Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Fava. Aortic stenosis happens in 2.8% of patients over 75, and is even more frequent in dialysis patients. However, it remains unclear whether kidney dysfunction increases the risk of aortic stenosis. The present study looked at 1,121,875 patients from the SCREAM project (Stockholm CREAtinine Measurements). Mean age was 50, and…
Outcomes of Contemporary DES in Patients with Diabetes: Do They Render Freedom Obsolete?
Despite our high hopes for new-generation drug-eluting stents (DES), patients with diabetes still have a different prognosis, both clinical and angiographic, compared with non-diabetic patients. Authors sought to investigate the impact of diabetes on patients who underwent drug-eluting stent implantation in the BIONICS (BioNIR Ridaforolimus Eluting Coronary Stent System in Coronary Stenosis) trial. This…
The Most Relevant Articles of 2018 in Pharmacology and Clinical Cardiology – Part 2
1- What Antiplatelet Therapy Should We Use in Patients with Stroke/TIA? Interesting Results for the POINT Trial The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) recently published an article about the POINT trial (simultaneously presented at the European Stroke Organisation Conference), a long-awaited randomized clinical trial to assess the efficacy and safety of dual antiplatelet therapy…
The Price of Binge Watching: Subclinical Atherosclerosis and Sleep Quality
Fragmented sleep and lower sleeping time have a higher risk of subclinical atherosclerosis in multiple territories. These results highlight the importance of good sleeping habits for good health and against cardiovascular disease. This comes out when binge watching online series on TV or any mobile device has become the norm. Online “streaming” is silently stressing…
The “Ten Commandments” of Myocardial Revascularization According to Europe
The new European guidelines on myocardial revascularization were developed by a joint effort of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Association of Cardiovascular Surgery (EACTS). These guidelines are intended to support clinical practice with pragmatic recommendations based on currently available evidence and on personal experience, whenever evidence is missing. Both coronary angioplasty…
Anticoagulation Plays a Controversial Role in TAVR
Men gender, kidney failure and atrial fibrillation are the factors that most affect 3-year mortality after transcatheter aortic valve replacement. On the other hand, surprisingly enough, anticoagulation (mostly indicated for atrial fibrillation) reduces mortality risk – especially the risk of valve deterioration – after TAVR. Should anticoagulation be included in post TAVR protocols? This question…
“Troponinitis” or “Troponinemia”: Terms that Trivialize Troponin Elevation Without a Specified Diagnosis
Troponin elevation is a common finding in acute patients admitted by an emergency service, even in the absence of an acute coronary event. There are patients in whom we simply cannot identify the origin of such troponin elevation. Initially, we relied on this marker as an exclusive marker of acute coronary syndrome. In consequence, many…
The Most Relevant Articles of 2018 in Pharmacology and Clinical Cardiology
1- New High Blood Pressure Guidelines The wait is finally over: the high blood pressure guidelines that have been in the works for the past 3 years saw the light of day at the American Heart Association (AHA) 2017 Scientific Sessions. Read more 2- New European Hypertension Guidelines Contrast with American Recommendations The European…
The Most Important Articles of 2018 in Structural Heart Diseases
1- ESC 2018 | MITRA FR: Testing MitraClip for Secondary Mitral Regurgitation In secondary mitral regurgitation, mitral-valve leaflets and chordae are structurally normal and mitral regurgitation results from alterations in left ventricular geometry and function. Read more 2- TCT 2018 | COAPT: MitraClip in Patients with Secondary Mitral Regurgitation The prognosis of patients with…
The Physiopathology Behind Valve Degeneration in TAVR
The degeneration of transcatheter biological valves clearly depends on time and starts with thrombus generation and subsequent histological changes resulting in valve failure (due to regurgitation, stenosis, or both). Thrombus formation is the first change, observed early in computerized tomography (CT) scans after implantation. Most times it is completely asymptomatic, which leaves many of us…