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The Journal of Clinical Medicine retracts the article "An Admission-to-Discharge BNP Increase Is a Predictor of Six-Month All-Cause Death in ADHF Patients: Inferences from Multivariate Analysis Including Admission BNP and Various Clinical Measures of Congestion" [...].
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The paper entitled "Network meta-analysis: a new analysis tool of the experimental evidence" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Medica 2019 Apr;110(2):173-5, has been retracted by the Publisher due to self-plagiarism. The originally published version of this article is available at https://doi.org/10.23736/S0026-4806.18.05768-3.
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The paper entitled "Differential effects of the phosphodiesterase inhibition in chronic heart failure depending on the echocardiographic phenotype (HFREF or HFpEF): a meta-analysis" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Cardioangiologica 2018 October;66(5):659-70, has been retracted by the Publisher due to plagiarism.
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The paper entitled "Aldosterone receptor antagonists decrease mortality and cardiovascular hospitalizations in chronic heart failure with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction, but not in chronic heart failure with preserved left ventricular ejection fraction: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Cardioangiologica 2017 August;65(4):427-42, has been retracted by the Publisher due to self-plagiarism.
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The paper entitled "Antihypertensive effect of sacubitril/valsartan: a meta-analysis" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Cardioangiologica 2019 June;67(3):214-22, has been retracted by the Publisher due to self-plagiarism.
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The paper entitled "Authorship growth and self- citations: a scholarly expedient that demonstrates that the use of the metrics for career decisions generates malpractice and misbehavior?" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Cardiology and Angiology 2021 October;69(5):619-20, has been retracted by the Publisher due to self-plagiarism.
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The paper entitled "Ablation, rate or rhythm control strategies for patients with atrial fibrillation: how do they affect mid-term clinical outcomes?" by Renato De Vecchis et al., which was published in Minerva Cardioangiologica 2019 August;67(4):272-9, has been retracted by the Publisher due to self-plagiarism.
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The journal retracts the article "Platypnea-Orthodeoxia Syndrome: Multiple Pathophysiological Interpretations of a Clinical Picture Primarily Consisting of Orthostatic Dyspnea" by De Vecchis, R [...].
Subject(s)
Benchmarking , Temporomandibular Joint Disorders , Altruism , Humans , Interpersonal Relations , TrustABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Transcatheter ablation (Abl) of atrial fibrillation (AF) is regarded as the best therapeutic solution for severely symptomatic patients, in whom at least one antiarrhythmic drug has been tested. METHODS: In the present retrospective study, 175 cases of paroxysmal, persistent or long-lasting persistent AF have been gathered, and grouped depending on therapeutic approach: Abl, isolated or followed by chronic use of antiarrhythmics (N.=74), drug treatment for rate control strategy (N.=60), and drug treatment for rhythm control strategy (N.=41). The effects respectively exerted by the three treatment modalities on the primary endpoint, namely a composite of death, disabling stroke, severe bleeding and cardiac arrest, have been compared through a median follow-up of 20 months (interquartile range: 18-24 months) using the Cox proportional-hazards regression analysis. Further exposure variables were hypertension, the A-P diameter of the left atrium, the left ventricular ejection fraction and AF relapses. RESULTS: The rhythm control strategy and AF recurrences during the follow-up were associated with increased risk of the primary composite endpoint as documented by the Cox model (for the former, hazard ratio [HR]: 3.3159; 95% CI: 1.5415 to 7.1329; P=0.0023; for the latter, HR: 1.0448; 95% CI: 1.0020 to 1.0895; P=0.0410). Even hypertension was associated with an increased risk (HR: 1.1040; 95% CI: 1.0112 to 1.9662; P=0.0477). On the contrary, a rate control strategy predicted a decreased risk of experiencing the primary endpoint (HR: 0.0711; 95% CI: 0.0135 to 0.3738; P=0.0019) while Abl did not exert a statistically significant effect on the same outcome. CONCLUSIONS: AF ablation is able to decrease the arrhythmic episodes but does not offer a statistically significant protection against the composite of death, disabling stroke, severe bleeding and cardiac arrest in the mid-term follow-up.
Subject(s)
Anti-Arrhythmia Agents/administration & dosage , Atrial Fibrillation/surgery , Catheter Ablation/methods , Stroke/epidemiology , Aged , Atrial Fibrillation/complications , Atrial Fibrillation/physiopathology , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Recurrence , Retrospective Studies , Stroke/etiology , Treatment Outcome , Ventricular Function, LeftABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: A retrospective study was undertaken to evaluate the respective prevalence of proarrhythmic events depending on various therapeutic regimens within a population of patients with history of atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing a rhythm control strategy. METHODS: Inclusion criterion was the presence of AF in the patient's clinical history, whose cardioversion had been followed by the adoption of rhythm control strategy. The primary endpoint was the determination of the respective prevalences of paradoxical arrhythmias in the various therapeutic groups. The secondary objective was all-cause mortality. RESULTS: A total of 182 cases of proarrhythmia out of 624 patients were detected during a median follow-up of 20 months (interquartile range: 18 - 24 months). The prevalences of proarrhythmic events were: IC antiarrhythmic drugs + beta-blockers, 111 cases out of a total of 251 patients (44.22%); amiodarone, seven cases out of a total of 230 patients (3%); sotalol, 61 cases out of a total of 140 patients (43.57%); quinidine + digoxin, three cases out of a total of three patients (100%). The paradoxical arrhythmias were: torsades de pointes, second- and third-degree sino-atrial block, slow atrial flutter with 1:1 atrioventricular (AV) conduction, second-degree Mobitz II AV block, and sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia. No fatal case of proarrhythmia was found. CONCLUSIONS: Secondary prevention of AF relapses by means of drugs suitable for accomplishing rhythm control strategy exposes the patients to incumbent risk of proarrhythmic events. Thus, the choice to avoid some varieties of antiarrhythmics with marked proarrhythmic potential (class IC drugs, sotalol, quinidine) appears to be warranted.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Clinical management of patients with a history of atrial fibrillation (AF) focuses on the goal of preventing AF recurrences, or, if this is impossible due to the fact that the arrhythmia has by now become permanent, it is aimed at the control of the ventricular response. In patients with AF, an important topic is the comparative evaluation in the mid/long-term of clinical outcomes arising from the various therapeutic regimens, including pharmacological approaches as well as radiofrequency catheter ablation (abl). METHODS: In the present cohort retrospective study, 175 cases of paroxysmal, persistent or long-lasting persistent AF have been grouped depending on therapeutic approach: abl-isolated or followed by chronic use of antiarrhythmics (74 cases), drug treatment for rate control strategy (60 cases), drug treatment for rhythm control strategy (41 cases). The effects respectively exerted by the three treatment modalities on the primary endpoint, namely a composite of death, disabling stroke, severe bleeding and cardiac arrest , have been compared through a median follow-up of 20 months (interquartile range = 18 - 24 months) using the Cox proportional-hazards regression analysis. RESULTS: As documented by the Cox model, an increased risk of the primary composite endpoint was associated with the rhythm control strategy, as well as with the AF recurrences during the follow-up (for the former, hazard ratio (HR): 3.3159, 95% CI: 1.5415 to 7.1329, P = 0.0023; for the latter, HR: 1.0448, 95% CI: 1.0020 to 1.0895, P = 0.0410). Even hypertension was associated with an increased risk (HR: 1.1040; 95% CI: 1.0112 to 1.9662; P = 0.0477). On the contrary, a rate control strategy predicted a decreased risk of experiencing the primary endpoint (HR: 0.0711; 95% CI: 0.0135 to 0.3738; P = 0.0019) while abl did not exert a statistically significant effect on the same outcome. CONCLUSIONS: AF abl decreases the arrhythmic episodes but does not provide a statistically significant protection against the composite of death, disabling stroke, major bleeding and cardiac arrest after a 20-month follow-up. Moreover, in patients with a history of AF, rate control compared to rhythm control strategy provides better clinical outcomes over a mid-term follow-up.
