This post hoc analysis of what had been a trial with negative outcomes should be considered only as a hypothesis generator. Patients receiving complex PCI treated with ticagrelor monotherapy after one-month dual antiaggregation therapy (DAPT) showed better results at 2 years when compared against patients receiving a conventional DAPT scheme. In the global analysis, this...
Staged complete revascularization in patients with acute myocardial infarction and multivessel coronary disease is superior to culprit PCI only at five-year follow-up. The outcomes of this retrospective analysis show the benefit of staged PCI, though it might be attenuated in diabetic patients. Outcomes are consistent with previously published randomized studies. Nevertheless, we should remain cautious...
Many patients arrive to the cath lab for a diagnostic coronary angiography after an echo showing severe ventricular dysfunction, even in asymptomatic patients. In many occasions, their coronary arteries are normal, and in many others, we find coronary disease that is not enough to warrant such severe ventricular dysfunction. Patients with heart failure are frequently...
In the 2018 Guidelines on Hypertension, commandment no. 6 states that we should make lifestyle interventions such as sodium restriction, healthy eating, regular exercise, weight control, and smoking cessation, and also alcohol moderation. It is clear that heavy alcohol consumption induces hypertension and may probably be one of the main causes of secondary hypertension, but...
This study especially designed to compare PCI vs. CABG in patients with left main coronary artery disease and low to intermediate Syntax score showed that 30-day and 3 -year outcomes of PCI with everolimus eluting stents vs CABG were consistent both in diabetic and non-diabetic patients. The randomized EXCEL trial (Evaluation of XIENCE versus Coronary...
Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Fava. Patients with low-flow low-gradient severe aortic stenosis are at higher risk, but there is a low-flow low-gradient group with preserved ejection fraction. These patients present systolic and diastolic ventricular dysfunction and their progress is different than that of the high-flow high-gradient normal ventricular function group. This study analyzed 1462 patients. Among them,...
1- Long-Term Foramen Ovale Closure after Cryptogenic Stroke Patent foramen ovale closure is the standard treatment for cryptogenic stroke patients. However, there are is little information on its long-term evolution. Read more 2- Descending Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms: Is There a New Plan A? The last available evidence suggests that open surgery should be the...
Angioplasty and myocardial revascularization surgery have competed over the left main coronary artery for a long time. There may be many points of view involved in the interpretation of trial outcomes. While surgeons consider the left main coronary artery to be suitable for surgery (except when faced with surgical contraindications), interventional cardiologists see the left...
Most certainly, as we read this title, we imagine the conclusion (as does the editor): patients with prior cerebrovascular disease (CEVD) benefit from a less invasive revascularization strategy, such as PCI. However, the EXCEL outcomes tell us that patients with left main coronary artery disease (LMCAD) and a history of CEVD will not benefit from...
Patent foramen ovale closure is the standard treatment for cryptogenic stroke patients. However, there are is little information on its long-term evolution. The aim of this study was to determine clinical outcomes (death, ischemic or bleeding events) after foramen ovale closure over a 10-year evolution. The study included 201 consecutive patients (mean age 47...