Severe Coronary Vasospasms in Asymptomatic COVID-19.

Since the emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in 2019, we have witnessed its multi-organ system involvement, not limiting itself to the lungs. We present a case of a patient with asymptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection who developed ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) due to coronary artery vasospasm. The patient exhibited symptoms of acute coronary syndrome, elevated troponins, and electrocardiographic changes consistent with STEMI. He was found to have significant coronary vasospasm on angiography that responded well to nitroglycerin. This case highlights the potential cardiovascular complications of COVID-19 infection, even when asymptomatic, and the importance of considering vasospasm as a possible mechanism in patients presenting with acute coronary syndrome. We also elaborate on some potential pathophysiological mechanisms in which COVID-19 may lead to coronary vasospasm.

Association of Thiazide Diuretics With Diabetes Progression, Kidney Disease Progression, Cardiovascular Outcomes, and Death Among Patients With Diabetes Who Initiate Statins.

Statins have been associated with diabetes mellitus (DM) progression but their cardiovascular benefit in patients with DM outweigh the harm. However, the effects of concurrent use of other medications that similarly increase blood glucose level, such as thiazide diuretics, are not well studied. This study aimed to evaluate the association of concurrent use of thiazide diuretics and statins on DM progression, cardiovascular and renal outcomes, and death in patients with DM. This is a retrospective cohort study of Veterans with DM who initiated statins between 2003 and 2015. The cohort comprised thiazide users (concomitantly used thiazides and statins for ≥6 months) and active comparators (concomitantly used calciun channel blockers [CCB] but not thiazides and statins for ≥6 months). We excluded patients who were <18 years old, with chronic kidney disease stage 4 or worse, or used loop diuretics. We propensity-score-matched comparison groups on 99 baseline characteristics including demographics, healthcare utilization, co-morbidities, cardiovascular and co-morbidity scores, vital signs, laboratory data, and medication class usage. Outcomes were: (1) DM progression (new insulin initiation, increase in the number of glucose-lowering medication classes, and hyperglycemic episodes); (2) kidney disease progression (doubling of serum creatinine, incidence of chronic kidney disease stage 5, initiation of renal replacement therapy, and incidence of diabetic nephropathy); (3) cardiovascular outcomes (acute myocardial infarction, stroke, cardiac arrest); and (4) total mortality. From 297,967 statin users (228,509 Thiazide-statin users and 69,458 active comparators), we successfully matched 67,614 pairs. In comparison to active comparators, thiazide-statin users had increased risk of DM progression (65.6% in CCB group vs 68.1% in thiazide group; odds ratio [OR]: 1.12, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.09 to 1.15), decreased risk of kidney progression (16.9% in CCB group vs 16.5 in thiazide group; OR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94 to 0.99), decreased risk of cardiovascular outcomes (15.7% in CCB group vs 14.6% in thiazide group; OR: 0.92, 95% CI: 0.89 to 0.95), and similar risk of total mortality (19.7% in each group; OR: 1.00, 95% CI: 0.98 to 1.03). This study attempted to answer an important clinical question whether thiazide diuretics should be discontinued or substituted upon statin initiation. Our results showed that concurrent use of statin and thiazides in patients with DM was associated with DM progression but with less kidney progression and cardiovascular outcomes and no difference in mortality. Clinicians should closely monitor DM control when thiazides and statins are used concurrently.

A Case of Acute Purulent Streptococcus pneumoniae Pericarditis Causing Tamponade and Cardiac Arrest in a COVID-19-Infected Patient.

Purulent pericarditis due to Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) has been increasingly rare since the advent of antibiotics; however, it still carries a high mortality rate, especially in the setting of tamponade. Bedside transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) is a useful, cheap, and underutilized tool that can aid in the diagnosis, treatment, and further management of patients presenting to the emergency department with chest pain, as well as during cardiac resuscitation. In this report, we present a case of an acute purulent S. pneumoniae pericarditis of an unknown primary source in a patient coinfected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia, resulting in cardiac tamponade and cardiac arrest that resolved with the aid of bedside echocardiography-guided pericardiocentesis. We attempt to highlight the importance of clinicians using echocardiography to aid in their clinical decision-making, demonstrating it as a fast and effective tool capable of providing instantaneous feedback.