Impaired fasting glucose is associated with increased perioperative cardiovascular event rates in patients undergoing major non-cardiothoracic surgery.

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a well-established risk factor for perioperative cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery. However, the impact of preoperative glucose levels on perioperative cardiovascular outcomes in patients undergoing nonemergent, major noncardiothoracic surgery is unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 680 patients undergoing noncardiothoracic surgery were prospectively evaluated. Patients older than 18 years who underwent an elective, nonday case, open surgical procedure were enrolled. Electrocardiography and cardiac biomarkers were obtained 1 day before surgery, and on days 1, 3 and 7 after surgery. Preoperative risk factors and laboratory test results were measured and evaluated for their association with the occurrence of in-hospital perioperative cardiovascular events. Impaired fasting glucose (IFG) defined as fasting plasma glucose values of 100 to 125 mg/dl; DM was defined as fasting plasma glucose ≥ 126 mg/dl and/or plasma glucose ≥ 200 mg/dl or the current use of blood glucose-lowering medication, and glucose values below 100 mg/dl were considered normal. Plasma glucose levels were significantly higher in patients with perioperative cardiovascular events (n=80, 11.8%) in comparison to those without cardiovascular events (131 ± 42.5 vs 106.5 ± 37.5, p < 0.0001). Multivariate analysis revealed that patients with IFG and DM were at 2.1- and 6.4-fold increased risk of perioperative cardiovascular events, respectively. Every 10 mg/dl increase in preoperative plasma glucose levels was related to a 11% increase for adverse perioperative cardiovascular events. CONCLUSIONS: Not only DM but also IFG is associated with increased perioperative cardiovascular event rates in patients undergoing noncardiothoracic surgery.

Late common iliac artery stent thrombosis in a patient with terminal malignancy.

Narrowing of the iliac artery is a common presentation of systemic atherosclerosis. With the recent development of invasive techniques, angioplasty and stenting offer excellent results for fixing limb ischemia of aorto-iliac arteries. However, despite novel interventional approaches and constantly increasing experience, complications such as distal embolization, stent migration, acute or subacute iliac artery occlusion, dissection, and perforations are still challenging. Early restenosis and/or reocclusion of peripheral artery stents is uncommon, but the risk of delayed or late thrombotic occlusions of iliac artery stents is unclear. Although with questionable impact, hypercoagulable state or patient noncompliance may contribute to the pathogenesis of stent thrombosis. We describe a patient with terminal renal cell carcinoma who developed late iliac artery stent thrombosis despite dual chronic antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and clopidogrel.

Enhanced platelet reactivity in pediatric depression: an observational study.

Depression is associated with poor prognosis for cardiovascular disease (CVD) including mortality. Among multiple mechanisms linking depression and CVD, changes in platelet reactivity are known to be one of the major confounders of such adverse association. However, there are very limited data in children. Thus, we evaluated some conventional hemostatic indices including whole blood platelet aggregation in patients with documented pediatric depression and compared these data with those obtained from healthy children. The pediatric patients fulfilled criteria for major depression with a minimum score of 19 on the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory Scale. Plasma fibrinogen, D-dimer, platelet count, mean platelet volume, and platelet aggregation induced by ADP and collagen were measured in 67 pediatric patients with depression and matched by age and sex with 78 healthy controls. As expected, the depressed children had significantly higher BECK scales (P = 0.001) compared with the normal subjects. Platelet aggregation induced by ADP and collagen (P = 0.0001 for both) was significantly higher in depressed children. BECK scale scores correlated significantly with platelet aggregation induced by ADP (r = 0.3, P = 0.001) and collagen (r = 0.4, P = 0.01). In contrast, platelet counts, fibrinogen, D-dimer, mean platelet volume, and antithrombin-III levels were almost identical between both groups. Children with depression exhibit mostly intact hemostatic parameters, with the exception of significantly higher platelet activity when compared with healthy controls. These data match well with prior evidence from depressed adults supporting the hypothesis that platelets participate in the pathogenesis of depression. However, beyond pure assessment of platelet activity, other elements including serotonin content and cell receptor changes in pediatric depression should be elucidated before randomized trial(s) can be justified.

Contribution of platelets indices in the development of contrast-induced nephropathy.

Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) accounts for 10% of hospital-acquired renal failure, causes a prolonged in-hospital stay and represents a powerful predictor of poor clinical outcome. The underlying mechanism of the CIN development remains unclear and seems to be multifactorial. The potential link between platelet indices such as mean platelet volume (MPV) and platelet distribution width (PDW) with CIN is unknown. Herein, we aimed to investigate the correlation between MPV and PDW levels with the development of CIN. The incidence of CIN (20.5%) was prospectively evaluated in 430 patients with diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome. Initial creatinine (1.13 ±â€Š0.25 vs. 1.05 ±â€Š0.27 mg/dl, P = 0.01) and PDW (40.1 ±â€Š20.2 vs. 34.5 ±â€Š19.9%, P = 0.02) levels and the total volume of contrast media used (121 ±â€Š61 vs. 94 ±â€Š42 ml, P = 0.01) were higher in patients who developed CIN. MPV was similar between the two groups (P = 0.80). In a univariate regression analysis, age, increased creatinine, uric acid, phosphate, PDW levels and higher total volume of contrast media used were significantly correlated with CIN incidence. However, in a multivariate analysis, only total volume of CM used [odds ratio (OR) 1.011, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.006-1.016; P = 0.01], increased age (OR 1.026, 95% CI 1.00-1.052; P = 0.05) and increased PDW levels (OR 1.009, 95% CI 1.00-1.022; P = 0.04) remained as the independent predictors of CIN. Among platelet indices, PDW, but not MPV, was associated with CIN development. The clinical significance of such link remains unclear, but may indicate involvement of platelet activation in CIN pathogenesis.

The effects of tirofiban infusion on clinical and angiographic outcomes of patients with STEMI undergoing primary PCI.

OBJECTIVE: The present study was designed to determine the effects of tirofiban (Tiro) infusion on angiographic measures, ST-segment resolution, and clinical outcomes in patients with STEMI undergoing PCI. Glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors are beneficial in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), while the most effective timing of administration is still under investigation. METHODS: A total of 1242 patients (83.0% males, mean (standard deviation; SD) age: 54.7 (10.9) years) with STEMI who underwent primary PCI were included in this retrospective non-randomized study in four groups, composed of no tirofiban infusion [Tiro (-); n=248], tirofiban infusion before PCI (pre-Tiro; n=720), tirofiban infusion during PCI (peri-Tiro; n=50), and tirofiban infusion after PCI (post-Tiro; n=224). In all Tiro (+) patients, bolus administration of Tiro (10 µg/kg) was followed by infusion (0.15 µg/kg/min) for a mean (SD) duration of 22.4±6.8 hours. RESULTS: The pre-PCI Tiro group was associated with the highest percentage of patients with TIMI 3 flow (99.4%; p<0.001), the lowest corrected TIMI frame count [21(18-23.4); p<0.001], the highest percentage of patients with >75% ST-segment resolution (78.1%; p<0.001), and the lowest rate of in-hospital sudden cardiac death and in-hospital all-cause mortality (3.2%, p<0.05, 3.3%, p=0.01). Major bleeding was reported in 18 (1.8%) patients who received tirofiban. CONCLUSION: Use of standard-dose bolus tirofiban in addition to aspirin, high-dose clopidogrel, and unfractionated heparin prior to primary PCI significantly improves myocardial reperfusion, ST-segment resolution, in-hospital mortality rate, and in-hospital sudden cardiac death in patients with STEMI with no increased risk of major bleeding.

Incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of perioperative acute kidney injury in noncardiac and nonvascular surgery.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the incidence rate, identify the risk factors, and describe the clinical outcome of perioperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing noncardiac, nonvascular surgery (NCS). METHODS: A total of 1,200 adult consecutive patients undergoing NCS were prospectively evaluated. Patients with pre-existing renal dysfunction were excluded. The primary outcome of this study was perioperative AKI defined by the RIFLE (risk, injury, failure, loss of function, and end-stage kidney disease) criteria. RESULTS: Eighty-one patients (6.7%) met the AKI criteria. Multivariate analysis identified age, diabetes, revised cardiac risk index, and American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status as independent predictors of AKI. Patients with AKI had more cardiovascular (33.3% vs 11.3%, P < .001) complications and a higher in-hospital mortality rate (6.1% vs 0.9%, P = .003) compared with patients without AKI. CONCLUSIONS: Several preoperative predictors are found to be associated with AKI after NCS. Perioperative AKI is an independent risk factor for outcome after NCS.

Correlation between the serum alkaline phosphatase level and the severity of coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVES: The serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) level has shown to be a prognostic factor in myocardial infarction and peripheral vascular disease by its promoting effect on vascular calcification. A few recent studies also showed that elevated ALP levels were associated with mortality and unfavorable prognosis in coronary artery disease (CAD). Herein, we aimed to investigate the correlation between serum ALP levels and the severity of CAD by assessing the Gensini score. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 470 patients with stable angina pectoris were evaluated retrospectively.Upon admission, their ALP levels were measured with an automated analyzer by the enzymatic method, and the severity of CAD was documented for each patient according to their Gensini score. Patients with a Gensini score greater than 40 were defined to have an advanced CAD. Serum ALP levels higher than 129 mg/dl in men and higher than 104 mg/dl in women were defined as the elevated ALP groups. RESULTS: The mean ALP level was 97.3±56.4, ranging from 15 to 485 U/l with 66.0/82.5/106.0 U/l percentile values, and elevated ALP levels were obtained in 79 cases (16.8%). In 70% of the patients (n=329), advanced CAD was diagnosed. The mean Gensini score was 85.6±29.4 in the advanced CAD group and 12.8±15.8 in the remainder of the patients. The advanced CAD group included more men, patients with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and a reduced left ventricular ejection fraction, and patients with lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and higher levels of creatinine, red cell distribution width, and mean platelet volume. ALP levels (105.4±60.7 vs. 78.4±38.7 U/l, P<0.001) and the frequency of patients with elevated ALP levels (22 vs. 5.0%, P<0.001) were significantly higher in the advanced CAD group. Regression analysis showed a significant correlation between increased levels of serum ALP and advanced CAD in univariate (odds ratio 1.015, 95% confidence interval 1.008-1.1291, P<0.001) and multivariate analyses (odds ratio 1.013, 95% confidence interval 1.003-1.023, P=0.01). CONCLUSION: Elevated ALP levels are associated with higher Gensini scores and a more severe form of CAD.

Knowledge, attitude and perception of antiplatelet therapy among dentists in Central Eastern Turkey.

AIM: To survey the dentists in Central Eastern Turkey, testing their knowledge on coronary interventions and assessing perception of antecedent dual antiplatelet therapy. METHODS: Two hundred and ninety-eight dentists were surveyed face-to-face by completing questionnaires, including 16 structured questions focused on general knowledge of coronary stents, and assessing periprocedural practice with regard to antiplatelet therapy. RESULTS: All respondents were aware of such devices as coronary stents, but only one-third of the respondents knew the differences between a bare metal and a drug-eluting stent design, and associated vascular outcomes. Awareness about stent thrombosis was limited to 34%, while consequences of interrupting antiplatelet therapy were known to only 30% of surveyed dentists. Importantly, the attitudes of surveyed respondents differed substantially depending on the location of their practice, where dentists working in the urban environment (population over 10 000) were more aware of antiplatelet recommendations when compared to their colleagues from the rural areas. CONCLUSION: Knowledge about coronary stents, associated clinical outcomes, and current guidelines with regard to surgical management of antecedent antiplatelet therapy in Central Eastern Turkey is inconsistent, and heavily dependent on the location of dental practice. Rural areas around the globe should be in a focus of continuous medical education to improve the quality of medical care.