HCR is feasible in select patients with MVCAD referred for conventional CABG. (Safety and Efficacy Study of Hybrid Revascularization in Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease [POL-MIDES]; NCT01035567).

BackgroundData regarding the association between red cell distribution width (RDW) values and mortality in patients with stable coronary artery disease are scarce. We aimed to investigate the link between mortality and RDW in patients with stable coronary artery disease undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).MethodsWe analyzed 2550 consecutive patients with stable coronary artery disease who underwent PCI between 2007 and 2011 at our institution. The patients were divided into four groups according to RDW quartiles. The association between the RDW values and the outcomes was assessed using Cox proportional regression analysis after adjusting for clinical, echocardiographic, hemodynamic and laboratory data in the whole population and in subgroups stratified by gender, presence of diabetes, anemia or heart failure.ResultsIn the entire population, there was a stepwise relationship between RDW intervals and comorbidities. Patients with the highest RDW values were older and more often burdened with diabetes, heart failure and chronic kidney disease. There was an almost 4-fold increase in mortality during an average of 2.5 years of follow-up between the group of patients with RDW values lower than 13.1% (25th percentile) and the group with RDW values higher than 14.1% (75th percentile), (4.3% vs. 17.1%, p < 0.0001). After adjusting for the covariates, RDW remained significantly associated with mortality in the whole cohort (HR-1.23 [95% CI (1.13-1.35), p < 0.0001]) and in the subgroups stratified by gender, age (over and under 75 years), presence of anemia, diabetes, heart failure and chronic kidney disease.ConclusionHigher RDW values correspond to higher comorbidity burdens and higher mortality. RDW is an independent predictor of mortality in patients with stable coronary artery disease.

In a large, community-based cohort of patients with STEMI treated by PCI, direct admission to a primary PCI center was associated with lower 12-month mortality and should be preferred to transfer via a regional non-PCI-capable facility.

No abstract

Right heart catheterisation (RHC) is the 'gold standard' for haemodynamic assessment of the pulmonary circulation. For the diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH), the guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology require a mean pulmonary arterial pressure ≥ 25 mm Hg to be confirmed by direct haemodynamic measurement. Additionally, RHC provides a lot of valuable information about the differential diagnosis and severity of PH, and also helps determine the patient's prognosis. Acute vasoreactivity testing performed in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension is intended to identify the group of patients who should be treated with calcium channel blockers. Patients referred for heart transplantation require advanced pulmonary vascular disease to be ruled out either on resting examination or during vasoreactivity testing. RHC is a component of such interventional procedures as balloon atrial septostomy, closure of intracardiac shunts in congenital heart and great vessel defects, valvuloplasty for pulmonary valve stenosis, and pulmonary angioplasty. Pulmonary angiography is an examination recommended when selecting patients for pulmonary endarterectomy or balloon pulmonary angioplasty in thromboembolic PH. Due to the dynamic growth in the number of patients diagnosed with and treated for PH in Poland, the Boards of the Polish Cardiac Society's Working Group on Pulmonary Circulation and Association of Cardiovascular Interventions have undertaken a joint project to develop recommendations to standardise guidelines for RHC procedure, acute vasoreactivity testing and pulmonary angiography at cardiac wards and haemodynamic laboratories in Poland. This document has been prepared by experts delegated by the Working Group on Pulmonary Circulation and the Association of Cardiovascular Interventions, and subsequently approved by the Boards of both organs of the Polish Cardiac Society.

In patients with NSTEMI treated with PCI, a high MPV value was associated with a significantly increased incidence of long-term adverse events, particularly for all-cause mortality.

No abstract

BackgroundNeointima forming after stent implantation consists of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in 90%. Growth factors TGF-β1, PDGFB, EGF, bFGF and VEGF-A play an important role in VSMC proliferation and migration to the tunica intima after arterial wall injury. The aim of this paper was an analysis of functional polymorphisms in genes encoding TGF-β1, PDGFB, EGF, bFGF and VEGF-A in relation to in-stent restenosis (ISR).Materials and Methods265 patients with a stable coronary artery disease (SCAD) hospitalized in our center in the years 2007–2011 were included in the study. All patients underwent stent implantation at admission to the hospital and had another coronary angiography performed due to recurrence of the ailments or a positive result of the test assessing the coronary flow reserve. Angiographically significant ISR was defined as stenosis >50% in the stented coronary artery segment. The patients were divided into two groups–with angiographically significant ISR (n = 53) and without significant ISR (n = 212). Additionally, the assessment of late lumen loss (LLL) in vessel was performed. EGF rs4444903 polymorphism was genotyped using the PCR-RFLP method whilst rs1800470 (TGFB1), rs2285094 (PDGFB) rs308395 (bFGF) and rs699947 (VEGF-A) were determined using the TaqMan method.ResultsAngiographically significant ISR was significantly less frequently observed in the group of patients with the A/A genotype of rs1800470 polymorphism (TGFB1) versus patients with A/G and G/G genotypes. In the multivariable analysis, LLL was significantly lower in patients with the A/A genotype of rs1800470 (TGFB1) versus those with the A/G and G/G genotypes and higher in patients with the A/A genotype of the VEGF-A polymorphism versus the A/C and C/C genotypes. The C/C genotype of rs2285094 (PDGFB) was associated with greater LLL compared to C/T heterozygotes and T/T homozygotes.ConclusionsThe polymorphisms rs1800470, rs2285094 and rs6999447 of the TGFB1, PDGFB and VEGF-A genes, respectively, are associated with LLL in patients with SCAD treated by PCI with a metal stent implantation.