Coronary artery bypass graft versus percutaneous coronary intervention in acute heart failure

OBJECTIVE: Myocardial ischaemia is a leading cause of acute heart failure (AHF). However, optimal revascularisation strategies in AHF are unclear. We aimed to compare two revascularisation strategies, coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), in patients with AHF. METHODS: Among 5625 consecutive patients enrolled prospectively in the Korean Acute Heart Failure registry from March 2011 to February 2014, 717 patients who received CABG or PCI during the index hospitalisation for AHF were included in this analysis. We compared adverse outcomes (death, rehospitalisation for HF aggravation or cardiovascular causes, ischaemic stroke and a composite outcome of death and rehospitalisation for HF aggravation or cardiovascular causes) with the use of propensity score matching. RESULTS: For the propensity score-matched cohort with 190 patients, CABG had a lower risk of all-cause mortality than PCI (83 vs 147 deaths per 1000 patient-years; HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.96, p=0.033) during the median follow-up of 4 years. There was also a trend towards lower rates of rehospitalisation due to cardiovascular events or HF aggravation. Subgroup analysis revealed that the adverse outcomes were significantly lower in the CABG group than in PCI group, especially in patients with old age, three-vessel diseases, significant proximal left anterior descending artery disease and those without left main vessel disease or chronic total occlusion. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with PCI, CABG is associated with significant lower all-cause mortality in patients with AHF. Further studies should evaluate proper revascularisation strategies in AHF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT01389843; Results.ope

Guideline-directed therapy at discharge in patients with heart failure and atrial fibrillation

OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated the relationship between guideline adherence for recommended therapy on discharge and relevant 60-day and 1-year clinical outcomes in patients with acute heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction and atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS: Of 5625 acute patients with HF in the Korean Acute Heart Failure registry, 986 patients with HF and documented AF were analysed. Guideline adherence scores were calculated for the prescription of ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, β-blockers, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists and anticoagulants. RESULTS: In patients with HF with AF, there was a significant trend of reduced 60-day and 1-year mortality rates and the composite end point with guideline adherence. According to the Cox proportion hazard model, poor adherence was associated with a significantly higher risk of 60-day mortality (HR 4.75; 95% CI 1.77 to 12.74) and the composite end point (HR 2.36; 95% CI 1.33 to 4.18) compared with good adherence. Furthermore, poor adherence was associated with a significantly higher risk of 1-year mortality compared with moderate (HR 1.64; 95% CI 1.15 to 2.33) and good adherence (HR 2.34; 95% CI 1.39 to 3.97) and with a higher risk of the 1-year composite end point compared with good adherence (HR 1.58; 95% CI 1.07 to 2.33). CONCLUSION: Better adherence to guidelines was associated with better 60-day and 1-year prognoses in patients with HF with AF.ope

Increased frequency of CD4+CD57+ senescent T cells in patients with newly diagnosed acute heart failure: exploring new pathogenic mechanisms with clinical relevance

Recent animal studies showed T cells have a direct pathogenic role in the development of heart failure (HF). However, which subsets of T cells contribute to human HF pathogenesis and progression remains unclear. We characterized immunologic properties of various subsets of T cells and their clinical implications in human HF. Thirty-eight consecutive patients with newly diagnosed acute HF (21 males, mean age 66 ± 16 years) and 38 healthy control subjects (21 males, mean age 62 ± 12 years) were enrolled. We found that pro-inflammatory mediators, including CRP, IL-6 and IP-10 and the frequencies of CD57+ T cells in the CD4+ T cell population were significantly elevated in patients with acute HF compared to control subjects. A functional analysis of T cells from patients with acute HF revealed that the CD4+CD57+ T cell population exhibited a higher frequency of IFN-γ- and TNF-α- producing cells compared to the CD4+CD57- T cell population. Furthermore, the frequency of CD4+CD57+ T cells at baseline and its elevation at the six-month follow-up were significantly related with the development of cardiovascular (CV) events, which were defined as CV mortality, cardiac transplantation, or rehospitalization due to HF exacerbation. In conclusion, CD4+CD57+ senescent T cells showed more inflammatory features and polyfunctionality and were associated with clinical outcome in patients with acute HF. More detailed study for senescent T cells might offer new opportunities for the prevention and treatment of human HF.ope

Need Assessment for Smartphone-Based Cardiac Telerehabilitation

Objectives: To identify the current status of smartphone usage and to describe the needs for smartphone-based cardiac telerehabilitation of cardiac patients. Methods: In 2016, a questionnaire survey was conducted in a supervised ambulatory cardiac rehabilitation (CR) program in a university affiliated hospital with the participation of heart failure or heart transplantation patients who were smartphone users. The questionnaire included questions regarding smartphone usage, demands for smartphone-based disease education, and home health monitoring systems. Results were described and analyzed according to principal diagnosis. Results: Ninety-six patients (66% male; mean age, 53 ± 11 years), including 56 heart failure and 40 heart transplantation patients, completed the survey (completion rate, 95%). The median daily smartphone usage time was 120 minutes (interquartile range, 60-300), and the most frequently used smartphone function was text messaging (61.5%). Of the patients, 26% stated that they searched for health-related information using their smartphones more than 1 time per week. The major source of health-related information was Internet browsing (50.0%), and the least sought source was the hospital's website (3.1%). Patients with heart failure expressed significantly higher needs for disease education on treatment plan, home health monitoring of blood pressure, and body weight (χ2 = 5.79, 6.27, 4.50, p < 0.05). Heart transplantation patients expressed a significant need for home health monitoring of body temperature (χ2 = 5.25, p < 0.05). Conclusions: Heart failure and heart transplantation patients show high usage of and interest in mobile health technology. A smartphone-based cardiac telerehabilitation program should be developed based on high demand areas and modified to suit to each principal diagnosis.ope

Right Coronary Artery to Left Ventricle Fistula

Coronary arterioventricular fistula is a rare form of congenital malformation of coronary artery. A 29-year-old man presented with a 4-year history of shortness of breath and recently developed chest discomfort during exertion. A huge, dilated coronary arterioventricular fistula from right coronary artery to left ventricle was diagnosed with transthoracic echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography and coronary angiography. This finding was confirmed by selective administration of the microbubble into the right coronary artery during transthoracic echocardiography monitoring. The operning of the fistula at the level of left ventricle was obliterated with autologous pericardium and the patient recovered and discharged uneventfully.ope

Impact of insulin therapy on the mortality of acute heart failure patients with diabetes mellitus

Background: Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) have a higher prevalence of heart failure (HF) than those without it. Approximately 40 % of HF patients have DM and they tend to have poorer outcomes than those without DM. This study evaluated the impact of insulin therapy on mortality among acute HF patients. Methods: A total of 1740 patients from the Korean Acute Heart Failure registry with DM were included in this study. The risk of all-cause mortality according to insulin therapy was assessed using the Cox proportional hazard models with inverse probability of treatment weighting to balance the clinical characteristics (pretreatment covariates) between the groups. Results: DM patients had been treated with either oral hypoglycemic agents (OHAs) alone (n = 620), insulin alone (n = 682), or insulin combined with OHAs (n = 438). The insulin alone group was associated with an increased mortality risk compared with the OHA alone group (HR = 1.41, 95 % CI 1.21-1.66]). Insulin therapy combined with OHAs also showed an increased mortality risk (HR = 1.29, 95 % CI 1.14-1.46) compared with the OHA alone group. Insulin therapy was consistently associated with increased mortality risk, regardless of the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) or HF etiology. A significant increase in mortality was observed in patients with good glycemic control (HbA1c < 7.0 %) receiving insulin, whereas there was no significant association in patients with poor glycemic control (HbA1c ≥ 7.0%). Conclusions: Insulin therapy was found to be associated with increased mortality compared to OHAs. The insulin therapy was harmful especially in patients with low HbA1c levels which may suggest the necessity of specific management strategies and blood sugar targets when using insulin in patients with HF.ope

Assessment of clinical effect and treatment quality of immediate-release carvedilol-IR versus SLOW release carvedilol-SR in Heart Failure patients (SLOW-HF): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Carvedilol is a non-selective, third-generation beta-blocker and is one of the cornerstones for treatment for patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). However, due to its short half-life, immediate-release carvedilol (IR) needs to be prescribed twice a day. Recently, slow-release carvedilol (SR) has been developed. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether carvedilol-SR is non-inferior to standard carvedilol-IR in terms of its clinical efficacy in patients with HFrEF. METHODS/DESIGN: Patients with stable HFrEF will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to the carvedilol-SR group (160 patients) and the carvedilol-IR group (160 patients). Patients aged >/= 20 years, with a left ventricular ejection fraction /= 125 pg/ml or BNP >/= 35 pg/ml, who are clinically stable and have no evidence of congestion or volume retention, will be eligible. After randomization, patients will be followed up for 6 months. The primary endpoint is the change in NT-proBNP level from baseline to the study end. The secondary endpoints include the proportion of patients with NT-proBNP increment > 10% from baseline, composite of all-cause mortality and readmission, mortality rate, readmission rate, changes in blood pressure, quality of life, and drug compliance. DISCUSSIONS: The SLOW-HF trial is a prospective, randomized, open-label, phase-IV, multicenter study to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of carvedilol-SR compared to carvedilol-IR in HFrEF patients. If carvedilol-SR proves to be non-inferior to carvedilol-IR, a once-daily prescription of carvedilol may be recommended for patients with HFrEF. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03209180 . Registered on 6 July 2017.ope

J-curve relationship between corrected QT interval and mortality in acute heart failure patients

Background/aims: This study investigated the prognostic power of corrected QT (QTc) interval in patients with acute heart failure (AHF) according to sex. Methods: We analyzed multicenter Korean Acute Heart Failure registry with patients with AHF admitted from 2011 to 2014. Among them, we analyzed 4,990 patients who were followed up to 5 years. Regarding QTc interval based on 12 lead electrocardiogram, patients were classified into quartiles according to sex. Results: During follow-up with median 43.7 months, 2,243 (44.9%) patients died. The relationship between corrected QT interval and all-cause mortality followed a J-curve relationship. In Kaplan-Meier analysis, both sex had lowest mortality in the second QTc quartile. There were significant prognostic differences between the second and the fourth quartiles in male (log-rank p = 0.002), but not in female (log-rank p = 0.338). After adjusting covariates, the third (hazard ratio [HR], 1.185; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.001 to 1.404; p = 0.049) and the fourth (HR, 1.404; 95% CI, 1.091 to 1.535; p = 0.003) quartiles demonstrated increased risk of mortality compared to the second quartile in male. In female, however, there was no significant difference across quartiles. QTc interval was associated with 5-year all-cause mortality in J-shape with nadir of 440 to 450 ms in male and 470 to 480 ms in female. Conclusion: QTc interval was an independent predictor of overall death in male, but its significance decreased in female. The relationship between QTc interval and all-cause mortality was J-shaped in both sex.ope

Nutritional risk index as a predictor of mortality in acutely decompensated heart failure

BACKGROUND: We investigated the role of nutritional risk index (NRI) in predicting 1-year mortality in patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF). METHODS: Among 5,625 cohort patients enrolled in Korean Acute Heart Failure (KorAHF) Registry, a total of 5,265 patients who were possible to calculate NRI [NRI = (1.519 x serum albumin [g/dl]) + (41.7 x weight [kg]/ideal body weight [kg])] were enrolled. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to the NRI quartile; Q1 100 (n = 1711, 65.6 ± 14.5 years, 779 males). Primary end-point was all-cause mortality at 1-year clinical follow-up. RESULTS: The 1-year mortality was significantly increased as the NRI quartile decreased, and the lowest NRI quartile was associated with the highest 1-year mortality (Q1: 27.5% vs. Q2: 20.9% vs. Q3: 12.9% vs. Q4: 8.7%, linear p <0.001). On Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, the significant inter-quartile difference was observed (p <0.001 for all). In multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazard regression, the lowest NRI quartile was an independent predictor of 1-year mortality in patients with ADHF. CONCLUSIONS: Poor nutritional status as assessed by NRI and quartile grading of NRI was associated with 1-year mortality in Korean patients with ADHF. The assessment of nutritional status by NRI may provide additional prognostic information and thus would be useful in the risk stratification of the patients with ADHF.ope

Integrins, membrane-type matrix metalloproteinases and ADAMs: potential implications for cardiac remodeling

The concept of myocardial remodeling links an initial pathological insult to a progressive geometric change of the ventricle. Currently, our concepts of the remodeling process have evolved to include not only changes in ventricular size and shape, but cellular and molecular remodeling, particularly as the ventricle evolves towards failure. In recent years, much attention has focused on the role of cell–extracellular matrix (ECM) connections in this process. In this review, we will specifically delineate how cell membrane-linked molecules of three classes: integrins, membrane-type matrix metalloproteinases, and ADAMs (A Disintegrin And Metalloproteinase) might play crucial roles in myocardial remodeling. These molecules are essential for cell–ECM adhesion, cell signaling, matrix modification, and proteolysis of surface receptors. Our goal is to put forth concepts on how they might interrelate to modulate the remodeling process in the heart.ope