Perioperative predictors of permanent pacing and long-term dependence following tricuspid valve surgery: a multicentre analysis.

AIMS: Permanent pacemaker placement (PPM) is often required after valvular surgery and is especially common following tricuspid valve surgery [tricuspid valve repair or replacement (TVR)]. Literature suggests that surgical intervention for isolated tricuspid valve disease is becoming more prevalent. Predictors of PPM dependency following TVR are currently unknown and would be clinically useful from a prognostication standpoint. METHODS AND RESULTS: We conducted a multicentre, retrospective study to assess perioperative factors of TVR that predispose to PPM placement and long-term PPM dependency from 2008 to 2014. Regression analysis was used to determine independent predictors of PPM implantation. A total of 237 patients (age 66 ± 15 years, 29% male) were studied, and the incidence of PPM placement following TVR was 27% (65/237). No significant differences were observed between those who received PPM and those who did not in age (P = 0.092), gender (P = 0.359), and co-morbidities. Regression analysis identified cross-clamp time >60 min (OR 4.1, 95% CI 1.3-12.9, P = 0.015) and concomitant mitral valve surgery (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.2-12.2, P = 0.026) as independent risk factors for PPM following TVR. Long-term PPM dependency data were only available in 28 patients who received PPM with 14 of these patients developing long-term dependence. The only statistically significant difference noted was an increased frequency of coronary artery disease in the long-term dependent group vs. the non-dependent group (64% vs. 14%, P = 0.018). CONCLUSION: Cross-clamp time >60 min and concomitant mitral valve surgery were independent predictors of PPM implantation following TVR. Long-term PPM dependency is more prevalent after TVR than other types of valvular surgery.

Echocardiographic Assessment of Cardiotoxic Effects of Cancer Therapy.

Patients with cancer can present with difficult management issues, as the medicine can sometimes cause sequelae destructive to healthy tissue. As this population lives longer, cardiotoxic effects are beginning to emerge, but the early recognition of this signal can prove difficult, with too late a recognition leading to lifelong cardiac impairment and dysfunction. Cardio-oncology can bridge this difficulty, and echocardiography and its newer imaging abilities are proving efficacious in this population. This article will address common sequelae of cardiotoxic treatment regimens and offer recommendations for echocardiographic surveillance. We recommend echocardiography, preferably three-dimensional and strain imaging, to monitor for cardiotoxic myocardial effects before, during, and after chemotherapy with cardiotoxic drug regimens, particularly anthracycline derivatives. A reduction in left ventricular (LV) global longitudinal strain in all patients, or reduction in LV global circumferential strain or global radial strain in patients at intermediate to high risk for cardiotoxicity, despite normal LV ejection fraction warrants a clinical assessment on the benefits of continuing cardiotoxic chemotherapeutic agents. Lifelong surveillance using echocardiography for cardiotoxicity and radiation-related valvular, pericardial, and coronary artery disease is prudent.

Fatal COVID-19 in an MS patient on natalizumab: A case report.

We report a fatal case of COVID-19 in a 51-year-old African American woman with multiple sclerosis on natalizumab. She had multiple risk factors for severe COVID-19 disease including race, obesity, hypertension, and elevated inflammatory markers, but the contribution of natalizumab to her poor outcome remains unknown. We consider whether altered dynamics of peripheral immune cells in the context of natalizumab treatment could worsen the cytokine storm syndrome associated with severe COVID-19. We discuss extended interval dosing as a risk-reduction strategy for multiple sclerosis patients on natalizumab, and the use of interleukin-6 inhibitors in such patients who contract COVID-19.