BackgroundWe are the first to evaluate the prevalence of renal artery stenosis (RAS) in consecutive patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) referred for primary percutaneous coronary intervention from a single tertiary center. As a novelty, we assessed hydration and metabolic status and measured arterial stiffness. We elaborated a predicting model for RAS in AMI.Methods and ResultsOne hundred and eighty‐one patients with AMI underwent concomitantly primary percutaneous coronary intervention and renal angiography. We obtained data on demographics, medical history, cardiovascular risk factors, echocardiography, Killip class, and blood tests. In the first 24 hours post–primary percutaneous coronary intervention, we assessed bioimpedance through Body Composition Monitoring® and arterial stiffness through pulsed‐wave velocity, SphygmoCor®. Significant RAS (>50% lumen narrowing, RAS+) was present in 16.6% patients. In the RAS+ group we recorded significantly higher stiffness, CRUSADE score and dehydration, and more women with higher prevalence of multivascular coronary artery disease and heart failure. In our multivariate models, variables independently associated with RAS+ were previous percutaneous coronary intervention, low estimated glomerular filtration rate, multivascular coronary artery disease, and total/extracellular body water. These models had good specificity and low sensitivity.ConclusionsWe observed that RAS+ AMI patients have a particular hydration, metabolic, and endothelial profile that could generate more future major adverse cardiac events. Hence, renal angiography in AMI should be considered in specific subsets of patients.Clinical Trial Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT02388139.

Objectives. We aimed to analyse data from our high-volume interventional centre (>1000 primary percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) per year) searching for predictors of in-hospital mortality in acute myocardial infarction (MI) patients. Moreover, we looked for realistic strategies and interventions for lowering in-hospital mortality under the “5 percent threshold.” Background. Although interventional and medical treatment options are constantly expanding, recent studies reported a residual in-hospital mortality ranging between 5 and 10 percent after primary PCI. Current data sustain that mortality after ST-elevation MI will soon reach a point when cannot be reduced any further. Methods. In this retrospective observational single-centre cohort study, we investigated two-year data from a primary PCI registry including 2035 consecutive patients. Uni- and multivariate analysis were performed to identify independent predictors for in-hospital mortality. Results. All variables correlated with mortality in univariate analysis were introduced in a stepwise multivariate linear regression model. Female gender, hypertension, depressed left ventricular ejection fraction, history of MI, multivessel disease, culprit left main stenosis, and cardiogenic shock proved to be independent predictors of in-hospital mortality. The model was validated for sensitivity and specificity using receiver operating characteristic curve. For our model, variables can predict in-hospital mortality with a specificity of 96.60% and a sensitivity of 84.68% (p<0.0001, AUC = 0.93, 95% CI 0.922–0.944). Conclusions. Our analysis identified a predictive model for in-hospital mortality. The majority of deaths were due to cardiogenic shock. We suggested that in order to lower mortality under 5 percent, focus should be on creating a cardiogenic shock system based on the US experience. A shock hub-centre, together with specific transfer algorithms, mobile interventional teams, ventricular assist devices, and surgical hybrid procedures seem to be the next step toward a better management of ST-elevation MI patients and subsequently lower death rates.

A b s t r a c tIntroduction: In ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients, multisite artery disease represents a serious issue influencing evolution, outcomes and prognosis. We evaluated for the first time the power of the Myocardial Infarction SYNTAX Score (MI SS) and Clinical SYNTAX Score (MI CSS) as predictors for renal artery stenosis (RAS) in STEMI. We also stratified the study population according to the two scores, and identified the variables correlated with the higher score. Material and methods: We used data from the REN-ACS study, which included 181 consecutive patients prospectively investigated for presence of RAS (through renal angiography), arterial stiffness (carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity, cf-PWV) and hydration status (bioimpedance). MI SS and CSS were computed. Results: Multivariate regressions indicated that the independent variables correlated with MI SS were left ventricular ejection fraction < 40%, significant RAS (> 50%, defined as RAS+), history of heart failure, and multivascular coronary disease (CAD, p < 0.03 for each), while those correlated with MI CSS were RAS+, cf-PWV, history of CAD, multivascular CAD, cholesterol, and total body water (p < 0.02 for each). In order to evaluate the ability to predict RAS+ we generated receiver operating characteristics and areas under curves, and the Youden index for MI SS and CSS. Conclusions: Both scores correlated with extensive atherosclerotic disease and presence of RAS+. A lower CSS proved to be a good predictor for exclusion of RAS+, with high specificity (85%) and negative predictive value (92%), and fair sensitivity (60%). We aim to further pursue this line of research and design a better predictor for RAS, with the inclusion of a novel biomarker in order to increase sensitivity.

A fractal physics explanation for acute thrombotic occlusion in an apparently healthy coronary arteryThe acute arterial occlusion of an artery that has no significant preexistent lesions leads to dramatic consequences due to the lack of collateral substitutive circulation, as this kind of circulation usually develops within years in the presence of hemodynamic significant stenosis (1).Classical models which explain this phenomenon take into account the cracking of an intimal atheroma plaque, the activation of the prothrombogenic cascade through the denudation of the endothelium, and the formation of a completely occlusive thrombus in certain circumstances (2, 3). At least one counterargument should be considered: Why does an occlusive thrombus form so quickly in the absence of a stenosis when the sanguine flux is unaltered? Why the "wash-out'' phenomenon does not appear?Without contradicting these usual models, through a fractal model (4, 5), we will prove that the blocking of the lumen of an absolutely healthy artery can happen as a result of the "stopping effect" (even in the absence of disputable cracked and nonprotrusive atheroma plaque), in the conditions of a normal sanguine circulation.Therefore, if we consider blood a Bingham-type rheological fluid, then (1) where is the viscosity tangential unitary effort, is the deformation tangential unitary effort, is the velocity gradient with respect to the normal on the transversal section, and is the viscosity coefficient.Our fractal model (4, 5) was used for in vivo analyses of 10 clinical cases of patients with acute occlusive thrombus on an absolutely healthy artery. These cases were selected during a 2-year period (2013)(2014)(2015). Patients with atrial fibrillation were excluded for preventing mismatch with thromboembolic acute coronary occlusion. Patients with patent foramen ovale (diagnosed by transesophageal echocardiography) were excluded to avoid a paradoxical coronary embolism. Intravascular ultrasound or coronary CT angiography were not performed in these patients; although some irregularities could be seen on angiography, it is clear that there are no significant ulcerated atheroma plaques or major signs of parietal atherosclerosis. Also, in patients >50 years, an absolutely normal coronary wall is more likely a utopia. We performed EKG Holter monitoring in all patients for exclusion of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.We present here the two most relevant cases (Fig. 1a-h) with thrombus dimensions of ≥60 mm (for the other eight cases, the thrombus dimensions were between 30 and 60 mm). For all the cases, our theoretical results were verified by coronarography images. 1) Patient 1 was a 52-year-old male patient who was diagnosed with acute inferolateral ischemia. Coronary angiography revealed an acute occlusive thrombus (4-4.5 mm diameter and 60-80 mm length) at the junction between segments I and II of the right coronary artery. After thrombus aspiration, a distal thrombotic embolism appeared with an apparently healthy artery (or possible minimal les...

To evaluate the prognosis after local thrombolysis compared to systemic thrombolysis in high-risk pulmonary embolism. Observational study during 13 years which included 37 patients with high-risk pulmonary embolism treated with local thrombolysis and 36 patients with systemic thrombolysis (streptokinase, 250 000 UI/30 minutes followed by 100 000 UI/h). Cardiogenic shock has totally remitted in the group with local thrombolysis ( P = .002). The decrease in pressure gradient between right ventricle and right atrium was comparable in both groups in the acute period (the results being influenced by the higher in-hospital mortality after systemic thrombolysis), but significantly better in the next 24 months follow-up after in situ thrombolysis. Major and minor bleeding did not have significant differences. In hospital, mortality was significantly lower in the group with local thrombolysis ( P = .003), but for the next 24 months follow-up, the survival was comparable in both groups. Local thrombolysis, during the hospitalization, was associated with lower mortality rate comparing with systemic thrombolysis. In the next 24 months follow-up, the evolution of residual pulmonary hypertension was significantly better after in situ thrombolysis.

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Reoperation on the tricuspid valve after prior heart valve surgery is associated with an increased operative risk due to a poor clinical status with severe heart failure and late presentation. Transcatheter tricuspid valve-in-valve implantation emerged as an attractive alternative to a high-risk redo surgery. The authors report a case of successful treatment of a failed bioprosthetic tricuspid valve in a 58-year-old woman with severe heart failure, decompensated cardiac cirrhosis and atrial fibrillation using transcatheter tricuspid valve-in-valve implantation of a Sapien 3 valve (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, California) via a transatrial approach. This case demonstrates the efficiency of this novel approach for the treatment of dysfunctional surgical tricuspid bioprosthetic valves and the technical feasibility and safety of a rarely used route.