QT DISPERSION AND DIPYRIDAMOLE-INDUCED MYOCARDIAL ISCHEMIA

The relationship between QT interval dispersion and dipyridamole-induced, transient myocardial ischemia was assessed in 32 male patients with ischemic heart disease. A standardized, high dose dipyridamole-ECG stress test was used as dipyridamole infusion of 0,56 mg/kg applied i. v. for 4 min followed by 4 min interval of no-dose with E C G and blood pressure monitoring, and in negative test - by a dipyridamole infusion of 0,28mg/kg i. v. for 2 min. Seventeen patients (53%) developed a transient myocardial ischemia with duration of 20 ±7 (4-40) min during the dipyridamole infusion while 15 ones (47%) did not. No regular dynamics and significant differences in the values of total QT interval dispersion and maximum adjacent QT interval dispersion estimated before, during and after the dipyridamole infusion could be established. It was supposed that the severity, duration and time for development of dipyridamole-induced transient myocardial ischemia were not sufficient to generate a dispersion in ventricular repolarization detectable as changes in QT dispersion parameters on surface ECG. The combination of QT dispersion with various non-invasive markers of arrhythmogenic mechanisms could help the estimation of arrhythmogenic risk in the patients with ischemic heart disease

Opportunistic screening for hypertension in the general population in Bulgaria: international society of hypertension may measurement month campaign

Cardiovascular diseases are not only the leading causes of mortality in Bulgaria but also the mortality rate is twice as high as the European Union average, so screening programmes identifying subjects with elevated blood pressure (BP) are of utmost importance. May Measurement Month (MMM) is an annual global initiative of the International Society of hypertension that began in 2017 aimed at raising awareness of high BP. Bulgaria joined the 3rd campaign of MMM in 2019 and an overview of the results of Bulgarian participation are presented in this paper. Hypertension was defined as systolic BP ≥ 140 mm Hg and diastolic BP ≥ 90 mm Hg or treatment for hypertension, statistical analysis followed the standard MMM protocol. In Bulgaria, 150 screening points were set up in primary and secondary care facilities, in pharmacies, and outdoor spaces across 21 administrative districts. Out of 3678 individuals screened, 2587 participants (70.3%) had hypertension. Of 2896 participants with hypertension, 35.6% had controlled BP. Out of 1760 participants not on antihypertensive medication, 669 (38%) had elevated BP. In the case of treated individuals (n = 1918), 997 (52%) had uncontrolled hypertension. In the untreated cohort, every 4th subject had elevated BP, whilst among patients on antihypertensive medication, every second had uncontrolled BP, the worst results in terms of diagnosis and treatment are observed in men. By identifying almost two-third of the whole screened cohort with the possibility of newly diagnosed or uncontrolled hypertension, our results confirm the importance of BP screening campaigns

Comparative effectiveness and safety of non-vitamin K antagonists for atrial fibrillation in clinical practice: GLORIA-AF Registry

Background and purpose: Prospectively collected data comparing the safety and effectiveness of individual non-vitamin K antagonists (NOACs) are lacking. Our objective was to directly compare the effectiveness and safety of NOACs in patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods: In GLORIA-AF, a large, prospective, global registry program, consecutive patients with newly diagnosed AF were followed for 3 years. The comparative analyses for (1) dabigatran vs rivaroxaban or apixaban and (2) rivaroxaban vs apixaban were performed on propensity score (PS)-matched patient sets. Proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for outcomes of interest. Results: The GLORIA-AF Phase III registry enrolled 21,300 patients between January 2014 and December 2016. Of these, 3839 were prescribed dabigatran, 4015 rivaroxaban and 4505 apixaban, with median ages of 71.0, 71.0, and 73.0 years, respectively. In the PS-matched set, the adjusted HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for dabigatran vs rivaroxaban were, for stroke: 1.27 (0.79–2.03), major bleeding 0.59 (0.40–0.88), myocardial infarction 0.68 (0.40–1.16), and all-cause death 0.86 (0.67–1.10). For the comparison of dabigatran vs apixaban, in the PS-matched set, the adjusted HRs were, for stroke 1.16 (0.76–1.78), myocardial infarction 0.84 (0.48–1.46), major bleeding 0.98 (0.63–1.52) and all-cause death 1.01 (0.79–1.29). For the comparison of rivaroxaban vs apixaban, in the PS-matched set, the adjusted HRs were, for stroke 0.78 (0.52–1.19), myocardial infarction 0.96 (0.63–1.45), major bleeding 1.54 (1.14–2.08), and all-cause death 0.97 (0.80–1.19). Conclusions: Patients treated with dabigatran had a 41% lower risk of major bleeding compared with rivaroxaban, but similar risks of stroke, MI, and death. Relative to apixaban, patients treated with dabigatran had similar risks of stroke, major bleeding, MI, and death. Rivaroxaban relative to apixaban had increased risk for major bleeding, but similar risks for stroke, MI, and death. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifiers: NCT01468701, NCT01671007. Date of registration: September 2013

Anticoagulant selection in relation to the SAMe-TT2R2 score in patients with atrial fibrillation. the GLORIA-AF registry

Aim: The SAMe-TT2R2 score helps identify patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) likely to have poor anticoagulation control during anticoagulation with vitamin K antagonists (VKA) and those with scores >2 might be better managed with a target-specific oral anticoagulant (NOAC). We hypothesized that in clinical practice, VKAs may be prescribed less frequently to patients with AF and SAMe-TT2R2 scores >2 than to patients with lower scores. Methods and results: We analyzed the Phase III dataset of the Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation (GLORIA-AF), a large, global, prospective global registry of patients with newly diagnosed AF and ≥1 stroke risk factor. We compared baseline clinical characteristics and antithrombotic prescriptions to determine the probability of the VKA prescription among anticoagulated patients with the baseline SAMe-TT2R2 score >2 and ≤ 2. Among 17,465 anticoagulated patients with AF, 4,828 (27.6%) patients were prescribed VKA and 12,637 (72.4%) patients an NOAC: 11,884 (68.0%) patients had SAMe-TT2R2 scores 0-2 and 5,581 (32.0%) patients had scores >2. The proportion of patients prescribed VKA was 28.0% among patients with SAMe-TT2R2 scores >2 and 27.5% in those with scores ≤2. Conclusions: The lack of a clear association between the SAMe-TT2R2 score and anticoagulant selection may be attributed to the relative efficacy and safety profiles between NOACs and VKAs as well as to the absence of trial evidence that an SAMe-TT2R2-guided strategy for the selection of the type of anticoagulation in NVAF patients has an impact on clinical outcomes of efficacy and safety. The latter hypothesis is currently being tested in a randomized controlled trial. Clinical trial registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov//Unique identifier: NCT01937377, NCT01468701, and NCT01671007