BackgroundAtrial fibrillation is associated with higher mortality. Identification of causes of death and contemporary risk factors for all‐cause mortality may guide interventions.Methods and ResultsIn the Rivaroxaban Once Daily Oral Direct Factor Xa Inhibition Compared with Vitamin K Antagonism for Prevention of Stroke and Embolism Trial in Atrial Fibrillation (ROCKET AF) study, patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation were randomized to rivaroxaban or dose‐adjusted warfarin. Cox proportional hazards regression with backward elimination identified factors at randomization that were independently associated with all‐cause mortality in the 14 171 participants in the intention‐to‐treat population. The median age was 73 years, and the mean CHADS 2 score was 3.5. Over 1.9 years of median follow‐up, 1214 (8.6%) patients died. Kaplan–Meier mortality rates were 4.2% at 1 year and 8.9% at 2 years. The majority of classified deaths (1081) were cardiovascular (72%), whereas only 6% were nonhemorrhagic stroke or systemic embolism. No significant difference in all‐cause mortality was observed between the rivaroxaban and warfarin arms (P=0.15). Heart failure (hazard ratio 1.51, 95% CI 1.33–1.70, P<0.0001) and age ≥75 years (hazard ratio 1.69, 95% CI 1.51–1.90, P<0.0001) were associated with higher all‐cause mortality. Multiple additional characteristics were independently associated with higher mortality, with decreasing creatinine clearance, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, male sex, peripheral vascular disease, and diabetes being among the most strongly associated (model C‐index 0.677).ConclusionsIn a large population of patients anticoagulated for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, ≈7 in 10 deaths were cardiovascular, whereas <1 in 10 deaths were caused by nonhemorrhagic stroke or systemic embolism. Optimal prevention and treatment of heart failure, renal impairment, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes may improve survival.Clinical Trial Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT00403767.

Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) using of acetylsalicylic acid and antagonists of platelet’s P2Y12 receptors is included in standards for treatment of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Clopidogrel, prasugrel, and ticagrelor are the P2Y12 receptor inhibitors used as a component of DAPT. The aim of this review is to determine the most effective and the safest P2Y12 receptor inhibitor for treating patients with an invasive treatment strategy of ACS. The TRITON study compared clopidogrel and pragugrel efficacy and safety had demonstrated a significantly higher efficiency in reducing the risk of reaching the primary endpoint (including cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction and stroke) for prasugrel, but at the same time, the prasugrel group was reliably recorded higher rate of major bleeding. Comparison of the efficacy and safety of clopidogrel and ticagrelor was carried out in the PLATO study, where ticagrelor was shown to be more effective in reducing cardiovascular deaths and myocardial infarction, while the safety of the drugs was comparable. A subsequent ISAR-REACT 5 study proved higher efficacy of prasugrel compared to ticagrelor in reducing the risk of reaching a primary endpoint with comparable safety to the major bleeding risk. Baseline data represents that the most effective drug among P2Y12 receptor inhibitors as a component of DAPT for patients with an invasive treatment strategy is prasugrel, and the safest is clopidogrel, which can be considered in elderly patients.

Ankylosing spondylitis causes morphological or functional damage to the cardiovascular system in 22% of cases. Using modern methods of heart function research, such as Holter ECG monitoring, it is possible to detect rhythm and conduction disorders, long QT syndrome. Changes in the parameters of the QT interval, such as its duration and variance, can be considered as a predictor of the development of cardiovascular catastrophes and fatal arrhythmias. The article analyzes the values of QT/RR and QTc during Holter ECG monitoring in 92 patients diagnosed with Ankylosing spondylitis, depending on the stage of the disease, the activity of the pathological process, and seropositivity for HLA B27. There was a significant increase in QT/RR and QTc during the active and passive periods of Holter ECG monitoring in comparison with the control group. In patients with ankylosing spondylitis, ventricular arrhythmias were detected, which are associated with prolongation of the QT interval. Standardized Holter ECG monitoring in patients with Ankylosing spondylitis, taking into account the daily variance of the QT interval, can become a universal, minimally invasive and low-cost method for assessing the risk of cardiovascular disorders in patients with Ankylosing spondylitis.

Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) using of acetylsalicylic acid and antagonists of platelet’s P2Y12 receptors is included in standards for treatment of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Clopidogrel, prasugrel, and ticagrelor are the P2Y12 receptor inhibitors used as a component of DAPT. The aim of this review is to determine the most effective and the safest P2Y12 receptor inhibitor for treating patients with an invasive treatment strategy of ACS. The TRITON study compared clopidogrel and pragugrel efficacy and safety had demonstrated a significantly higher efficiency in reducing the risk of reaching the primary endpoint (including cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction and stroke) for prasugrel, but at the same time, the prasugrel group was reliably recorded higher rate of major bleeding. Comparison of the efficacy and safety of clopidogrel and ticagrelor was carried out in the PLATO study, where ticagrelor was shown to be more effective in reducing cardiovascular deaths and myocardial infarction, while the safety of the drugs was comparable. A subsequent ISAR-REACT 5 study proved higher efficacy of prasugrel compared to ticagrelor in reducing the risk of reaching a primary endpoint with comparable safety to the major bleeding risk. Baseline data represents that the most effective drug among P2Y12 receptor inhibitors as a component of DAPT for patients with an invasive treatment strategy is prasugrel, and the safest is clopidogrel, which can be considered in elderly patients.

130 rheumatoid arthritiS patients (RA pts) were distributed in the comparative groups on the basis of used physiotherapy methods and placebo‑physiotherapy. Violation of peripheral blood‑flow mainly vessels of small and medium caliber mainly vessels of small and medium caliber in RA pts in comparison with group of practically healthy persons at baseline was detected, the severity of these abnormalities depended on duration of disease. The comparative analysis of basic rheovasographic indexes in RA pts before and after treatment in parallel groups treated with electrosleep‑therapy, low‑frequency magnetotherapy, bioresonant stimulation and placebo‑physiotherapy was conducted. Significant differences in studied indexes after completed course of treatment such as diminishing of asymmetry of blood‑filling in extremities at all types of physiotherapy, increasing of pulse vascular blood‑filling of extremities after electrosleep‑therapy and bioresonant stimulation, decrease of vascular tonus after application of low‑frequency magnetotherapy were defined. Course of placebo‑physiotherapy has not demonstrated statistically meaningful changes in rheovasographic indexes. Clinically significant adverse events during physiotherapy treatment were not detected. Conclusion: including of physiotherapy in the management of RA pts in term to improve peripheral hemodynamics and to prevent vascular complications can be recommended.