Coronary thrombo-embolic events after Covid-19 vaccination- a single centre study.

Thrombo-embolic complications after Corona virus disease-19 (COVID-19) vaccination have been previously reported. We aimed to study the coronary thrombo-embolic complications (CTE) after COVID-19 vaccination in a single centre during the initial 3 months of vaccination drive in India. All patients admitted to our hospital between 1st March 2021 and 31st May 2021 with Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were included. Of the 89 patients [Age 55 (47-64)y, 13f] with ACS and angiographic evidence of coronary thrombus, 37 (42%) had prior vaccination history. The timing from last vaccination dose to index event was <1, 1-2, 2-4 and >4 weeks in 9(24%), 4(11%), 15(41%) and 9 (24%) respectively. ChAdOx1 nCoV-19/AZD1222 (Covishield) was the most used vaccine- 28 (76%), while 9 (24%) had BBV152 (Covaxin). Baseline characteristics were similar in both vaccinated (VG) and non-vaccinated group (NVG), except for symptom to door time [8.5 (5.75-14) vs 14.5 (7.25-24) hrs, p = 0.003]. Thrombocytopenia was not noted in any of the VG patients, while 2 (3.8%) of NVG patient had thrombocytopenia (p = 0.51). The pre- Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) flow was significantly lower [1 (0-3) vs2 (1-3), p = 0.03) and thrombus grade were significantly higher [4 (2.5-5) vs 2 (1-3), p = 0.0005] in VG. The in-hospital (2.7% vs 1.9%, p = 1.0) and 30-day mortality were also similar (5.4% vs 5.8%, p = 1.0). This is the first report of CTE after COVID-19 vaccination during the first 3 months of vaccination drive in India. We need further reports to identify the incidence of this rare but serious adverse events following COVID-19 vaccination.

Acute Coronary Syndrome admissions and outcome during COVID-19 Pandemic-Report from large tertiary centre in India.

Few studies from various countries have reported decline in Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) admissions to hospital during COVID-19 pandemic. We studied the impact of COVID-19 strict lockdown on ACS admission in a tertiary referral hospital in India. This showed 43% decline in admissions (n = 104 vs mean n = 183) and even in those who got admitted, there was a delay in presentation compared to previous year, which was reflected in the outcome of patients. Government and health organizations should educate the public early-on during the pandemic about the consequences of ignoring other acute medical problems such as ACS.

Cardiac Intensive Care Unit Admissions during COVID-19 Pandemic-A Single Center Experience.

AIM: The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown on cardiac emergency admissions to hospitals has been reported previously. We aimed to study the emergency room (ER) admissions to cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) at a tertiary care center during that period and compare this with admissions during the same time frame in the previous years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of patients admitted to the CICU during the pandemic period from March 22 to August 1 (inclusive) of 2020 and compared this with CICU admissions in the same time frame in the previous 2 years (2018 and 2019). RESULTS: During the study period in 2020, a total of 216 patients (age 59 ± 14 years) were admitted via ER, which is a 33% and 30% decline in admissions compared to 2019 (n = 322, age 63 ± 12 years) and 2018 (n = 307, age 62 ± 13), respectively. The decline in admissions with the primary diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome (ACS), acute decompensated heart failure, arrhythmia, and other diagnoses during the study period in 2020 were 27%, 38%, 62%, and 59%, respectively, while there was a 50% increase in acute pulmonary embolism admission compared to the mean admission in 2018 and 2019. Weekly admission rates gradually increased from less than 10 per week in the first 3 weeks to >15 by eighth week of the study period in 2020, while the trend was same throughout the study period in the previous 2 years. The CICU mortality rate in 2020 study period was 4.6% compared to 3.9% in 2018 (p = 0.83) and 5.6% in 2019 (p = 0.70). The in-hospital mortality of these patients was also similar in all 3 years (6.5%, 7.8%, and 7.9% in 2018, 2019, and 2020, respectively; p = 0.61). CONCLUSION: Our study showed that CICU admissions during COVID-19 lockdown had declined compared to the previous years in a large tertiary center in India. Government and health organizations should educate the public early on during the pandemic about the consequences of ignoring other acute medical problems such as ACS, provide various measures for them to reach hospital early, and give reassurance with the best practices adopted in hospitals to avoid contracting the virus from the hospital environment. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Yalamanchi R, Dasari BC, Narra L, Oomman A, Kumar P, Nayak R, et al. Cardiac Intensive Care Unit Admissions during COVID-19 Pandemic-A Single Center Experience. Indian J Crit Care Med 2020;24(11):1103-1105.

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement in India-Early experience, challenges, and outcomes from a single center.

BACKGROUND: Despite the increasing popularity of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), only about 10,000 TAVR cases have been performed in Asia to date. The procedure is still in a nascent stage in India with very few centers offering this state-of-art technique. Here, we present the early results of TAVR experience at our center. METHODS: Forty-nine patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) were referred to our center for TAVR from November 2015 to February 2018. Twenty-five patients underwent TAVR at our conventional cardiac catheterization laboratory under local or general anesthesia, with standby surgical team support. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 72.0 ± 8.1 years. The mean Society of Thoracic Surgeons score was 13.8 ± 10.2. Baseline mean ejection fraction was 50.3 ± 14.8%. Baseline mean aortic valve gradient was 55.8 ± 24.7 mmHg. There was one procedural-related death. Two of the patients required urgent surgery: one for contained annular rupture and one underwent vascular repair for femoral artery occlusion. Mild and moderate paravalvular leak was seen in 11 and 3 patients, respectively. Four patients (16%) required permanent pacemaker. Eighty percent were in New York Heart Association class I-II at discharge. One-year all-cause mortality was 8%, with no hospitalizations or major adverse cardiac event during the 1-year follow-up. CONCLUSION: Our early data clearly shows that in our country, TAVR is a good alternative for symptomatic severe AS for high surgical risk cases. Large-scale multicenter studies are required to study the real impact of TAVR in the Indian scenario. During initial years of implementation of a nationwide TAVR program, it may be prudent to focus on creating TAVR Centers of Excellence by developing an ideal hub and spokes model.

Alcohol septal ablation for hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy - 8 years follow up.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol septal ablation is emerging as an alternative to surgical myectomy in the management of symptomatic cases of Hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM). This involves injection of absolute alcohol into 1st septal perforator thereby producing myocardial necrosis with resultant septal remodelling within 3-6 months. This results in reduction of septal thickness and LV outflow gradients with improvement in symptoms. METHODS: Fifty three patients had undergone alcohol septal ablation, there were 2 early and 2 late deaths and 4 patients lost to follow up. Forty-five (85%) of them were followed up to a mean period of 96 ± 9.2 months. Clinical, ECG, and Echocardiographic parameters were evaluated during follow up. RESULTS: Only 4 out of 51 patients remained in NYHA class III or IV at the end of 6 months. Significant reduction of LV outflow gradients (79 ± 35 to 34 ± 23 mmHg) and septal thickness (23 ± 4.7 mm to 19 ± 3 mm) were observed during 6 months follow up. Beyond 6 months there was no further decrease in either septal thickness or LVOT gradients noted. Ten percent of patients needed pacemaker implantation. There was 92% survival at the end of 8 years. CONCLUSION: Alcohol septal ablation is a safe and effective nonsurgical procedure for the treatment of HOCM. By minimizing the amount of alcohol to ≤ 2 ml, one can reduce complications and mortality. The long-term survival is gratifying.