ISR in DES shows incomplete neointimal healing as late as 2 years after implantation. Patients with ISR in PES presented with more unstable angina and showed more pronounced signs of delayed healing than SES.

BackgroundObesity is key feature of the metabolic syndrome and is associated with high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Obesity is associated with macrovascular endothelial dysfunction, a determinant of outcome in patients with coronary artery disease. Here, we compared the influence of obesity on microvascular endothelial function to that of established cardiovascular risk factors such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and smoking in patients with suspected coronary artery disease.Methods and ResultsEndothelial function was assessed during postocclusive reactive hyperemia of the brachial artery and downstream microvascular beds in 108 patients who were scheduled for coronary angiography. In all patients, microvascular vasodilation was assessed using peripheral arterial tonometry; laser Doppler flowmetry and digital thermal monitoring were performed. Body mass index was significantly associated with decreased endothelium‐dependent vasodilatation measured with peripheral arterial tonometry (r=0.23, P=0.02), laser Doppler flowmetry (r=0.30, P<0.01), and digital thermal monitoring (r=0.30, P<0.01). In contrast, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and smoking had no influence on microvascular vasodilatation. Especially in diabetic patients, endothelial function was not significantly reduced (control versus diabetes mellitus, mean±SEM or median [interquartile range], peripheral arterial tonometry: 1.90±0.20 versus 1.67±0.20, P=0.19, laser Doppler flowmetry: 728% [interquartile range, 427–1110] versus 589% [interquartile range, 320–1067] P=0.28, and digital thermal monitoring: 6.6±1.0% versus 2.5±1.7%, P=0.08). In multivariate linear regression analysis, body mass index was the only risk factor that significantly attenuated endothelium‐dependent vasodilatation using all 3 microvascular function tests.ConclusionsHigher body mass index is associated with reduced endothelial function in patients with suspected coronary artery disease, even after adjustment for treated diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and smoking.

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Microvascular injury is present in a large proportion of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) despite successful revascularization. Ticagrelor potentially mitigates this process by exerting additional adenosine-mediated effects. This study aims to determine whether ticagrelor is associated with a better microvascular function compared to prasugrel as maintenance therapy after STEMI. A total of 110 patients presenting with STEMI and additional intermediate stenosis in another coronary artery will be studied after successful percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of the infarct-related artery. Patients will be randomized to treatment with ticagrelor or prasugrel for 1 year. FFR-guided PCI of the non-infarct-related artery will be performed at 1 month. Microvascular function will be assessed by measurement of the index of microcirculatory resistance (IMR) in the infarct-related artery and non-infarct-related artery, immediately after primary PCI and after 1 month. The REDUCE-MVI study will establish whether ticagrelor as a maintenance therapy may improve microvascular function in patients after revascularized STEMI.

Endothelial dysfunction was not found to be a predictor of the occurrence of radial artery spasm in a cohort of patients undergoing elective heart catheterisation. Radial artery-sheath mismatch is the strongest pre-procedural predictor of RAS.

IntroductionAlthough recently published evidence favours transradial access (TRA) when using large-bore guiding catheters for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of complex coronary lesions, the femoral artery will still be used in a considerate proportion of patients undergoing complex PCI, especially in PCI of chronic total occlusions (CTO). Ultrasound-guided puncture of the femoral artery may reduce clinically relevant access site complications, but robust evidence is lacking up to date.Methods and analysisA total of 542 patients undergoing complex PCI, defined as PCI of CTO, complex bifurcation, heavy calcified lesion or left main, in which the 7-F or 8-F transfemoral access is required, will be randomised to ultrasound-guided puncture or fluoroscopy-guided puncture. The primary outcome is the incidence of the composite end-point of clinically relevant access site related bleeding and/or vascular complications requiring intervention. Access site complications and major adverse cardiovascular events up to 1 month will also be compared between both groups.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval for the study was granted by the local Ethics Committee (‘Medisch Ethische Toetsing Commissie Isala Zwolle’) for all Dutch sites, ‘Comité Medische Ethiek Ziekenhuis Oost-Limburg’ for Hospital Oost-Limburg, ‘Comité d’éthique CHU-Charleroi—ISPPC’ for Centre Hospilatier Universitaire de Charleroi and ‘Ethik Kommission de Ärztekammer Nordrhein’ for Elisabeth-Krankenhaus). The trial outcomes will be published in peer-reviewed journals of the concerned literature. Theultrasound guidedtransfemoral access incomplexlarge bore PCI trial has been administered in the ClinicalTrials.gov database, reference number:NCT03846752.Registration detailsClinicalTrials.gov identifier:NCT03846752.

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Background: Fast and adequate platelet inhibition is one of the cornerstones in the treatment of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). The aim of this analysis is to examine sex differences in platelet inhibition in the acute treatment of STEMI patients.Methods: Platelet reactivity units (PRU) and ticagrelor plasma concentrations of all patients in the ON-TIME 3 were compared according to sex. All patients were pre-treated with crushed ticagrelor, aspirin and heparin. Both univariable and multivariable analyses were performed.Results: In this sub-analysis of the ON-TIME 3 trial, 195 STEMI patients, of which 58 female patients (29.7%) and 137 male patients (70.3%), were analyzed. PRU-values immediately post-PCI were not different in females [median 135 (IQR 47-228)] compared to males [160 (IQR 40-219), P = 0.92]. Ticagrelor plasma concentrations were higher in the females at the start of primary PCI [141 ng/mL (IQR 25-491) vs. 76 ng/mL (IQR 15-245), P = 0.049] and at 6 hours post-primary PCI [495 ng/mL (IQR 283-661) vs. 321 ng/mL (IQR 196-537), P = 0.001] compared to males. However, immediately post-primary PCI and at 1-hour post-primary PCI no significant differences in ticagrelor concentrations were seen between sexes. In multivariable analysis, sex was significantly associated with ticagrelor concentration (P = 0.04), but not with PRU (P = 0.93).Conclusion: Effective platelet inhibition reached by crushed ticagrelor in STEMI patients was similar in both sexes. Females had similar or even higher ticagrelor plasma concentrations up to 6 hours post-primary PCI compared with males.