Response of a Living Body to 8-Tesla Magnetic Field(Crystal Growth, Chemical Reaction and Biology)

A study was made to investigate body function in high magnetic field of 8-tesla. In order to avoid magnetic-field effect on the measuring system, long distance was placed between a experimental animal and the measuring system. Changes in contractility of the heart were measured from frogs. Heart and respiratory rates were recorded from rabbits. Contractility of the heart was increased with increasing magnetic fields from 0 to 8 tesla in frogs. Heart and respiratory rates were decreased with increasing magnetic fields from 0 to 8 tesla

Long-term prognosis and clinical characteristics of young adults (≤40 years old) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention

AbstractBackgroundLimited data exist regarding the long-term prognosis of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in young adults. The aim of this study was to retrospectively assess the long-term clinical outcomes in young patients who underwent PCI.Methods and resultsBetween 1985 and 2011, 7649 consecutive patients underwent PCI, and data from 69 young adults (age ≤40 years) and 4255 old adults (age ≧65 years) were analyzed. A Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to determine the independent predictors of a composite endpoint that included all-cause death and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) during the follow-up period. The mean age of the 69 young patients was 36.1±4.9 years, and 96% of them were men. Approximately 30% were current smokers, and their body mass index (BMI) was 26.7±5.0kg/m2. The prevalence of diabetes and hypertension was 33% and 48%, respectively. All patients had ≥1 conventional cardiovascular risk factor. At a median follow-up of 9.8 years, the overall death rate was 5.8%, and new-onset ACS occurred in 8.7%. Current smoking was an independent predictor of the composite endpoint (hazard ratio 4.46, confidence interval 1.08–19.1, p=0.04) for young adults.ConclusionCurrent smoking and obesity (high BMI) are the important clinical characteristics in young Japanese coronary heart disease patients who undergo PCI. The long-term prognosis in young patients is acceptable, but current smoking is a significant independent predictor of death and the recurrence of ACS in young Japanese coronary heart disease patients who are obese

Clinical indicators and coronary angiographic features of expansive arterial remodelling in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms.

The co-existence of expansive arterial remodelling in both coronary arteries (CAs) and the abdominal aorta has already been reported, although the clinical indicators and quantitative analysis have not been well studied. We therefore aimed to clarify the clinical and anatomical characteristics of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). 123 AAA patients who underwent coronary angiography were compared to 123 control patients selected by propensity score matching. CA diameters of all 3 vessels were measured by quantitative coronary angiographic analysis. Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) was defined as local or generalized aneurysmal change of the CAs. Excessive expansive CA remodelling was defined as the maximal diameter of the right or left circumflex artery in the upper 75th percentile (>4.8 mm). Multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to determine predictors of CAE and excessive expansive CA remodelling. The prevalences of CAE and excessive expansive CA remodelling were significantly higher in the AAA group than in the non-AAA group (28% vs. 8% and 31% vs. 19%; both p<0.05). On multivariable analysis, the presence of AAA (odds ratio (OR), 4.56; 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) 2.18-10.4) and body mass index (BMI) (OR, 1.11; 95%CI 1.03-1.21) were independently associated with CAE, and higher high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (OR, 2.19; 95%CI 1.08-4.52) and BMI (OR, 1.11; 95%CI 1.02-1.21) were independently associated with excessive expansive CA remodelling. In conclusions, this study showed a higher prevalence of ectatic CA disease in AAA patients and suggests that higher inflammation and obesity are associated with expansive arterial remodelling in coronary arteries

Residual Inflammation Indicated by High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Predicts Worse Long-Term Clinical Outcomes in Japanese Patients after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term clinical impact of residual inflammatory risk (RIR) by evaluating serial high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in Asian patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). We evaluated 2032 patients with stable CAD undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with serial hs-CRP measurements (2 measurements, 6&ndash;9 months apart) from the period 2000 to 2016. A high-RIR was defined as hs-CRP &gt; 0.9 mg/L according to the median value. Patients were assigned to four groups: persistent-high-RIR, increased-RIR, attenuated-RIR, or persistent-low-RIR. Major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and all-cause death were evaluated. MACE rates in patients with persistent high, increased and attenuated RIR were significantly higher than in patients with persistent low RIR (p &lt; 0.001). Moreover, the rate of all-cause death was significantly higher among patients with persistent high and increased RIR than among patients with attenuated and persistent low RIR (p &lt; 0.001). After adjustment, the presence of persistent high RIR (hazard ratio (HR) 2.22; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.37&ndash;3.67, p = 0.001), increased RIR (HR 2.25, 95%CI 1.09&ndash;4.37, p = 0.029), and attenuated RIR (HR 1.94, 95%CI 1.14&ndash;3.32, p = 0.015) were predictive for MACE. In addition, presence of persistent high RIR (HR 2.07, 95%CI 1.41&ndash;3.08, p &lt; 0.001) and increased RIR (HR 1.94, 95%CI 1.07&ndash;3.36, p = 0.029) were predictive for all-cause death. A high RIR was significantly associated with MACE and all-cause death among Japanese CAD patients. An evaluation of changes in inflammation may carry important prognostic information and may guide the therapeutic approach

A Prognostic Merit of Statins in Patients with Chronic Hemodialysis after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention—A 10-Year Follow-Up Study

Background: Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on chronic hemodialysis who are complicated by coronary artery disease (CAD) are at very high risk of cardiovascular (CV) events and mortality. However, the prognostic benefit of statins, which is firmly established in the general population, is still under debate in this particular population. Methods: As a part of a prospective single-center percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) registry database, this study included consecutive patients on chronic hemodialysis who underwent PCI for the first time between 2000 and 2016 (n = 201). Participants were divided into 2 groups by following 2 factors, such as (1) with or without statin, and (2) with or without high LDL-C (> and ≤LDL-C = 93 mg/dL, median) at the time of PCI. The primary endpoint was defined as CV death, and the secondary endpoints included all-cause and non-CV death, and 3 point major cardiovascular adverse events (3P-MACE) which is the composite of CV death, non-fatal myocardial infarction and stroke. The median and range of the follow-up period were 2.8, 0–15.2 years, respectively. Results: Kaplan–Meier analyses showed significantly lower cumulative incidences of primary and secondary endpoints other than non-CV deaths in patients receiving statins. Conversely, no difference was observed when patients were divided by the median LDL-C at the time of PCI (p = 0.11). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis identified statins as an independent predictor of reduced risk of CV death (Hazard ratio of statin use: 0.43, 95% confidence interval 0.18–0.88, p = 0.02), all-cause death (HR: 0.50, 95%CI 0.29–0.84, p = 0.007) and 3P-MACE (HR: 0.50, 95%CI 0.25–0.93, p = 0.03). Conclusions: Statins were associated with reduced risk of adverse outcomes in patients with ESRD following PCI

Acute Myocardial Infarction with Severe ST Segment Elevation Treated with Percutaneous Coronary Intervention More than Two Days after Onset: A Case with Remarkable Recovery

The patient was a 65-year-old man with marked ST-elevation myocardial infarction. Cardiac catheterization revealed an occluded middle portion of the left anterior descending artery and no collateral circulation. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) was performed, and ST elevation improved 5 days after PCI. Almost all electrocardiogram (ECG) findings were normal 6 months later. Echocardiographic findings were also normal. This case was very successful and unusual in that no ventricular aneurysm formed despite ST elevation continuing for a few days and that ECG and left ventricular function were nearly normal after PCI performed days after the onset in a case without collateral circulation

Comparison of diagnostic performance in on-site based CT-derived fractional flow reserve measurements

Background: Computed tomography fractional flow reserve (CT-FFR), which can be acquired on-site workstation using fluid structure interaction during the multiple optimal diastolic phase, has an incremental diagnostic value over conventional coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). However, the appropriate location for CT-FFR measurement remains to be clarified. Method: A total of 115 consecutive patients with 149 vessels who underwent CCTA showing 30–90% stenosis with invasive FFR within 90 days were retrospectively analyzed. CT-FFR values were measured at three points: 1 and 2 cm distal to the target lesion (CT-FFR1cm, 2cm) and the vessel terminus (CT-FFRlowest). The diagnostic accuracies of CT-FFR ≤ 0.80 for detecting hemodynamically significant stenosis, defined as invasive FFR ≤ 0.80, were compered. Result: Fifty-five vessels (36.9%) had invasive FFR ≤ 0.80. The accuracy and AUC for CT-FFR1cm and 2cm were comparable, while the AUC for CT-FFRlowest was significantly lower than CT-FFR1cm and 2cm. (lowest/1cm, 2 cm = 0.68 (95 %CI 0.63–0.73) vs 0.79 (0.72–0.86, p = 0.006), 0.80 (0.73–0.87, p = 0.002)) The sensitivity and negative predictive value of CT-FFRlowest were 100%. The reclassification rates from positive CT-FFRlowest to negative CT-FFR1cm and 2cm were 55.7% and 54.2%, respectively. Conclusion: The diagnostic performance of CT-FFR was comparable when measured at 1-to-2 cm distal to the target lesion, but significantly higher than CT-FFRlowest. The lesion-specific CT-FFR could reclassify false positive cases in patients with positive CT-FFRlowest, while all patients with negative CT-FFRlowest were diagnosed as negative by invasive FFR