Cardiac Damage Staging Predicts Outcomes in Aortic Valve Stenosis After Aortic Valve Replacement: Meta-Analysis.

Background: The prognostic value of cardiac damage staging classification based on the extent of extravalvular damage has been proposed in moderate/severe aortic stenosis (AS). Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the association of cardiac damage staging with mortality across the spectrum of patients with AS following aortic surgical or transcatheter aortic valve replacement (AVR). Methods: We conducted a pooled meta-analysis of Kaplan-Meier-derived reconstructed time-to-event data from studies published through February 2023. Results: In total, 16 studies (n = 14,499) met our eligibility criteria and included 12,282 patients with symptomatic severe AS and 2,217 patients with asymptomatic severe/moderate AS. For patients with symptomatic severe AS, all-cause mortality was 24.0%, 27.7%, 38.0%, 56.3%, and 57.3% at 5 years in patients with cardiac damage stage 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively (stage 0 as reference; HR in stage 1: 1.30 [95% CI: 1.03-1.64]; P = 0.029; stage 2: 1.74 [95% CI: 1.41-2.16]; P < 0.001; stage 3: 2.92 [95% CI: 2.35-3.64]; P < 0.001, and stage 4: 3.51 [95% CI: 2.79-4.41]; P < 0.001). For patients with asymptomatic moderate/severe AS, all-cause mortality was 19.3%, 36.9%, 51.7%, and 67.8% at 8 years in patients with cardiac damage stage 0, 1, 2, and 3 to 4, respectively (HR in stage 1: 1.70 [95% CI: 1.21-2.38]; P = 0.002; stage 2: 2.20 [95% CI: 1.60-3.02]; P < 0.001; and stage 3 to 4: 3.90 [95% CI: 2.79-5.47]; P < 0.001). Conclusions: In patients undergoing AVR across the symptomatic and severity spectrum of AS, cardiac damage staging at baseline has important prognostic implications. This pooled meta-analysis in patients undergoing AVR suggests that staging of baseline cardiac damage could be considered for timing and selection of therapy in patients with moderate or severe AS to determine the need for earlier AVR or adjunctive pharmacotherapy to prevent irreversible cardiac damage and improve the long-term prognosis.

The Mortality Burden of Untreated Aortic Stenosis.

BACKGROUND: The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines recommend the assessment and grading of severity of aortic stenosis (AS) as mild, moderate, or severe, per echocardiogram, and recommend aortic valve replacement (AVR) when the AS is severe. OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to describe mortality rates across the entire spectrum of untreated AS from a contemporary, large, real-world database. METHODS: We analyzed a deidentified real-world data set including 1,669,536 echocardiographic reports (1,085,850 patients) from 24 U.S. hospitals (egnite Database, egnite). Patients >18 years of age were classified by diagnosed AS severity. Untreated mortality and treatment rates were examined with Kaplan-Meier (KM) estimates, with results compared using the log-rank test. Multivariate hazards analysis was performed to assess associations with all-cause mortality. RESULTS: Among 595,120 patients with available AS severity assessment, the KM-estimated 4-year unadjusted, untreated, all-cause mortality associated with AS diagnosis of none, mild, mild-to-moderate, moderate, moderate-to-severe, or severe was 13.5% (95% CI: 13.3%-13.7%), 25.0% (95% CI: 23.8%-26.1%), 29.7% (95% CI: 26.8%-32.5%), 33.5% (95% CI: 31.0%-35.8%), 45.7% (95% CI: 37.4%-52.8%), and 44.9% (95% CI: 39.9%-49.6%), respectively. Results were similar when adjusted for informative censoring caused by treatment. KM-estimated 4-year observed treatment rates were 0.2% (95% CI: 0.2%-0.2%), 1.0% (95% CI: 0.7%-1.3%), 4.2% (95% CI: 2.0%-6.3%), 11.4% (95% CI: 9.5%-13.3%), 36.7% (95% CI: 31.8%-41.2%), and 60.7% (95% CI: 58.0%-63.3%), respectively. After adjustment, all degrees of AS severity were associated with increased mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with AS have high mortality risk across all levels of untreated AS severity. Aortic valve replacement rates remain low for patients with severe AS, suggesting that more research is needed to understand barriers to diagnosis and appropriate approach and timing for aortic valve replacement.

Tissue plasminogen activator for axillary Impella 5.0 with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia as a treatment of choice for acute Impella thrombosis: a case report.

Background: Patients with cardiogenic shock requiring temporary support with percutaneous ventricular assist device, such as Impella (Abiomed, Inc.), can develop heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) which requires use of alternative purge solution anticoagulation. There are limited recommendations on use of anticoagulation other than standard Unfractionated Heparin in 5% dextrose solution. Case summary: This case describes 69-year-old female who presented with symptoms of decompensated systolic heart failure and was found to be in cardiogenic shock and despite use of inotropes and vasopressors maintained low systolic blood pressure and low mixed venous oxygen saturation which lead to use of axillary Impella 5.0 (Abiomed, Inc.) who developed HIT. Purge solution anticoagulation was switched to Argatroban, but due to increased motor pressures, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) was successfully used to maintain proper motor pressures. Ultimately, patient was transferred to an outside facility for a transplant evaluation. Discussion: This case demonstrates successful and safe use of tPA as an alternative purge solution although more data needed to support this finding.

Consensus recommendations for COVID-19-related myocarditis in athletes: proof of concept-case report.

Background: Post-viral myocarditis has been associated with sudden cardiac death in athletes. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the concern of post-viral myocarditis impacting the professional athletic community has been present. Case summary: An elite-level basketball player presented after a positive COVID-19 test with findings consistent with ventricular tachycardia related to myocardial fibrosis/scar from a COVID-19-related myocarditis. Although rare, COVID-19 myocarditis can occur. This case illustrates how the consensus guidelines for return-to-play correctly identified the player as high risk with appropriate downstream evaluation by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging. The stepwise approach is illustrated in this case and highlights the utility and success of the algorithm when approaching athletes with COVID-19-related myocarditis risk and determining a return to exercise. Discussion: Diligence is required to identify competitive athletes with features suggestive of myocarditis at the initial presentation and with the return to exercise. Cardiopulmonary symptoms in the setting of recent COVID-19 infection should prompt additional testing in a stepwise fashion and often benefit from CMR in addition to the triad testing with electrocardiography, echocardiography, and cardiac troponin measurement to further investigate clinical presentations of COVID-19-related myocarditis.

The impact of catheter ablation in patient's heart failure and atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

BACKGROUND: Recent trial data suggest a benefit to catheter ablation (CA) compared to medical therapy for atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients with heart failure (HF). Nevertheless, because of mixed trial evidence, contemporary guidelines give it a class 2 recommendation. Accordingly, we sought to assess the currently available evidence for CA in HF with AF. METHODS: Electronic databases were searched to identify randomized clinical trials (RCTs) comparing CA to medical therapy in patients with AF and HF. Study data was pooled using fixed and random effects, and the number needed to treat (NNT) was calculated to gauge absolute risk differences. Heterogeneity was quantified using I2. Our primary outcome was all-cause mortality. RESULTS: Nine trials (CA 1075 patients; medical therapy 1083 patients) were included. Ablation reduced the relative risk of all-cause mortality by 31.5% (95% CI 13.7 to 45.6%; NNT = 23), cardiovascular mortality by 39.3% (95% CI 10.9 to 58.7%; NNT = 31), cardiovascular hospitalization by 29.1% (95% CI 9.4 to 44.6%; NNT = 9), and heart failure hospitalization by 28.5% (95% CI 6.5 to 45.4%; NNT = 22). Improvements in quality of life were observed with CA using the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (mean difference - 5.26; 95% CI - 2.73 to - 7.78) and the Atrial Fibrillation Effect on Quality of Life (mean difference 5.36; 95% CI 2.72 to 8.00). CONCLUSION: Compared to medical therapy, CA for AF in patients with HF reduces all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, cardiovascular hospitalizations, and heart failure hospitalizations, and may improve quality of life.

Mitral Valve-in-Valve Versus Repeat Surgical Mitral Valve Replacement in Patients With Failed Mitral Bioprostheses.

Background: Transcatheter mitral valve-in-valve (MViV) replacement has emerged as an alternative to redo surgical mitral valve replacement (redo-SMVR) in patients with failed mitral bioprostheses deemed to be at a high surgical risk. The aim of this analysis was to compare the outcomes of MViV replacement with those of redo-SMVR in patients with a failed bioprosthetic mitral valve. Methods: We performed a study-level meta-analysis that compared MViV replacement with redo-SMVR in patients with failed mitral bioprostheses. Seven observational studies, with a total of 5083 patients, were included (1138 patients [22.4%] in the MViV replacement arm). The primary focus was all-cause mortality. Additional outcomes included major bleeding, stroke, vascular complications, and mean mitral valve gradient at follow-up. Results: The in-hospital mortality was lower in patients who underwent MViV replacement than in those who underwent redo-SMVR (odds ratio [OR], 0.64; 95% CI, 0.53-0.78; P = .0023). The short-term mortality (<1 year) was numerically lower in the MViV replacement group (OR, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.18-1.13; P = .069). At 1 year, the risk of mortality was similar in the 2 groups (OR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.69-1.40; P = .906), and at midterm follow-up (≥1 year), there was a numerically higher risk of mortality in the MViV replacement group (OR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.00-2.29; P = .051). The risk of major bleeding was significantly lower in the MViV replacement group (OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.10-0.56; P = .01). Additionally, stroke and vascular complications were similar between the 2 groups. Conclusions: The in-hospital mortality was lower in the MViV replacement group than in the redo-SMVR group. There were no differences in mortality at short-term (<1 year), 1-year, or midterm (≥1 year) follow-ups.

Temporal and Global Trends of the Incidence of Sudden Cardiac Death in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND: Since the initial clinical description of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) over 60 years ago, sudden cardiac death (SCD) has been the most visible and feared complication of HCM. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to characterize the temporal, geographic, and age-related trends of reported SCD rates in adult HCM patients. METHODS: Electronic databases were systematically searched up to November 2021 for studies reporting on SCD event rates in HCM patients. Patients with SCD equivalents (appropriate implantable cardioverter-defibrillator [ICD] shocks and nonfatal cardiac arrests) were not included. A random-effects model was used to pool study estimates calculating the overall incidence rates (IR) for each time-era, geographic region, and age group. We analyzed 2 periods (before vs after 2000, following clinical implementation of ICD in HCM). Following 2000, 5-year intervals were used to demonstrate the temporal change in SCD rates. RESULTS: A total of 98 studies (N = 70,510 patients and 431,407 patient-years) met our inclusion criteria. The overall rate of HCM SCD was 0.43%/y (95% CI: 0.37-0.50%/y; I2 = 75%; SCD events: 1,938; person-years of follow-up: 408,715), with young patients (<18 years of age) demonstrating a >2-fold-risk for sudden death vs adult patients 18-60 years of age (IR: 1.09%; 95% CI: 0.69%-1.73% vs IR: 0.43%; 95% CI: 0.37%-0.50%) (P value for subgroup differences <0.01). Contemporary SCD rates from 2015 to present were 0.32%/y and significantly lower compared with 2000 or earlier (IR: 0.32%; 95% CI: 0.20%-0.52% vs IR: 0.73%; 95% CI: 0.53%-1.02%, respectively). Reported SCD rates for HCM were lowest in North America (IR: 0.28%; 95% CI: 0.18%-0.43%,) and highest in Asia (IR: 0.67%; 95% CI: 0.54%-0.84%). CONCLUSIONS: Contemporary HCM-related SCD rates are low (0.32%/y) representing a 2-fold decrease compared with prior treatment eras. Young HCM patients are at the highest risk. The maturation of SCD risk stratification strategies and the application of primary prevention ICD to HCM are likely responsible for the notable decline over time in SCD events. In addition, worldwide geographic disparities in SCD rates were evident, underscoring the need to increase access to SCD prevention treatment for all HCM patients.

Meta-Analysis of Provisional Versus Systematic Double-Stenting Strategy for Left Main Bifurcation Lesions.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to compare the clinical outcomes with provisional versus double-stenting strategy for left main (LM) bifurcation percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). BACKGROUND: Despite two recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and several observational reports, the optimal LM bifurcation PCI technique remains controversial. METHODS: PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled-Trials (CENTRAL), Clinicaltrials.gov, International Clinical Trial Registry Platform were leveraged for studies comparing PCI bifurcation techniques for LM coronary lesions using second-generation drug eluting stents (DES). The primary outcome was major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). Secondary outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, myocardial infarction (MI), target vessel or lesion revascularization, and stent thrombosis. RESULTS: Two RCTs and 10 observational studies with 7105 patients were included. Median follow-up duration was 42 months (IQR: 25.7). Double stenting was associated with a trend towards higher incidence of MACE (odds ratio [OR] 1.20; 95 % confidence interval [CI] 0.94 to 1.53) compared with provisional stenting. This was mainly driven by higher rates of target lesion revascularization (TLR) (OR 1.50; 95 % CI 1.07 to 2.11). There were no statistically significant differences in the incidence of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, MI, or stent thrombosis. On subgroup analysis according to the study type, provisional stenting was associated with lower MACE and TLR in observational studies, but not in RCTs. CONCLUSION: For LM bifurcation PCI using second-generation DES, a provisional stenting strategy was associated with a trend towards lower incidence of MACE driven by statistically significant lower rates of TLR, compared with systematic double stenting. These differences were primarily driven by observational studies. Further RCTs are warranted to confirm these findings.

Long-term effectiveness of empiric cardio-protection in patients receiving cardiotoxic chemotherapies: A systematic review & bayesian network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Cardioprotective therapies represent an important avenue to reduce treatment-limiting cardiotoxicities in patients receiving chemotherapy. However, the optimal duration, strategy and long-term efficacy of empiric cardio-protection remains unknown. METHODS: Leveraging the MEDLINE/Pubmed, CENTRAL and clinicaltrials.gov databases, we identified all randomised controlled trials investigating cardioprotective therapies from inception to November 2021 (PROSPERO-ID:CRD42021265006). Cardioprotective classes included ACEIs, ARBs, Beta-blockers, dexrazoxane (DEX), statins and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists. The primary end-point was new-onset heart failure (HF). Secondary outcomes were the mean difference in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) change, hypotension and all-cause mortality. Network meta-analyses were used to assess the cardioprotective effects of each therapy to deduce the most effective therapies. Both analyses were performed using a Bayesian random effects model to estimate risk ratios (RR) and 95% credible intervals (95% CrI). RESULTS: Overall, from 726 articles, 39 trials evaluating 5931 participants (38.0 ± 19.1 years, 72.0% females) were identified. The use of any cardioprotective strategy associated with reduction in new-onset HF (RR:0.32; 95% CrI:0.19-0.55), improved LVEF (mean difference: 3.92%; 95% CrI:2.81-5.07), increased hypotension (RR:3.27; 95% CrI:1.38-9.87) and no difference in mortality. Based on control arms, the number-needed-to-treat for 'any' cardioprotective therapy to prevent one incident HF event was 45, including a number-needed-to-treat of 21 with ≥1 year of therapy. Dexrazoxane was most effective at HF prevention (Surface Under the Cumulative Ranking curve: 81.47%), and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists were most effective at preserving LVEF (Surface Under the Cumulative Ranking curve: 99.22%). CONCLUSION: Cardiotoxicity remains a challenge for patients requiring anticancer therapies. The initiation of extended duration cardioprotection reduces incident HF. Additional head-to-head trials are needed.

Risk Stratification and Management of Advanced Conduction Disturbances Following TAVI in Patients With Pre-Existing RBBB.

Background: Pre-existing right bundle branch block (RBBB) is a strong predictor of increased need for a permanent pacemaker (PPM) following transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Yet, further risk stratification and management remain challenging in patients with pre-existing RBBB owing to limited data. Therefore, we sought to investigate the incidence, predictors, and management of advanced conduction disturbances after TAVI in patients with pre-existing RBBB. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 261 consecutive patients with pre-existing RBBB (median age 81 years; 28.0% female; 95.0% received a balloon-expandable valve) without a pre-existing PPM who underwent TAVI at our institution in 2015-2019. Outcomes were high-degree atrioventricular block/complete heart block (HAVB/CHB) and PPM requirement. Results: Overall, the 30-day HAVB/CHB rate was 28.0%, of which 76.7% occurred during the TAVI procedure. The delayed HAVB/CHB rate was 8.3%. Implantation depth below aortic annulus (per 1-mm increase) was significantly associated with increased risk of procedural HAVB/CHB (adjusted odds ratio = 1.25, 95% confidence interval = 1.07-1.46), delayed HAVB/CHB (1.34 [1.01-1.79]), and 30-day PPM (1.32 [1.11-1.55]). Predilation was associated with delayed HAVB/CHB (4.02 [1.22-13.23]). The combination of no predilation and implantation depth of ≤2.0 mm had lower rates of procedural HAVB/CHB (11.2% vs. 26.7%-30.4%, p = 0.011), delayed HAVB/CHB (2.1% vs. 7.6%-28.1%, p < 0.001), and 30-day PPM (10.3% vs. 20.0%-43.5%, p < 0.001) than the other strategies of valve deployment. Complete HAVB/CHB recovery after PPM implantation was uncommon at 7.1%. Conclusions: In patients with pre-existing RBBB, the majority of HAVB/CHB events occurred during the TAVI procedure. Avoidance of predilation coupled with high valve deployment may result in relatively low rates of procedural and delayed HAVB/CHB, along with 30-day PPM rates.

Conduction Disturbance, Pacemaker Rates, and Hospital Length of Stay Following Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation with the Sapien 3 Valve.

Background: In the absence of randomized data, an expert panel recently proposed an algorithm for conduction disturbance management in transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) recipients. However, external validations of its recommendations are limited. Methods: We retrospectively identified 808 patients without a pre-existing pacing device who underwent transfemoral TAVI with the Sapien 3 valve at our institution in 2018-2019. Patients were grouped based on pre-existing conduction disturbance and immediate post-TAVI electrocardiogram. Timing of temporary pacemaker (TPM) removal and hospital discharge were compared with those of the expert panel recommendations to evaluate the associated risk of TPM reinsertion and permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation. Results: In most group 1 patients (no electrocardiogram changes without pre-existing right bundle branch block), the timing of TPM removal and discharge were concordant with those of the expert panel recommendations, with low TPM reinsertion (0.8%) and postdischarge PPM (0.8%) rates. In the majority of group 5 patients (procedural high-degree/complete atrioventricular block), TPM was maintained, followed by PPM implantation, compatible with the expert panel recommendations. In contrast, in groups 2-4 (pre-existing/new conduction disturbances), earlier TPM removal than recommended by the expert panel (mostly, immediately after procedure) was feasible in 97.5%-100% of patients, with a low TPM reinsertion rate (0.0%-1.8%); earlier discharge was also feasible in 50.0%-65.5%, with a low 30-day postdischarge PPM rate (0.0%-2.8%) and no 30-day death. Conclusions: Early TPM removal and discharge after TAVI appear safe and feasible in the majority of cases. These data may provide a framework for an early, streamlined hospital discharge plan for TAVI recipients, optimizing both cost savings and patient safety.