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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Fava. Oncology patients have been excluded from all studies, but many of them have a life expectancy of over a year or two, and aortic stenosis can pose a problem as regards their treatment. This study analyzed 2744 patients who underwent TAVR. Among them, 222 presented cancer (8.1%). Patients with cancer were younger,...
Is the Obesity Epidemic Putting Patients’ and Physicians’ Health at Risk? In addition to the obvious negative effect on patients, obesity can also affect Interventional Cardiologists’ health, seeing as it involves increased exposure to radiation. Operators are clearly and increasingly exposed to radiation as patient body mass index (BMI) increases. Radiation exposure might be...
This work showed that percutaneous septal ablation in patients with symptomatic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is safe (and improves patient symptoms) and results in excellent long-term survival. Alcohol-induced infarction for treatment of symptomatic hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy is controversial because, while it may relieve acute symptoms, it might also increase long-term mortality. This study sought to report...
Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Fava. PCI to saphenous vein grafts is one the greatest challenges these days because, as opposed to native arteries, they present important thrombolytic material, diffuse and long lesions, and abundant macrophage and inflammatory cells, which makes the procedure more complex. At present, we have not yet agreed on the best antiplatelet...
Transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement is feasible with different devices, with a reasonable procedural success rate, and is associated with low peri-procedural mortality and significant clinical improvement. Mid-term survival was favorable in this high-risk population. Greater leaflet coaptation depth was associated with reduced procedural success, which, unsurprisingly, turned out to be an independent predictor of mortality....