Impact of minimal lumen segmentation uncertainty on patient-specific coronary simulations: A look at FFRCT.

We examined the effect of minimal lumen segmentation uncertainty on Fractional Flow Reserve obtained from Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography FFR CT . A total of 14 patient-specific coronary models with different stenosis locations and degrees of severity were enrolled in this study. The optimal segmented coronary lumens were disturbed using intra ± 6 % and inter-operator ± 15 % variations on the segmentation threshold. FFR CT was evaluated in each case by 3D-OD CFD simulations. The findings suggest that the sensitivity of FFR CT to this type of uncertainty increases distally and with the stenosis severity. Cases with moderate or severe distal coronary lesions should undergo either exact and thorough segmentation operations or invasive FFR measurements, particularly if the FFR CT is close to the cutoff (0.80). Therefore, we conclude that it is crucial to consider the lesion's location and degree of severity when evaluating FFR CT results.

Applications designed to successfully implant in challenging left atrial appendage occlusion cases: a new tool for the interventional cardiologist.

An 85-year-old patient with permanent atrial fibrillation with a DDD pacemaker, and with indication for left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO). Sent for LAAO due to recurrent gastrointestinal bleedings even on apixaban and with a CHA 2 DS 2 VASc and HAS-BLED scores of 4 and 3 respectively.

Balloon-Expandable versus Self-Expandable Valves in Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation: Complications and Outcomes from a Large International Patient Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Both balloon-expandable (BE) and self-expandable (SE) valves for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) are broadly used in clinical practice. However, adequately powered randomized controlled trials comparing these two valve designs are lacking. METHODS: The CENTER-study included 12,381 patients undergoing transfemoral TAVI. Patients undergoing TAVI with a BE-valve (n = 4096) were compared to patients undergoing TAVI with an SE-valve (n = 4096) after propensity score matching. Clinical outcomes including one-year mortality and stroke rates were assessed. RESULTS: In the matched population of n = 5410 patients, the mean age was 81 ± 3 years, 60% was female, and the STS-PROM predicted 30-day mortality was 6.2% (IQR 4.0-12.4). One-year mortality was not different between patients treated with BE- or SE-valves (BE: 16.4% vs. SE: 17.0%, Relative Risk 1.04, 95%CI 0.02-1.21, p = 0.57). One-year stroke rates were also comparable (BE: 4.9% vs. SE: 5.3%, RR 1.09, 95%CI 0.86-1.37, p = 0.48). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that one-year mortality and stroke rates were comparable in patients with severe aortic valve stenosis undergoing TAVI with either BE or SE-valves.

Major Bleeding Predictors in Patients with Left Atrial Appendage Closure: The Iberian Registry II.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Major bleeding events in patients undergoing left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) range from 2.2 to 10.3 per 100 patient-years in different series. This study aimed to clarify the bleeding predictive factors that could influence these differences. METHODS: LAAC was performed in 598 patients from the Iberian Registry II (1093 patient-years; median, 75.4 years). We conducted a multivariate analysis to identify predictive risk factors for major bleeding events. The occurrence of thromboembolic and bleeding events was compared to rates expected from CHA2DS2-VASc (congestive heart failure, hypertension, age, diabetes, stroke history, vascular disease, sex) and HAS-BLED (hypertension, abnormal renal and liver function, stroke, bleeding, labile INR, elderly, drugs or alcohol) scores. RESULTS: Cox regression analysis revealed that age ≥75 years (HR: 2.5; 95% CI: 1.3 to 4.8; p = 0.004) and a history of gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) (HR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.1 to 3.9; p = 0.020) were two factors independently associated with major bleeding during follow-up. Patients aged <75 or ≥75 years had median CHA2DS2-VASc scores of 4 (IQR: 2) and 5 (IQR: 2), respectively (p < 0.001) and HAS-BLED scores were 3 (IQR: 1) and 3 (IQR: 1) for each group (p = 0.007). Events presented as follow-up adjusted rates according to age groups were stroke (1.2% vs. 2.9%; HR: 2.4, p = 0.12) and major bleeding (3.7 vs. 9.0 per 100 patient-years; HR: 2.4, p = 0.002). Expected major bleedings according to HAS-BLED scores were 6.2% vs. 6.6%, respectively. In patients with GIB history, major bleeding events were 6.1% patient-years (HAS-BLED score was 3.8 ± 1.1) compared to 2.7% patients-year in patients with no previous GIB history (HAS-BLED score was 3.4 ± 1.2; p = 0.029). CONCLUSIONS: In this high-risk population, GIB history and age ≥75 years are the main predictors of major bleeding events after LAAC, especially during the first year. Age seems to have a greater influence on major bleeding events than on thromboembolic risk in these patients.

Infective endocarditis after transcatheter aortic valve implantation: Contributions of a single-centre experience on incidence and associated factors. / Endocarditis infecciosa después de TAVI: aportaciones de la experiencia en un único centro sobre la incidencia y los factores asociados.

INTRODUCTION: Infective endocarditis (IE) after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is an emerging complication. There are incomplete and disparate data on its incidence. We present the experience of a single-centre of incidence, mortality and associated factors of IE after TAVI. METHODS: A retrospective observational study of IE cases in people who received a TAVI, between 06/01/2009 and 11/01/2017, in a university hospital, during a median follow-up period of 15.3months (interquartile range [IQR] 9.1-36.2). Incidence, clinical, microbiological and prognostic data, and factors associated with IE after TAVI were analysed. RESULTS: Eleven patients with IE of 200 TAVI were detected. Global incidence: 5.5% (2.77 cases per 100 patient-year). The median of days from TAVI to IE was 112 (IQR 36-578), the in-hospital mortality rate was 36.4%, and the one-year mortality rate was 54.5%. All the organisms identified were gram-positive (4 Enterococcus faecalis, 3 coagulase-negative Staphylococcus). The patients with IE after TAVI were significantly younger (median 78years, IQR 73-80, versus 82 years, IQR 79-84, P=.002), they had a higher EuroSCORE (5.1±2.4 versus 3.2±1.2, P<.001), and they more frequently had a history of neoplasia (18.2% versus 4.2%, P<.03) CONCLUSIONS: In our area, IE after TAVI has an incidence greater than that described in multicentre series, this is in line with the trend published in the literature. It leads to high mortality and is associated with a worse baseline clinical situation.

Recurrent STEMI caused by multivessel spontaneous coronary dissection.

We present a case of a 52 year old female who suffered from a sudden syncope. A coronariography was performed and spontaneous coronary dissection was diagnosed in the posterior descending artery after an optical coherence tomography (OCT) was performed. A conservative management was decided. During hospitalization the patient presented with an episode of chest pain with an anterior ST elevation on ECG. Coronariography showed total occlusion of the left descending artery and again a dissection was diagnosed by OCT. This time, 2 stents were implanted in the affected artery. The hypothesis that the coronary adventitial volume of vasa vasorum is higher in patients with spontaneous coronary artery dissection has been demonstrated in a recent small study and it was observed in this patient. Conservative management is preferred in most cases, proceeding to revascularization for patients with ongoing chest pain, hemodynamic instability and ST elevation, mostly if it affects major arteries.

[Constrictive pericarditis as the first sign of lung cancer]. / Pericarditis constrictiva como primera manifestación de carcinoma pulmonar.

Symptoms such as cough and hemoptysis in patients with lung cancer can be the consequence of local bronchopulmonary disease, tumor growth that leads to compression of surrounding structures, distant metastases, diverse systemic effects (anorexia, asthenia, weight loss), or paraneoplastic syndromes associated with tumor production of certain hormones. Approximately 10% of patients are asymptomatic at diagnosis. We report the case of a 77-year-old man with dyspnea, pleuritic chest pain, and lower limb edema. The patient died within a few days. The cause of the clinical picture was constrictive pericarditis secondary to metastases from lung carcinoma.

Unusual cause of central aortic prosthetic regurgitation during transcatheter replacement.

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is an increasingly common procedure for the treatment of aortic stenosis in elderly patients with comorbidities that prevent the use of standard surgery. It has been shown that implantation without aortic regurgitation is related to lower mortality. Mild paravalvular regurgitation is inevitable in some cases due to calcification of the aortic annulus and its usually somewhat elliptical shape. Central regurgitation is less common, but has been associated with valve overdilatation in cases in which reduction of paravalvular regurgitation was attempted after the initial inflation. However, there are no reported cases of central prosthetic aortic regurgitation due to acute LV dysfunction. We report a case in which central aortic regurgitation occurred due to transient ventricular dysfunction secondary to occlusion of the right coronary artery by an embolus. The regurgitation disappeared after thrombus aspiration and normal ventricular function was immediately recovered.

MGuard® stent retrieval after failed implantation and withdrawal.

SUMMARY: We present two cases of right coronary artery occlusion in which MGuard® stent implantation failed for different causes, leading to a retrieval procedure adapted to the situation. Complete retrieval was possible in both cases. These cases illustrate the need for careful selection of the lesions that are going to be treated with this type of stent, for which pre-dilatation is recommended in severe lesions located just after an acute vessel angle, the evaluation of proximal angulation and calcification, as well as strategies for complete retrieval in case of implantation failure.

[Tako-tsubo syndrome: analysis of a series of 60 cases]. / Síndrome de Tako-tsubo: análisis de una serie de 60 casos.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The Tako-tsubo syndrome (TS) is a reversible acute cardiomyopathy simulating an infarction. We analyzed 60 patients admitted with TS in our center. PATIENTS AND METHOD: A percentage of 73.3 were women (mean age: 70.6 ± 11.8 years); 83.3% had some cardiovascular risk factor, 25% had an anxiety-depressive disorder and in 58.3% a precipitating factor was identified, emotional stress being the most frequent. A percentage of 15.3 showed complete left bundle branch block (LBBB). In 23.3% of patients, contractile abnormalities respected the apex (mid ventricular or diaphragmatic types). RESULTS: The anterior descending artery showed no significant lesions in 35% of patients and in 68.3% it had a diaphragmatic segment. Forty percent of patients developed heart failure (HF) and 18.3% cardiogenic shock (CS). The overall in-hospital mortality was 3.3%, while it was 8.3% among those patients who developed HF. The incidence of CS was higher among patients with LBBB (44.4 vs. 13.7%, P=.05) and males (43.8 vs. 9.1%, P=.005). CONCLUSIONS: Although in-hospital mortality in patients admitted due to TS is low, a significant percentage of these patients develop HF with a high mortality in this subgroup. Males and patients with LBBB had higher in-hospital morbidity.

Comparison of imaging techniques to assess appendage anatomy and measurements for left atrial appendage closure device selection.

BACKGROUND: The adequate device size selection for left atrial appendage closure is crucial to ensuring adequate implantation and for avoiding the need for multiple attempts that increase the risk of complications. Our aim was to evaluate the information obtained using different imaging techniques to select the size of the closure device in a clinical environment. METHODS: Thirty-seven patients who consecutively underwent implantation of Amplatzer cardiac plug (ACP) devices were studied. All patients were examined using computed tomography (CT) prior to intervention. Measurements were compared to those obtained using intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (IOTEE) and angiography. Size was determined by the longest axis of the appendage ostium. The influence of all techniques on the correct selection of final size was assessed. RESULTS: The measurements taken using the three techniques agreed in only 21.6% of the cases, leading to accurate selection of device size. Two techniques coincided as follows: IOTEE-CT in 45.9%, angiography-CT in 35.13%, and angiography-IOTEE in 24.3%. Measurements using CT were definitive for ACP selection in 75.7% of cases, angiography in 48.6%, and echocardiography in 51.4%. Device size was undermeasured with angiography in 35.1% of cases, and with IOTEE in 24.3%; CT overmeasured 21.6% of cases. The combination of angiography-CT was the most accurate for selection of device size. CONCLUSION: CT most often predicts the appropriate device size. If it fails, it usually overestimates the size. Agreement of measurements with all three techniques is the most accurate situation; when two agree, the most accurate combination is angiography and CT.

A prospective randomised study of the paclitaxel-coated balloon catheter in bifurcated coronary lesions (BABILON trial): 24-month clinical and angiographic results.

AIMS: Paclitaxel drug-eluting balloons (pDEB) could be an attractive option to minimise side branch (SB) restenosis in bifurcated coronary lesions. We compared angiographic and clinical outcomes with pDEB plus bare metal stent (BMS) versus drug-eluting stents (DES) in de novo bifurcated lesions. METHODS AND RESULTS: This multicentre randomised trial included 108 patients. Sequential main branch (MB)/SB dilatation with pDEB, with provisional T-stenting with BMS in the MB was performed in the pDEB group, and with everolimus DES in the DES group. The primary endpoint was late lumen loss (LLL) at nine months. The secondary endpoint was the incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE: death, myocardial infarction, or target lesion revascularisation). In-segment MB LLL was 0.31±0.48 mm in the pDEB group, and 0.16±0.38 mm in the DES group (p=0.15); mean difference was 0.15 mm (upper limit one-sided 95% CI: 0.27 mm; p=0.001; non-inferiority test). LLL in SB was -0.04±0.76 mm in the pDEB group and -0.03±0.51 mm in the DES group (p=0.983). MACE and TLR were higher in the pDEB group (17.3% vs. 7.1%; p=0.105, and 15.4% vs. 3.6%; p=0.045), due to higher MB restenosis (13.5% vs. 1.8%; p=0.027). CONCLUSIONS: pDEB bifurcation pretreatment with BMS implantation in MB showed greater LLL (ns) and increased incidence of MACE compared to everolimus DES. Both strategies showed similar results in the SB.

[Endovascular treatment of long-term complications following surgical repair of aortic coarctation]. / Tratamiento endovascular de complicaciones tardías tras la reparación quirúrgica de la coartación aórtica.

Surgical treatment of aortic coarctation has a high success rate. However, irrespective of the surgical technique used, a significant percentage of patients develop late complications affecting the aortic wall. Reoperation to repair these complications is a complex procedure and is associated with high mortality. Recently an endovascular approach has been proposed as a promising alternative for managing these patients. Here we report a series of four patients, three of whom had an aortic aneurysm, while one had recoarctation several years after undergoing aortic coarctation surgery. All successfully underwent endovascular treatment, without complications. We describe our experience with this complex procedure and discuss a number of associated technical considerations, including vascular access, occlusion of the supraaortic arteries, and the use of intravascular ultrasound.