in the second tertile [HR 3.84 (95% CI 1.71-8.60), p = 0.001]. There was tendency for increased risk in female patients in the third tertile compared to the second tertile [HR 2.14 (95% CI 0.97-4.73), p = 0.058]. Moreover, in female patients the [first and the third tertile of log- neurotensin were associated with all-cause death 1s vs. 2nd tertile: HR 3.03 (95% CI 1.21-7.63), p = 0.018; 3rd vs. 2nd tertile: HR 3.01 (95% CI 1.22-7.44), p = 0.016]. Conclusion: In female patients with CAD undergoing PCI, neurotensin has a U-shaped relationship with adverse outcomes. These data suggest a sex specific association between neurotensin and long-term adverse events after PCI.