Serological Response to SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine in Hemodialyzed Patients and the Association with Later COVID-19 Positivity.

BACKGROUND: The effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine may differ in hemodialysis patients. The aim of this prospective multicenter study was to determine the degree of serological response to the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in the population of dialysis patients and its association with later SARS-CoV-2 infections. METHODS: A blood sample was taken for the determination of COVID-19 serological status (IgG antibodies) in 706 dialysis patients 16 weeks after vaccination with the second dose (Pfizer-BioNTech). RESULTS: Only 314 (44.5%) hemodialyzed patients had a satisfactory response to the COVID-19 vaccine. Eighty-two patients (11.6%) had a borderline response, while 310 patients (43.9%) had an unsatisfactory (negative) post-vaccinal antibody titer. A longer dialysis vintage had an increased odds ratio (OR) of 1.01 for the occurrence of COVID-19 positivity after vaccination. In the group of subsequently positive patients, 28 patients (13.6%) died from complications of COVID-19. We have found differences in mean survival time between patients with and without appropriate responses to vaccination in favor of patients with a satisfactory serological response. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that the dialysis population will not have the same serological response to the vaccine as the general population. The majority of dialysis patients did not develop a severe clinical picture or die at the time of positivity for COVID-19.

CHRONIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS IN CROATIAN WAR VETERANS COMPARED TO THE GENERAL POPULATION: 25 YEARS AFTER THE WAR.

Many published reports have documented an increased prevalence of chronic medical conditions among veterans, but there were only a few studies that compared these increases with the general population. The aim of this study was to determine differences in chronic medical conditions between Croatian war veterans and the general population. This study included two groups of subjects, i.e. 1453 participants who are Croatian war veterans and 1429 participants from the general population. Medical history, physical examination, laboratory tests and specific diagnostic procedures were taken during systematic physical examination in both groups. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, malignancy, psychiatric diseases, cholelithiasis, nephrolithiasis, smoking and alcohol consumption was analyzed. Croatian war veterans were found to be more likely to develop hypertension than individuals in the general population (29.5% vs. 24.3%), as well as diabetes (7.3% vs. 3.8%), hyperlipidemia (56.4% vs. 27.3%), hyperthyroidism (3.1% vs. 0.8%), coronary heart disease (4.3% vs. 1%), malignancy (4.1% vs. 2.2%), psychiatric diseases (15.4% vs. 1.1%), and alcohol consumption (53% vs. 29%). Significant difference was found in favor of the general population for hypothyroidism (14.3% vs. 8%). There were no differences in the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cholelithiasis, nephrolithiasis, and smoking. Our findings confirmed the hypothesis of a higher prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, malignancy and psychiatric diseases among Croatian war veterans and emphasized the need of better control of their medical conditions.

Correlation of femoral intima-media thickness and the severity of coronary artery disease.

The carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) is an established surrogate marker of vascular risk. We assessed the common femoral artery IMT and its correlation with coronary artery disease (CAD). We also assessed the influence of vascular risk factors on the femoral IMT. Patients (n = 180; mean age 60.4 ± 10.5 years) who had undergone coronary angiography due to symptoms of CAD were enrolled in this study. We found significantly higher values of femoral IMT in patients with CAD than in those without CAD (P = .0000). A strong positive correlation between femoral IMT and the severity of CAD expressed by the Gensini Score (P = .0000) was observed. There was a positive correlation between femoral IMT and levels of triglycerides (P = .017), body mass index (BMI; P = .036), male gender (P = .0000), and smoking (P = .028). There was a negative correlation between femoral IMT and the level of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (P = .001). Femoral IMT could be a novel cardiovascular risk marker.

Access site complications following cardiac catheterization assessed by duplex ultrasonography.

Access site complications are major source of morbidity following cardiac catheterization. Their incidence varies in the literature because of multiple definitions and methods of determining the presence of particular complication. The aim of this prospective study was to determine the incidence of access site complications following cardiac catheterization using arterial duplex ultrasonography. A total of 319 consecutive patients, who had cardiac catheterization underwent femoral artery duplex study 24 to 48 hours following manual hemostasis. Diagnostic angiogram had 232 (71.8%) while 87 (28.2%) had percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Femoral artery duplex ultrasound was normal in 247 (77.4%). Haematoma was found in 48 (15.1%), pseudoaneurysm in 17 (5.3%), AV fistula in 2 (0.6%) and dissection of the femoral artery in 5 (1.6%) patients. Baseline demografic characteristics were similar in group with normal duplex study and group with detected complication. Pseudoaneurysm and AV fistula were more commonly observed in patients following PCI than diagnostic angiogram (9.2% vs. 4.7%, p<0.001). Patients with documented complications more frequently had concomitant administration of antiplatelet and anticoagulant medication compared to the patients without complications (p=0.003). Hemodynamic disturbances (hypotension and bradycardia) during manual compression were more frequent in patients with complication (11% vs. 4.5%, p=0.047). Low threshold for use of duplex ultrasound should be exercised in patients following cardiac catheterization to establish the presence of access site complications. Special attention is needed in the setting of aggressive antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy, interventional procedures and hemodynamic disturbances during manual hemostas.