Transcatheter mitral valve repair with MitraClip: comparison of NT, NTr, and XTr Devices.

OBJECTIVES: Transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) has become an established minimally invasive treatment for significant mitral regurgitation. Ongoing refinements and the availability of different clipping devices have expanded the indications for and effectiveness of TEER, but comprehensive comparative data on this issue are lacking. In this study, we compared NT, NTr, and XTr MitraClip devices (Abbot) for TEER. METHODS: Details on patient, imaging, and procedural details, as well as short- and long-term outcomes, were sought from a national prospective clinical registry on TEER with MitraClip. The primary outcome of interest was discharge after procedural success without major clinical complications. RESULTS: A total of 2236 patients were included, 1228 (54.9%) in whom NT implantation only was attempted, 233 (10.4%) in whom NTr but not XTr implantation was attempted, and 775 (34.7%) in whom XTr implantation was attempted. Clinical and imaging features differed substantially across the groups, reflecting expanding indications with NTr and XTr devices. In-hospital outcomes were largely similar among the 3 groups, including death. Long-term unadjusted estimates of effect showed significant differences in several outcomes, including death, rehospitalization, and their composite, which demonstrated that NT was associated with more unfavorable outcomes compared with the other devices (all P less than .05). However, most differences depended on baseline features, as adjusted analysis showed no significant differences for early as well as long-term outcomes, including long-term death, rehospitalization, and their composite (all P greater than .05). CONCLUSIONS: New-generation MitraClip devices are associated with favorable procedural and clinical outcomes, despite being used in patients with more adverse features, when compared with patients treated with previous devices.

Clinical and cardiac CT characteristics of congenital coronary abnormalities occasionally detected in a middle-aged population: A long-term follow-up study.

INTRODUCTION: Congenital coronary artery anomalies (CCAA) represent one of the most challenging conditions as their clinical presentation may range from sudden cardiac death to a complete subclinical form. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diagnostic and prognostic role of cardiac CT (CCT) evaluation in patients with CCAA, focusing on anomalies of origin. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The present is a retrospective analysis of a prospective clinical registry including a consecutive cohort of patients who underwent clinically indicated CCT from January 2007 to October 2015 for suspected but unknown coronary artery disease (CAD) and were diagnosed for having a congenital coronary abnormality compared to a control group matched for age, sex and segment stenosis score (SSS). Dedicated analysis of all CCT was performed for the present study and only coronary anomalies of origin were considered and included in the study. Two different composite end-points were identified for the present analysis: major cardiovascular events (MACE) and all-cause of death. RESULTS: Among the 81 patients with CCAAs enrolled the most frequent anomaly was left main artery absence, which was identified in 41 individuals (50.6%). Forty-five subjects (55.5%) have an anomalous origin of the coronary artery from a different sinus of Valsalva and 45 subjects had also an anomalous course with the retro-aortic being the most common (32%). Eleven participants (13.6%) displayed also an intramural segment, while 10 (10.3%) had a slit-like ostial morphology. At multivariate analysis CT identification of ARCA, anomalous inter-arterial course and abnormal ostial morphology were significantly associated with MACE even when adjusted for age and SSS, without any differences in all-cause mortality between the two groups (6.2% vs 2.4% p â€‹= â€‹0.2478). CONCLUSION: The result of the present study is that CCT can be successfully used to define the anatomy and features of CAA. It suggested that in middle-aged patients, the identification of high risk characteristics at CT may have a prognostic value in term of cardiovascular events occurrence at follow-up even if the rate of events strictly linked to CCAA is low.

Predictors of adverse cardiac events of coronary myocardial bridging diagnosed with computed tomography angiography.

AIMS: Myocardial bridging (MB) is a frequent congenital anomaly of the epicardial coronary arteries commonly considered a benign condition. However, in some cases a complex interplay between anatomical, clinical and physiology factors may lead to adverse events, including sudden cardiac death. Coronary CT angiography (CCTA) emerged as the gold standard noninvasive imaging technique for the evaluation of MB. Aim of the study was to evaluate MB prevalence and anatomical features in a large population of patients who underwent CCTA for suspected CAD and to identify potential anatomical and clinical predictors of adverse cardiac events at long-term follow-up. METHODS AND RESULTS: Two-hundred and six patients (mean age 60.3 ± 11.8 years, 128 male) with MB diagnosed at CCTA were considered. A long MB was defined as ≥25 mm of overlying myocardium, whereas a deep MB as ≥2 mm of overlying myocardium. The study endpoint was the sum of the following adverse events: cardiac death, bridge-related acute coronary syndrome, hospitalization for angina or bridge-related ventricular arrhythmias and MB surgical treatment. Of the 206 patients enrolled in the study, 9 were lost to follow-up, whereas 197 (95.6%) had complete follow-up (mean 7.01 ± 3.0 years) and formed the analytic population. Nineteen bridge-related events occurred in 18 patients (acute coronary syndrome in 7, MB surgical treatment in 2 and hospitalization for bridge-related events in 10). Typical angina at the time of diagnosis and long MB resulted as significant independent predictors of adverse outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Typical angina and MB length ≥ 25 mm were independent predictors of cardiac events.

Impact of Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Mitral Valve Repair on Atrial Functional Mitral Regurgitation from the GIOTTO Registry.

Atrial functional mitral regurgitation (aFMR) has a peculiar pathophysiology that may have distinctive outcomes. We investigated the impact of transcatheter edge-to-edge repair in aFMR compared with other FMR etiologies. The GIOTTO (GIse registry Of Transcatheter treatment of MR) is a multicenter, prospective study enrolling patients with symptomatic MR treated with MitraClip up to 2020. We categorized patients with FMR as aFMR, ischemic FMR (iFMR), and nonischemic ventricular FMR (niFMR). The clinical end points were defined according to the Mitral Valve Academic Research Consortium. Of 1,153 patients, 6% had aFMR, 47% iFMR, and 47% niFMR. Patients with aFMR were older, mostly women, and had a higher atrial fibrillation rate. They had better left ventricular ejection fraction and smaller left ventricular volumes, with no difference in mitral effective regurgitant orifice area. The acute device and procedural success rates were similar among the groups. At the longest available follow-up (median 478 days, interquartile range 91 to 741 days), the rate of MR ≥2+ was similar among the groups. Patients with aFMR had a lower rate of cardiovascular death and heart failure than patients with iFMR (hazard ratio [HR] 0.43, p = 0.02) and niFMR (HR 0.45, p = 0.03). The aFMR etiology remained independently associated with the composite outcome, together with postprocedural MR ≤1+ (HR 0.63, p <0.01) and peripheral arteriopathy (HR 1.82, p = 0.003). The results of this GIOTTO subanalysis suggested that aFMR is less prevalent and associated with better outcomes compared with other causes of FMR treated by transcatheter edge-to-edge repair. Postprocedural MR >1+, peripheral vasculopathy, non-aFMR were independent predictors of worse outcomes.

Coronary physiology thresholds associated with microvascular obstruction in myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVES: To ascertain whether invasive assessment of coronary physiology soon after recanalisation of the culprit artery by primary percutaneous coronary intervention is associated with the development of microvascular obstruction by cardiac magnetic resonance in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). METHODS: Between November 2020 and December 2021, 102 consecutive patients were prospectively enrolled in five tertiary centres in Italy. Coronary flow reserve (CFR) and index of microvascular resistance (IMR) were measured in the culprit vessel soon after successful primary percutaneous coronary intervention. Optimal cut-off points of IMR and CFR to predict the presence of microvascular obstruction were estimated, stratifying the population accordingly in four groups. A comparison with previously proposed stratification models was carried out. RESULTS: IMR>31 units and CFR≤1.25 yielded the best accuracy. Patients with IMR>31 and CFR≤1.25 exhibited higher microvascular obstruction prevalence (83% vs 38%, p<0.001) and lower left ventricular ejection fraction (45±9% vs 52±9%, p=0.043) compared with those with IMR≤31 and CFR>1.25, and lower left ventricular ejection fraction compared with patients with CFR≤1.25 and IMR≤31 (45±9% vs 54±7%, p=0.025). Infarct size and area at risk were larger in the former, compared with other groups. CONCLUSIONS: IMR and CFR are associated with the presence of microvascular obstruction in STEMI. Patients with an IMR>31 units and a CFR≤1.25 have higher prevalence of microvascular obstruction, lower left ventricular ejection fraction, larger infarct size and area at risk. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04677257.

Impact of extra-mitral valve cardiac involvement in patients with primary mitral regurgitation undergoing transcatheter edge-to-edge repair.

BACKGROUND: In the context of primary mitral regurgitation (PMR), the selection of patients for transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) does not include a systematic assessment of PMR-associated cardiac remodelling. AIMS: We aimed to investigate the epidemiology and prognostic significance of different phenotypes of extra-mitral valve (MV) cardiac involvement in a large series of patients with PMR referred for TEER. METHODS: The study included 654 patients from the multicentre Italian GIOTTO registry, stratified into groups according to extra-mitral valve (MV) cardiac involvement. The primary endpoint was all-cause death at 2-year follow-up. RESULTS: Patients with no cardiac involvement (NI; n=58), left heart involvement (LHI; n=343) and right heart involvement (RHI; n=253) were analysed. Acute technical success was achieved in 98% of patients. Kaplan-Meier curve analysis revealed significantly worse survival in patients with LHI and RHI (p=0.041). On multivariate Cox regression analysis, extra-MV cardiac involvement, haemoglobin level and technical success were independent predictors of the primary endpoint occurrence. CONCLUSIONS: Grading cardiac involvement may help refine risk stratification, since at least 1 group of extra-MV cardiac involvement represents in itself a negative predictor of midterm outcome.

Contemporary Echocardiographic Evaluation of Mitral Regurgitation and Guidance for Percutaneous Mitral Valve Repair.

Mitral valve regurgitation (MR) is a multifaceted valvular heart disease. Echocardiography plays a central role in etiology assessment, severity quantification, treatment candidacy, outcome evaluation, and patient follow-up. In this review, we describe the comprehensive echocardiographic assessment of MR, including transthoracic (TTE) and transesophageal (TEE) approaches, 2D and 3D modalities, strain imaging, stress echocardiography, and artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Transcatheter edge-to-edge mitral valve repair (TEER) has been established as a key therapy for patients with severe, symptomatic MR and high surgical risk. TEER is performed under TEE guidance. We outline a practical overview of echocardiographic guidance on TEER.

Outcomes of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement Patients With Different Transvalvular Flow-Gradient Patterns.

Low-flow low-gradient (LF-LG) aortic stenosis (AS) may occur with preserved or depressed left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Both situations represent the most challenging subset of patients to manage and generally have a poor prognosis. Few and controversial data exist on the outcomes of these patients compared with normal flow-high gradient (NF-HG) AS after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). We sought to characterize different transvalvular flow-gradient patterns and to examine their prognostic value after TAVR. We enrolled 1,208 patients with severe AS and categorized as follow: 976 patients NF-HG (mean aortic pressure gradient [MPG] ≥40 mm Hg), 107 paradoxical LF-LG (pLF-LG, MPG <40 mm Hg, LVEF ≥50%, stroke volume index <35 ml/m2), and 125 classical LF-LG (cLF-LG) (MPG <40 mm Hg, LVEF <50%, stroke volume index <35 ml/m2). When compared with NF-HG and pLF-LG, cLF-LG had a worse symptomatic status (New York Heart Association III to IV 86% vs 62% and 67%, p <0.001), a higher prevalence of eccentric hypertrophy and a higher level of LV global afterload reflected by a higher valvuloarterial impedance. Valvular function after TAVR was excellent over time in all patients. While 30-day mortality (p = 0.911) did not differ significantly among groups, cLF-LG had a lower 5-year survival rate (LF-LG 50% vs pLF-LG 62% and NF-HG 68%, p <0.05). cLF-LG was associated with a hazard ratio for mortality of 2.41 (95% confidence interval 1.65 to 3.52, p <0.001). In conclusion, TAVR is an effective procedure regardless of transvalvular flow-gradient patterns. However, special care should be given to characterized hemodynamic of AS, as patients with pLF-LG had similar survival rates than patients with NF-HG, whereas cLF-LG is associated with a twofold increased risk of mortality at 5-year follow-up.

Anomalous origin of left circumflex artery from the right sinus of Valsalva: Clinical outcomes in a consecutive series of master athletes.

BACKGROUND: Aim of the study was to collect and describe a case series of consecutive master athletes in whom an anomalous origin of left circumflex artery (LCx) from the right sinus of Valsalva (ALCx) was detected at a clinically indicated coronary computed tomography angiography CCTA) to establish a focused clinical management and counseling about sport activity in those subjects. METHODS: We analyzed a prospective registry of subjects referred to a clinically indicated CCTA. Information about the clinical status was obtained by previous clinical records and clinical evaluation at time of image acquisition; follow-up allowed to record symptoms, outcomes and downstream testing. RESULTS: The study population consisted in 14 subjects, of which one competitive athlete and 13 recreational master athletes. Mean age was of 67.2 ± 10.6 years (71% of male); follow-up lasted 6.4 ± 2.6 years. The major high-risk anatomy features (inter-arterial course, intramural segment, high take-off and slit-like ostium) were absent. None had abnormal ostial morphology and all had full retroaortic course; three subjects (21%) presented an acute take-off angle. Coronary artery disease (CAD) was present in 10 patients (71%). Major outcomes (cardiac hospitalization, death for all causes) recorded were not related to the anomalous LCx. Symptoms were most related to atherosclerotic CAD in different vessels whereas two subjects without CAD exhibited cardiac symptoms, without hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the diagnosis of ALCx, being usually associated to low-risk anatomical characteristics, could be considered a benign finding, with scarce or no implications for physically active individuals neither for recreational athletes.

Prevalence and prognosis of structural heart disease among athletes with negative T waves and normal transthoracic echocardiography.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence and prognosis of structural heart disease (SHD) among competitive athletes with negative T waves without pathological findings at transthoracic echocardiogram. METHODS: From a prospective register of 450 athletes consecutively evaluated during a second-level cardiological examination, we retrospectively identified all subjects with the following inclusion criteria: (1) not previously known cardiovascular disease; (2) negative T waves in leads other than V1-V2; (3) normal transthoracic echocardiogram. Patients underwent cardiac MRI and CT. The primary endpoint was the diagnosis of definite SHD after multimodality imaging evaluation. A follow-up was collected for a combined end-point of sudden death, resuscitated sudden cardiac death and hospitalization for any cardiovascular causes. RESULTS: A total of 55 competitive athletes were finally enrolled (50 males, 90%) with a mean age of 27.5 ± 14.1 years. Among the population enrolled 16 (29.1%) athletes had a final diagnosis of SHD. At multivariate analysis, only deep negative T waves remained statistically significant [OR (95% CI) 7.81 (1.24-49.08), p = 0.0285]. Contemporary identification of deep negative T waves and complex arrhythmias in the same patients appeared to have an incremental diagnostic value. No events were collected at 49.3 ± 12.3 months of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: In a cohort of athletes with negative T waves at ECG, cardiac MRI (and selected use of cardiac CT) enabled the identification of 16 (29.1%) subjects with SHD despite normal transthoracic echocardiography. Deep negative T waves and complex ventricular arrhythmias were the only clinical characteristic associated with SHD diagnosis.

Preoperative angiography-derived fractional flow reserve may predict coronary artery bypass grafting occlusion and disease progression.

BACKGROUND: Graft occlusion after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has been associated with competitive flow of native coronary arteries. OBJECTIVES: To assess with coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) graft occlusion and coronary artery disease (CAD) progression of native vessels after CABG and their relationship with angiography-derived vessel fractional flow reserve (vFFR) performed before surgery. METHODS: Between 2006 and 2018, serial vFFR analyses were obtained before CABG in each major native coronary vessel from two institutions. All patients underwent follow-up CCTA. RESULTS: In 171 consecutive patients, serial preoperative angiograms were suitable for vFFR analysis of 298 grafted and 59 nongrafted vessels. Median time between CABG and CCTA was 2.1 years. Preoperative vFFR was assessed in 131 left anterior descending artery (LAD), 132 left circumflex artery (LCX) and 94 right coronary aretry (RCA) and was less than 0.80 in 255 of 298 bypassed vessels. Graft occlusion was observed at CCTA in 28 of 298 grafts. The median preoperative vFFR value of native coronaries was higher in occluded compared with patent grafts (0.75 vs. 0.60, P < 0.001) and was associated with graft. The best vFFR cut-off to predict graft occlusion was 0.67. Progression of CAD was higher in grafted than in nongrafted vessels (89.6 vs. 47.5%, P < 0.001). Pre-CABG vFFR predicted disease progression of grafted native vessels (AUC = 0.83). CONCLUSION: Preoperative vFFR derived from invasive coronary angiography was able to predict graft occlusion and CAD progression of grafted coronary arteries.

Impact of coronary artery disease on outcome after transcatheter edge-to-edge mitral valve repair with the MitraClip system.

BACKGROUND: The clinical impact of coronary artery disease (CAD) on the prognosis of patients undergoing MitraClip implantation is still unclear. METHODS: One thousand nine hundred fifty-three patients undergoing MitraClip implantation included in the multicenter GIOTTO Registry were stratified according to CAD. Endpoints were all-cause death, cardiac death, and re-hospitalization for heart failure at follow-up (median 15.8 months). RESULTS: Although younger, CAD patients were more symptomatic, had worse cardiovascular risk profile, higher burden of comorbidities, more frequently affected by functional MR, with higher left ventricle (LV) diameters and lower ejection fraction (EF). At follow-up, CAD patients showed higher rates of all-cause death (25.4% vs. 19.6%; P=0.002), cardiovascular death (14.0% vs. 10.1%; P=0.007) and re-hospitalization for heart failure (13.9% vs. 10.2%; P=0.011). Dividing the population according to mitral regurgitation (MR) etiology (functional vs. non-functional MR), no differences were observed between CAD and no-CAD patients. At multivariate logistic regression, NYHA III/IV class, prior heart failure hospitalization, severe chronic kidney disease, atrial fibrillation, LV end-diastolic diameter and LVEF<30% but not CAD resulted independent predictors of all-cause death. The same finding was confirmed even after propensity score adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: CAD did not show a relevant impact on mid-term prognosis per se, but seemed to identify a more complex and diseased cohort of patients with worse clinical and functional status.

Treatment recommendation based on SYNTAX score 2020 derived from coronary computed tomography angiography and invasive coronary angiography.

The diagnostic performance of the SYNTAX score 2020 (SS-2020) when calculated using CCTA remains unknown. This study aimed to compare treatment recommendations based on the SS-2020 derived from coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) versus invasive coronary angiography (ICA). This interim analysis included 57 of the planned 114 patients with de-novo three-vessel disease, with or without left main coronary artery disease, enrolled in the ongoing FASTTRACK CABG trial. The anatomical SYNTAX scores derived from ICA or CCTA were evaluated by two separate teams of blinded core-lab analysts. Treatment recommendations were based on a maximal individual absolute risk difference in all-cause mortality between percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) of 4.5% ([predicted PCI mortality] - [predicted CABG mortality]). The level of agreement was evaluated with Bland-Altman plots and Cohen's Kappa. The mean age was 66.2 ± 9.2 years and 89.5% of patients were male. Mean anatomical SYNTAX scores derived from ICA and CCTA were 35.1 ± 11.5 and 35.6 ± 11.4 (p = 0.751), respectively. The Bland-Altman analysis showed mean differences of - 0.26 and - 0.93, with standard deviation of 3.69 and 5.23, for 5- and 10-year all-cause mortality, respectively. The concordance in recommended treatment for 5- and 10-year mortalities were 84.2% (48/57 patients) and 80.7% (46/57 patients), with Cohen's κ coefficients of 0.672 and 0.551. There was moderate to substantial agreement between treatment recommendations based on the SS-2020 derived using CCTA and ICA, suggesting that CCTA could be used as an alternative to ICA when making decisions regarding the modality of revascularization.

Diagnosis and treatment of a left atrial myxoma originating from an atrial septal defect closure device: a case report.

Background: Ostium secundum atrial septal defect (osASD) is a common congenital heart disease and transcatheter closure is the preferred treatment. Late device-related complications include thrombosis and infective endocarditis (IE). Cardiac tumours are exceedingly rare. The aetiology of a mass attached to an osASD closure device can be challenging to diagnose. Case summary: A 74-year-old man with atrial fibrillation was hospitalized for evaluating a left atrial mass discovered incidentally 4 months earlier. The mass was attached to the left disc of an osASD closure device implanted 3 years before. No shrinkage of the mass was observed despite optimal intensity of anticoagulation. We describe the diagnostic workup and management of the mass that at surgery turned out to be a myxoma. Discussion: A left atrial mass attached to an osASD closure device raises the suspect of device-related complications. Poor endothelialisation may promote device thrombosis or IE. Cardiac tumours (CT) are rare, and myxoma is the most common primary CT in adults. Although no clear relationship exists between the implantation of an osASD closure device and a myxoma, the development of this tumour is a possible occurrence. Echocardiography and cardiovascular magnetic resonance play a key role in the differential diagnosis between a thrombus and a myxoma, usually identifying distinctive mass features. Nevertheless, sometimes non-invasive imaging may be inconclusive, and surgery is necessary to make a definitive diagnosis.

Prognostic Significance of Flail Mitral Leaflet in Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair for Primary Mitral Regurgitation.

Despite the growing experience with MitraClip in the broad spectrum of mitral regurgitation (MR), limited data are available regarding the independent prognostic role on survival of different mitral regurgitation etiology subtypes. We sought to evaluate the impact of flail leaflet etiology in a large series of patients with primary MR (PMR) who underwent MitraClip treatment. The study included 588 patients with significant PMR from the multicenter GIOTTO (Italian Society of Interventional Cardiology [GIse] registry Of Transcatheter treatment of mitral valve regurgitaTiOn), stratified into 2 groups according to MR etiology: flail+ (n = 300) and flail- (n = 288). The primary end point was a composite of cardiac death and first rehospitalization for heart failure (HF). To account for the baseline differences, patients were propensity score-matched 1:1. Flail leaflet etiology was present in about a half of the patients. Acute technical success was achieved in 98% of the overall cohort, with no significant differences between the study groups (p = 0.789). At the 2-year Kaplan-Meier analysis, the primary end point occurred in 13% of flail+ patients compared with 23% in flail- (p = 0.009). The flail+ group presented lower rates of both cardiac death and rehospitalization for HF, whereas a similar overall death rate was observed between the groups. A multivariate Cox regression analysis identified flail leaflet etiology as an independent predictor of favorable outcome in terms of the primary end point (hazard ratio 0.141, 95% confidence interval 0.049 to 0.401, p <0.001). After propensity score matching, flail+ patients had confirmed lower rates of cardiac mortality and rehospitalization for HF but similar rates of overall death. In conclusion, flail leaflet-related etiology was common in patients with PMR who underwent MitraClip treatment and was an independent predictor of midterm favorable clinical outcomes.

The prognostic role of right ventricular dysfunction in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) primarily affects the left ventricle (LV) sparing the right ventricle (RV) in vast majority of cases. However, several studies employing CMR have revealed that myocardial hypertrophy may also involve the RV. To assess RV size and function in a large prospectively cohort of HCM patients and to evaluate whether these parameters in association with other MR findings can predict cardiac events. Two participating centers prospectively included patients with known or suspected HCM between 2011 and 2017. CMR studies were performed with three different scanners. Outcome measures were a composite of ventricular arrhythmias, hospitalization for HF and cardiac death. Of 607 consecutive patients with known or suspected HCM, 315 had complete follow-up information (mean 65 ± 20 months). Among them, 115 patients developed major cardiac events (MACE) during follow-up. At CMR evaluation, patients with events had higher left atrium (LA) diameter (41.5 ± 8 mm vs. 37.17 ± 7.6 mm, p < 0.0001), LV mass (156.7 vs. 144 g, p = 0.005) and myocardial LGE (4.3% vs. 1.9%, p = 0.001). Similarly, patients with events had lower RV stroke volume index (42.7 vs. 47.0, p = 0.0003) and higher prevalence of both RV hypertrophy (16.4% vs. 4.7%, p = 0.0005) and reduced RV ejection fraction (12.2% vs. 4.4%, p = 0.006). In the multivariate analysis, LA diameter and RV stroke volume index were the strongest predictors of events (p < 0.001 and p = 0.0006, respectively). Anatomic and functional RV anomalies detected and characterized with CMR may have may have a major role in predicting the prognosis of HCM patients.

Diagnostic accuracy of subendocardial vs. transmural myocardial perfusion defect for the detection of in-stent restenosis or progression of coronary artery disease after percutaneous coronary intervention.

BACKGROUND: The ADVANTAGE study demonstrated in a cohort of stented patients a diagnostic accuracy of stress myocardial CT perfusion (CTP) significantly higher than that of coronary CT angiography (CCTA) for the detection of in-stent restenosis (ISR) or CAD progression vs. quantitative coronary angiography (QCA). This is a pre-defined subanalysis of the ADVANTAGE aimed at assessing the difference in terms of diagnostic accuracy vs. QCA of a subendocardial vs. a transmural perfusion defect using static stress CTP. METHODS: We enrolled consecutive patients who previously underwent coronary stenting and were referred for QCA. All patients underwent stress CTP and rest CTP â€‹+ â€‹CCTA. The diagnostic accuracy of CCTA and CTP were evaluated in territory-based and patient-based analyses. We compared the diagnostic accuracy of "subendocardial" perfusion defect, defined as hypo-enhancement encompassing >25% but <50% of the transmural myocardial thickness within a specific coronary territory vs. "transmural" perfusion defect, defined as hypo-enhancement encompassing >50% of the transmural thickness. RESULTS: In 150 patients (132 men, mean age 65.1 â€‹± â€‹9.1 years), the diagnostic accuracy of subendocardial vs. transmural perfusion defect in a vessel-based analysis was 93.5% vs. 87.7%, respectively (p â€‹< â€‹0.0001). The sensitivity and specificity of subendocardial vs. transmural defect were 87.9% vs. 46.9% (p â€‹< â€‹0.001) and 94.9% vs. 97.9% (p â€‹= â€‹0.004), respectively. In a patient-based analysis, the diagnostic accuracy of the subendocardial vs. transmural approach was 86.6% vs. 68% (p â€‹< â€‹0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that detection of a subendocardial perfusion defect as compared to a transmural defect is significantly more accurate to identify coronary territories with ISR or CAD progression.

Impact of Mitral Regurgitation Etiology on Mitral Surgery After Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair: From the CUTTING-EDGE Registry.

BACKGROUND: Although >150,000 mitral TEER procedures have been performed worldwide, the impact of MR etiology on MV surgery after TEER remains unknown. OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to compare outcomes of mitral valve (MV) surgery after failed transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) stratified by mitral regurgitation (MR) etiology. METHODS: Data from the CUTTING-EDGE registry were retrospectively analyzed. Surgeries were stratified by MR etiology: primary (PMR) and secondary (SMR). MVARC (Mitral Valve Academic Research Consortium) outcomes at 30 days and 1 year were evaluated. Median follow-up was 9.1 months (IQR: 1.1-25.8 months) after surgery. RESULTS: From July 2009 to July 2020, 330 patients underwent MV surgery after TEER, of which 47% had PMR and 53.0% had SMR. Mean age was 73.8 ± 10.1 years, median STS risk at initial TEER was 4.0% (IQR: 2.2%-7.3%). Compared with PMR, SMR had a higher EuroSCORE, more comorbidities, lower LVEF pre-TEER and presurgery (all P < 0.05). SMR patients had more aborted TEER (25.7% vs 16.3%; P = 0.043), more surgery for mitral stenosis after TEER (19.4% vs 9.0%; P = 0.008), and fewer MV repairs (4.0% vs 11.0%; P = 0.019). Thirty-day mortality was numerically higher in SMR (20.4% vs 12.7%; P = 0.072), with an observed-to-expected ratio of 3.6 (95% CI: 1.9-5.3) overall, 2.6 (95% CI: 1.2-4.0) in PMR, and 4.6 (95% CI: 2.6-6.6) in SMR. SMR had significantly higher 1-year mortality (38.3% vs 23.2%; P = 0.019). On Kaplan-Meier analysis, the actuarial estimates of cumulative survival were significantly lower in SMR at 1 and 3 years. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of MV surgery after TEER is nontrivial, with higher mortality after surgery, especially in SMR patients. These findings provide valuable data for further research to improve these outcomes.