Regional CZT myocardial perfusion reserve for the detection of territories with simultaneously impaired CFR and IMR in patients without obstructive coronary artery disease: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the diagnostic performances of CZT myocardial perfusion reserve (MPR) for the detection of territories with simultaneous impaired coronary flow reserve (CFR) and index of microcirculatory resistance (IMR) in patients without obstructive coronary artery disease. METHODS: Patients were prospectively included before being referred for coronary angiography. All patients underwent CZT MPR before invasive coronary angiography (ICA) and coronary physiology assessment. Rest and dipyridamole-induced stress myocardial blood flow (MBF) and MPR were quantified using 99mTc-SestaMIBI and a CZT camera. Fractional flow reserve (FFR), Thermodilution CFR, and IMR were assessed during ICA. RESULTS: Between December 2016 and July 2019, 36 patients were included. 25/36 patients presented no obstructive coronary artery disease. A complete functional assessment was performed in 32 arteries. No territory presented a significant ischemia on CZT myocardial perfusion imaging. A moderate yet significant correlation was observed between regional CZT MPR and CFR (r = 0.4, P = .03). Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, and accuracy of regional CZT MPR versus the composite invasive criterion (impaired CFR and IMR) were 87 [47% to 99%], 92% [73% to 99%], 78% [47% to 93%], 96% [78% to 99%], and 91% [75% to 98%], respectively. All territories with a regional CZT MPR ≤ 1.8 showed a CFR < 2. Regional CZT MPR values were significantly higher in arteries with CFR ≥ 2 and IMR < 25 (negative composite criterion, n = 14) than in those with CFR < 2 and IMR ≥ 25 (2.6 [2.1 to 3.6] versus 1.6 [1.2 to 1.8]), P < .01). CONCLUSION: Regional CZT MPR presented excellent diagnostic performances for the detection of territories with simultaneously impaired CFR and IMR reflecting a very high cardiovascular risk in patients without obstructive coronary artery disease.

The WHO-ERS Smoking Cessation Training Project: the first year of experience.

Strategic @ERSTalk-@WHO alliance to address tobacco use by training health professionals on brief advice resulted in establishing smoking cessation in real care settings with quit rates higher than the literature and high propensity for wider dissemination http://ow.ly/lWDF30krq5V.

Tobacco control achievements and priority areas in the WHO Europe Region: A review.

INTRODUCTION: Tobacco control efforts have been advancing globally, including the adoption and entry into force of the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (FCTC), as well as the adoption of the European Union EU Tobacco Products Directive. With the present review, the European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention (ENSP) and European Respiratory Society (ERS) aim to provide a comprehensive overview on the status of WHO FCTC implementation, policy achievements and priority areas across countries in the WHO Europe Region. METHODS: The review was conducted through a triangulation of data extracted from a survey administered to ENSP members, the WHO FCTC Implementation Database, Tobacco Control Laws and the Tobacco Control Scale 2016. RESULTS: Using the WHO MPOWER measures as a framework, we report on the implementation status of nine FCTC articles across 47 countries in the WHO Europe Region. The average number of articles fully implemented was 3.58. FCTC articles least fully implemented were: Article 5.3 on Tobacco Industry Interference (25.5%, n=12), Article 20 on Research (34.0%, n=16), and Article 15 on Illicit trade (40.4%, n=19). The most commonly fully implemented articles were: Article 8 on Smoke-free legislation (63.8%, n=30), Article 16 on Underage sales (57.4%, n=27), and Article 6 on Price and tax measures (51.2%, n=24). Policy achievements and recommended priority areas for future national tobacco control activities varied greatly among countries. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the multitude of successes in tobacco control efforts across the region in recent years, but point out the need to address gaps in FCTC implementation.