Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

A high-risk laboratory profile of antiphospholipid antibodies and thrombosis is associated with a large number of extra-criteria manifestations in obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome

Extra-criteria manifestations such as thrombocytopenia and livedo are described associated with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) but are not included in the current classification criteria. Their clinical expression might be important, as they may be associated with a high-risk profile of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) and thrombosis. We evaluated the association between the presence of extra-criteria manifestations in primary obstetric-APS (POAPS) and aPL profiles. We also evaluated whether the presence of extra-criteria manifestations in POAPS patients increases the risk of developing thrombosis during the follow-up period (median follow-up 5 years; range 3–9 years). We selected 79 women who were included in our study only if they were first diagnosed with POAPS (with no history of previous thrombosis) and reevaluated for the presence of thrombosis after the follow-up period. We evaluated the association between the aPL profile and extra-criteria manifestations. We also evaluated the relationship of thrombosis during the follow-up period with extra-criteria manifestations and other risk factors. Patients with three or more extra-criteria manifestations presented high rates of triple positivity for the aPL profile (75%) (p < 0.001). We also found a relationship between the presence of extra-criteria manifestations and the presence of high titers of aPL: 91.7% of patients with three or more extra-criteria manifestations had high titers of aPL (p < 0.01). We further evaluated the group of POAPS patients according to thrombotic events during the follow-up. Among these patients, 6 (7.6%) presented thrombosis. Notably, 100% of patients with a thrombotic event during the follow-up had more than three extra-criteria manifestations. POAPS patients with extra-criteria manifestations might have a high-risk aPL profile and a major risk of developing thrombosis.Fil: Udry, Sebastián. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentina. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: Latino, José Omar. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Belizna, Cristina. Inserm; FranciaFil: Perés Wingeyer, Silvia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Fernández Romero, Diego Santiago. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: de Larrañaga, Gabriela Fernanda. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Risk factors for early severe preeclampsia in obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome with conventional treatment. The impact of hydroxychloroquine

Objective: The first aim was to retrospectively identify risk factors for the development of early severe preeclampsia (sPE) in patients with obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome (OAPS) who received conventional treatment (CT). The second aim was to evaluate the impact of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in preventing early sPE among a subgroup of patients considered at high risk. Methods: A total of 102 women diagnosed with OAPS and treated with CT since the diagnosis of pregnancy were selected. At the end of pregnancy, we identified risk factors associated with early sPE. According to these risk factors, we collected a new cohort of 42 patients who presented high-risk factors for developing early sPE and split them into two groups according to the treatment received: group A, CT (30 patients); and group B, CT+HCQ (12 patients). We evaluated and compared pregnancy outcomes in both groups. Results: According to the multivariate analysis, risk factors associated with early sPE and CT were triple positivity for antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) (OR = 24.70, [4.27–142.92], p < 0.001) and a history of early sPE (OR = 7.11, [1.13–44.64], p = 0.036). A low-risk aPL profile was associated with a good response to CT in preventing early sPE (OR = 0.073, [0.014–0.382], p = 0.002). High-risk patients treated with CT+HCQ had a significantly lower early sPE rate than those treated with CT only (8.3% vs 40.0%; p = 0.03). Conclusion: Triple positivity for aPL and a history of early sPE are potential strong risk factors for the development of early sPE. HCQ might be an interesting therapeutic option for patients with high-risk factors for early sPE.Fil: Latino, José Omar. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: Udry, Sebastian Pablo. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Aranda, Federico. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Peres Wingeyer, Silvia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Fernández Romero, Diego Santiago. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: Belizna, Cristina. University Of Angers; FranciaFil: de Larrañaga, Gabriela Fernanda. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Risk factors for early severe preeclampsia in obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome with conventional treatment. The impact of hydroxychloroquine

Objective: The first aim was to retrospectively identify risk factors for the development of early severe preeclampsia (sPE) in patients with obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome (OAPS) who received conventional treatment (CT). The second aim was to evaluate the impact of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in preventing early sPE among a subgroup of patients considered at high risk. Methods: A total of 102 women diagnosed with OAPS and treated with CT since the diagnosis of pregnancy were selected. At the end of pregnancy, we identified risk factors associated with early sPE. According to these risk factors, we collected a new cohort of 42 patients who presented high-risk factors for developing early sPE and split them into two groups according to the treatment received: group A, CT (30 patients); and group B, CT+HCQ (12 patients). We evaluated and compared pregnancy outcomes in both groups. Results: According to the multivariate analysis, risk factors associated with early sPE and CT were triple positivity for antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) (OR = 24.70, [4.27–142.92], p < 0.001) and a history of early sPE (OR = 7.11, [1.13–44.64], p = 0.036). A low-risk aPL profile was associated with a good response to CT in preventing early sPE (OR = 0.073, [0.014–0.382], p = 0.002). High-risk patients treated with CT+HCQ had a significantly lower early sPE rate than those treated with CT only (8.3% vs 40.0%; p = 0.03). Conclusion: Triple positivity for aPL and a history of early sPE are potential strong risk factors for the development of early sPE. HCQ might be an interesting therapeutic option for patients with high-risk factors for early sPE.Fil: Latino, José Omar. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: Udry, Sebastian Pablo. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Aranda, Federico. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Peres Wingeyer, Silvia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Fernández Romero, Diego Santiago. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand; ArgentinaFil: Belizna, Cristina. University Of Angers; FranciaFil: de Larrañaga, Gabriela Fernanda. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Maternal carriers of the ANXA5 M2 haplotype are exposed to a greater risk for placenta-mediated pregnancy complications

Purpose Annexin A5 (ANXA5) is a protein abundantly expressed in normal placenta where it contributes to the healthy outcome of a pregnancy. Lower ANXA5 levels have been observed in M2/ANXA5 haplotype carrying chorion. Consequently, this study aimed to assess the potential association of M2 maternal carrier status with the risk of recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL), the timing of miscarriages, and other obstetric complications, for the first time in a population from Latin America. Methods This study was designed as a prospective recruitment of RPL patients with post hoc analysis. The distribution of the M2/ANXA5 haplotype was compared between a group of 229 Argentine women with RPL and 100 parous controls, and was further analyzed in subgroups of patients stratified according to the timing of miscarriages and in relation to other obstetric complications. Results No significant differences were found in the distribution of M2 haplotype among either RPL patients or the subgroups with embryonic, early fetal, or late fetal losses compared to parous controls. Notwithstanding, maternal M2/ANXA5 was found to be independently associated with a higher risk of suffering intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and/or preeclampsia (PE). Simultaneously, the presence of inherited and/or acquired thrombophilia also proved to be an independent risk factor for these. Conclusions The association found between the maternal carriage of the M2/ANXA5 haplotype and an elevated risk of IUGR and/or PE supports the hypothesis that carrier status of this haplotype and the consequently reduced placental ANXA5 expression might be responsible, at least partially, for the onset of these gestational vascular complications.Fil: Aranda, Federico. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Udry, Sebastián. Hospital General de Agudos"Dr Carlos G. Durand"; ArgentinaFil: Perés Wingeyer, Silvia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Amshoff, Lea Christina. University Hospital Munster; AlemaniaFil: Bogdanova, Nadja. University Hospital Munster; AlemaniaFil: Wieacker, Peter. University Hospital Munster; AlemaniaFil: Latino, José Omar. Hospital General de Agudos "Carlos G. Durand"; ArgentinaFil: Markoff, Arseni. University Hospital Munster; AlemaniaFil: de Larrañaga, Gabriela Fernanda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentin

Endometrial cancer in Puerto Rico: incidence, mortality and survival (1992-2003)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Endometrial cancer is the most common gynecologic malignancy in Puerto Rico and the United States (US).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We compare the age-specific and age-adjusted incidence and mortality rates and the survival of endometrial cancer in Puerto Rico with that of non-Hispanic whites (NHW), non-Hispanic blacks (NHB) and Hispanics in the US. Data from the Puerto Rico Central Cancer Registry and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program were analyzed from 1992-2003.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Age-standardized incidence rates of endometrial cancer increased significantly (p < 0.05) in Puerto Rico (APC = 2.8%) and among NHB (APC = 1.9%) and remained constant (p > 0.05) for NHW (APC = -0.1%) and Hispanics in the US (APC = 0.4%). Mortality trends remained constant in all racial/ethnic groups (p > 0.05). For 1999-2003, women in Puerto Rico had similar incidence of endometrial cancer as Hispanics (Standardized rate ratio [SRR] = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.87-1.01), although their risk was lower than that of NHW (SRR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.53-0.59) and NHB (SRR = 0.91, 95% CI = 0.84-0.98). Meanwhile, women in Puerto Rico had 15% higher risk of death than Hispanic women (SRR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.03-1.30) similar risk than NHW (SRR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.83-1.03), and lower risk than NHB (SRR = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.46-0.57). Puerto Rico (63.1%) and NHB (56.8%) had a lower 5-year survival than NHW (78.4%) and Hispanics (79.5%). An age-adjusted Cox proportional hazards model showed that compared with women in Puerto Rico, Hispanic women in the United States had 37% lower mortality risk (HR = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.56-0.71) and NHW had 53% lower mortality risk (HR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.43-0.52) after 5 years of diagnosis; NHB women had 22% higher mortality risk than women in Puerto Rico (HR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.09-1.36).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The lower burden of endometrial cancer in Puerto Rico suggests the presence of protective factors or lower exposure to risk factors in this population, although increases in incidence suggest changes in the occurrence of lifestyles and environmental risk factors. Meanwhile, the lower five-year survival from endometrial cancer among Puerto Ricans suggests a health disparity for this group in areas such as quality of care and/or differences in terms of stage at diagnosis and associated comorbidities. Assessment of disease risk factors and characteristics, and access and response to treatment is required to further understand these results.</p