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Heart failure (HF) is challenging public medical and healthcare systems. This study aimed to develop and validate a novel deep learning-based prognostic model to predict the risk of all-cause mortality for patients with HF. We also compared the performance of the proposed model with those of classical deep learning- and traditional statistical-based models. The present study enrolled 730 patients with HF hospitalized at Toho University Ohashi Medical Center between April 2016 and March 2020. A recurrent neural network-based model (RNNSurv) involving time-varying covariates was developed and validated. The proposed RNNSurv showed better prediction performance than those of a deep feed-forward neural network-based model (referred as “DeepSurv”) and a multivariate Cox proportional hazard model in view of discrimination (C-index: 0.839 vs. 0.755 vs. 0.762, respectively), calibration (better fit with a 45-degree line), and ability of risk stratification, especially identifying patients with high risk of mortality. The proposed RNNSurv demonstrated an improved prediction performance in consideration of temporal information from time-varying covariates that could assist clinical decision-making. Additionally, this study found that significant risk and protective factors of mortality were specific to risk levels, highlighting the demand for an individual-specific clinical strategy instead of a uniform one for all patients.

There are only few reports on surgery for partial atrioventricular septal defect( pAVSD) in patients aged over 70 years. This report is about successful surgical correction of pAVSD in a 79-year-old women. Echocardiography showed left-sided atrioventricular valve regurgitation with cleft and ostium primum atrial septal defect, but without ventricular septal defect. Accordingly, she was diagnosed with pAVSD. Treatment plan included direct cleft closure, patch closure for the ostium primum atrial septal defect, and right atrioventricular annuloplasty. The postoperative course was uneventful. She was followed up without complications for four years. To the best of our knowledge, our patient is the oldest to undergo such surgical techniques in Japan to date.

Atrial remodeling associated with atrial fibrillation (AF) and sleep apnea is well known. Although sleep apnea is known to be associated with left atrial (LA) remodeling, its association with right atrial (RA) remodeling remains unclear. The study aimed to investigate the effect of sleep apnea on RA remodeling.We enrolled 141 AF patients who had undergone ablation. Sleep study results were evaluated using a portable sleep apnea test device. RA and LA volumes were determined by computed tomography (CT), and atrial structural remodeling was defined as atrial volume on CT≥110mL according to previous reports. The atrial substrate was evaluated by three-dimensional electroanatomical mapping.After excluding 30 patients who received more than one catheter ablation or who could not receive enhanced CT, 111 patients were finally analyzed. The patients were classified into four groups according to the presence of RA and/or LA enlargement. Significant differences in AF type, N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels, and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) were observed among the four groups. In univariate analysis, AHI values correlated with NT-proBNP levels (r=0.293, p=0.002), left ventricular ejection fraction (r=-0.198, p=0.044), LA volume (r=0.370, p0.001), and RA volume (r=0.465, p0.001). Multiple regression analysis showed that AHI was an independent predictor of increased RA volume, and LA was excluded as a multiple risk factor in AHI. AF type-adjusted AHI levels correlated with RA volume, and RA remodeling correlated with the percentage of LA low-voltage area.Sleep apnea was strongly associated with RA structural remodeling regardless of paroxysmal and non-paroxysmal AF, and this relationship was more prominent than the effect of LA. Our results suggest that the association between sleep apnea and RA dilatation should be given attention.

Background Radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) is an effective therapy for atrial fibrillation (AF). However, it the problem of AF recurrence remains. This study investigates whether a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) can accurately predict AF recurrence in patients with AF who underwent RFCA, and compares CNN with conventional statistical analysis.Methods and Results:Three-hundred and ten patients with AF after RFCA treatment, including 94 patients with AF recurrence, were enrolled. Nine variables are identified as candidate predictors by univariate Cox proportional hazards regression (CPH). A CNNSurv model for AF recurrence prediction was proposed. The model's discrimination ability is validated by a 10-fold cross validation method and measured by C-index. After back elimination, 4 predictors are used for model development, they are N-terminal pro-BNP (NT-proBNP), paroxysmal AF (PAF), left atrial appendage volume (LAAV) and left atrial volume (LAV). The average testing C-index is 0.76 (0.72-0.79). The corresponding calibration plot appears to fit well to a diagonal, and the P value of the Hosmer-Lemeshow test also indicates the proposed model has good calibration ability. The proposed model has superior performance compared with the DeepSurv and multivariate CPH. The result of risk stratification indicates that patients with non-PAF, higher NT-proBNP, larger LAAV and LAV would have higher risks of AF recurrence. Conclusions The proposed CNNSurv model has better performance than conventional statistical analysis, which may provide valuable guidance for clinical practice.

A healthy 73-year-old woman unpredictably developed Takotsubo cardiomyopathy syndrome (TTS) during Holter-electrocardiogram (ECG) recording. Thus, the complete chronological ECG data on the actual onset day of TTS were obtained. Many heart rate variability (HRV) parameters, including the low-frequency components (LF) and the high-frequency components (HF), on the actual onset day and in the healing phase were calculated. The interesting facts on the actual onset day were that the suppression of both LF and HF appeared earlier than the changes of the ECG waveform; and the LF/HF ratio remained within the normal range, although both LF and HF were markedly suppressed. The abnormality on the actual onset day was clear compared with the healing phase. It is noteworthy to obtain the chronological ECG data on the actual onset day of TTS in a healthy patient. The present data are unique in terms of being analyzed on the actual onset day. Although the HRV parameters, including LF and HF, were obviously abnormal, there is some skepticism about using HRV parameters as indices of cardiac autonomic activity. In the present case, it was concluded that the abnormality of cardiac autonomic activity contributed to the onset of TTS. These data are unlikely to ever be replicated, and we hope that this report helps elucidate the TTS mechanism.

Identifying patient prognostic phenotypes facilitates precision medicine. This study aimed to explore phenotypes of patients with heart failure (HF) corresponding to prognostic condition (risk of mortality) and identify the phenotype of new patients by machine learning (ML). A unsupervised ML was applied to explore phenotypes of patients in a derivation dataset (n = 562) based on their medical records. Thereafter, supervised ML models were trained on the derivation dataset to classify these identified phenotypes. Then, the trained classifiers were further validated on an independent validation dataset (n = 168). Finally, Shapley additive explanations were used to interpret decision making of phenotype classification. Three patient phenotypes corresponding to stratified mortality risk (high, low, and intermediate) were identified. Kaplan–Meier survival curves among the three phenotypes had significant difference (pairwise comparison p < 0.05). Hazard ratio of all-cause mortality between patients in phenotype 1 (n = 91; high risk) and phenotype 3 (n = 329; intermediate risk) was 2.08 (95%CI 1.29–3.37, p = 0.003), and 0.26 (95%CI 0.11–0.61, p = 0.002) between phenotype 2 (n = 142; low risk) and phenotype 3. For phenotypes classification by random forest, AUCs of phenotypes 1, 2, and 3 were 0.736 ± 0.038, 0.815 ± 0.035, and 0.721 ± 0.03, respectively, slightly better than the decision tree. Then, the classifier effectively identified the phenotypes for new patients in the validation dataset with significant difference on survival curves and hazard ratios. Finally, age and creatinine clearance rate were identified as the top two most important predictors. ML could effectively identify patient prognostic phenotypes, facilitating reasonable management and treatment considering prognostic condition.

Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) induces functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) and tricuspid regurgitation (FTR) during atrial remodeling. FMR and FTR are associated with AF prognosis, but the effects for AF recurrence after ablation have not been determined conclusively. Methods Two hundred thirty nine patients who underwent AF ablation were enrolled. Forty five patients were excluded. In total, 194 patients were analyzed. FMR and FTR were assessed by echocardiography. The left atrial volume index (LAVI) was evaluated by contrast-enhanced computed tomography. Results Significant FMR and moderate FTR were observed in 15 (7.7%) and in 25 (12.9%) patients, respectively. The severity of tricuspid regurgitation (TR) significant correlated with age, NT-proBNP, and LAVI. During a 13.4 month follow-up period of, 39 patients (20.1%) demonstrated AF recurrence. In the Cox proportional-hazards model, E/e’, FTR, and LAVI, were termed as predictor factors of AF recurrence (E/e’. hazard ratio [HR] = 1.117; P = 0.019, significant FTR. HR = 4.679; P = 0.041, LAVI. HR = 1.057; P = 0.003). Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that AF recurrence was more frequent in FTR compared with the nonsignificant FTR cases (log-rank, P = 0.001). Although survival analysis showed no difference with or without FMR, the presence of FMR and FTR was strongly associated with high-AF recurrence (log-rank, P = 0.004). Conclusions AF recurrence was associated with E/e’, LAVI, and extensive FTR. Specifically, the combination of FTR and FMR markedly worsens the AF prognosis.

There is increased interest in creating high-power short duration (HPSD) ablation lesions in the field of atrial fibrillation (AF) radiofrequency ablation (RFA). We evaluated the lesion characteristics and collateral damage using two separate RFA protocols setting (HPSD: 50 W and 7 s vs control: 25 W and 30 s) in vitro model. Sixteen freshly killed porcine hearts were obtained, and the atrium and ventricle slabs were harvested for ablation. The each slabs were placed in a tissue bath with circulating 0.9% NaCl at maintained temperature 37 °C. RFA was performed with 4 mm tip irrigated force sensing catheter. All lesions were ablated under recording the electrical parameters using with Ensite Navx system (St. Jude Medical, St. Paul, Minnesota). After RFA, lesion characteristics were assessed for each lesion. Thirty-five lesions were made for each ablation protocol (total 70 lesions for analysis). Ablation parameters were similar between two groups (HPSD vs control; impedance drop (Ω): 34.2 ± 13.1 vs 36.1 ± 8.65 P = 0.49, contact force (g): 13.9 ± 4.37 vs 14.6 ± 5.09, P = 0.51, lesion size index: 4.8 ± 0.52 vs 4.73 ± 0.59, P = 0.62). Although the lesion volume was similar, the HPSD ablation creates wider but more shallower lesions compared to control group (HPSD vs control; lesion volume: 29.6 ± 18.1 mm3 vs 35.5 ± 17.1 mm3 P = 0.16, lesion diameter: 4.98 ± 0.91 mm vs 4.45 ± 0.74 mm P = 0.0095, lesion depth: 2.2 ± 0.76 mm vs 2.8 ± 1.56 mm P = 0.046). Of these, 38 lesions were assessed for adjacent tissue damage and adjacent tissue damages were more frequent seen in control group (HPSD vs control; 1/19 (5.26%) vs 6/19 (31.5%), P = 0.036). Effective lesions were made with HPSD, thereby reducing RFA procedure time. Although the lesion volume was similar between two groups, collateral damage was less seen in HPSD group attributed by lesion characteristics.

A 78-year-old male with a history of a cardiac embolic stroke due to persistent AF and cerebral bleeding (CHADS2 score 4, HAS-BLED score 4) was referred to our hospital to implant a left atrial appendage (LAA) closure (LAAC) device. A trans esophageal echocardiography was performed and a high echoic lesion that was difficult to differentiate the spontaneous echo contrast or thrombus was found in the LAA cavity. After isoproterenol infusion, a high echoic lesion disappeared and we confirmed that it was not an LAA thrombus. Successful LAAC device implantation was performed without any thromboembolic events.

Low sodium levels are strongly associated with poor prognosis in acute heart failure (AHF); however, the prognostic impact of the sodium level trajectory overtime has not been determined. A secondary analysis of the AQUAMARINE study in which patients with AHF and renal impairment were randomized to receive either tolvaptan or conventional treatment was performed. Sodium levels were evaluated at the baseline and at 6, 12, 24, and 48 h. We defined 'sodium dipping' as sodium level falling below the baseline level at any time point. The primary endpoint was the combined event of all-cause death and heart failure rehospitalization during follow-up. The analysis included 184 patients with a median follow-up of 21.1 months. Sodium levels more steeply increased during the 48 h in patients without events as compared to sodium levels in patients with events (P = 0.018 in linear-mixed effect model). The sodium dipping group (n = 100; 54.3%) demonstrated significantly less urine output, less body weight reduction, and poorer diuretic response within 48 h compared to the non-dipping group. The sodium dipping group was also significantly associated with a low combined-event-free survival after adjustment for other prognostic factors (HR 1.97; 95% CI 1.06-3.38; P = 0.033). The trajectory of sodium levels during the acute phase is associated with the prognosis of patients with AHF independently of the baseline sodium level.

A healthy 73-year-old woman unpredictably developed Takotsubo cardiomyopathy syndrome (TTS) during Holter-electrocardiogram (ECG) recording. Thus, the complete chronological ECG data on the actual onset day of TTS were obtained. Many heart rate variability (HRV) parameters, including the low-frequency components (LF) and the high-frequency components (HF), on the actual onset day and in the healing phase were calculated. The interesting facts on the actual onset day were that the suppression of both LF and HF appeared earlier than the changes of the ECG waveform; and the LF/HF ratio remained within the normal range, although both LF and HF were markedly suppressed. The abnormality on the actual onset day was clear compared with the healing phase. It is noteworthy to obtain the chronological ECG data on the actual onset day of TTS in a healthy patient. The present data are unique in terms of being analyzed on the actual onset day. Although the HRV parameters, including LF and HF, were obviously abnormal, there is some skepticism about using HRV parameters as indices of cardiac autonomic activity. In the present case, it was concluded that the abnormality of cardiac autonomic activity contributed to the onset of TTS. These data are unlikely to ever be replicated, and we hope that this report helps elucidate the TTS mechanism.

Background There has been no report about outcome of pitavastatin versus atorvastatin therapy in high-risk patients with hypercholesterolemia. Methods Hypercholesterolemic patients with one or more risk factors for atherosclerotic diseases (n = 664, age = 65, male = 54%, diabetes = 76%, primary prevention = 74%) were randomized to receive pitavastatin 2 mg/day (n = 332) or atorvastatin 10 mg/day (n = 332). Follow-up period was 240 weeks. The primary end point was a composite of cardiovascular death, sudden death of unknown origin, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, transient ischemic attack, or heart failure requiring hospitalization. The secondary end point was a composite of the primary end point plus clinically indicated coronary revascularization for stable angina. Results The mean low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) level at baseline was 149 mg/dL. The mean LDL-C levels at 1 year were 95 mg/dL in the pitavastatin group and 94 mg/dL in the atorvastatin group. There were no differences in LDL-C levels between both groups, however, pitavastatin significantly reduced the risk of the primary end point, compared to atorvastatin (pitavastatin = 2.9% and atorvastatin = 8.1%, HR, 0.366; 95% CI 0.170–0.787; P = 0.01 by multivariate Cox regression) as well as the risk of the secondary end point (pitavastatin = 4.5% and atorvastatin = 12.9%, HR = 0.350; 95%CI = 0.189–0.645, P = 0.001). The results for the primary and secondary end points were consistent across several prespecified subgroups. There were no differences in incidence of adverse events between the statins. Conclusion Pitavastatin therapy compared with atorvastatin more may prevent cardiovascular events in hypercholesterolemic patients with one or more risk factors for atherosclerotic diseases despite similar effects on LDL-C levels.

Objective To evaluate the outcomes of patients with concomitant Brugada syndrome and coronary artery vasospasm. Methods Patients diagnosed with Brugada syndrome with an implantable cardiac defibrillator were retrospectively investigated, and the coexistence of vasospasm was evaluated. The clinical features and outcomes were evaluated, especially in patients with coexistent vasospasm. A provocation test using acetylcholine was performed in patients confirmed to have no organic stenosis on percutaneous coronary angiography to confirm the presence of vasospasm. Implantable cardiac defibrillator shock status was checked every three months. Statistical comparisons of the groups with and without vasospasm were performed. A univariate analysis was also performed, and the odds ratio for the risk of implantable cardiac defibrillator shock was calculated. Patients Thirty-five patients with Brugada syndrome, of whom six had coexistent vasospasm. Results There were no significant differences in the laboratory data, echocardiogram findings, disease, or the history of taking any drugs between patients with and without vasospasm. There were significant differences in the clinical features of Brugada syndrome, i.e. cardiac events such as resuscitation from ventricular fibrillation or appropriate implantable cardiac defibrillator shock. Four patients with vasospasm had cardiac events such as resuscitation from ventricular fibrillation and/or appropriate defibrillator shock; three of them had no cardiac events with calcium channel blocker therapy to prevent vasospasm. The coexistence of vasospasm was a potential risk factor for an appropriate implantable cardiac defibrillator shock (odds ratio: 13.5, confidence interval: 1.572-115.940, p value: 0.035) on a univariate analysis. Conclusion Coronary artery vasospasm could be a risk factor for cardiac events in patients with Brugada syndrome.

A 49-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of repeated loss of consciousness. On arrival, she was in cardiopulmonary arrest associated with arrhythmia of Torsades de pointes, and recovered from it after cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation. The administration of a β-blocker and amiodarone was initiated to prevent ventricular tachycardia. On day 2, coronary angiography revealed non-obstructive coronary artery, and left ventriculography (LVG) exhibited hypokinesis in the anterior and apical wall. On day 20, an acetylcholine provocation test revealed a multivessel vasospasm, and LVG showed "spade-shaped left ventricle" in end-diastole because of apical hypertrophy. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) also showed apical wall thickness. Subsequent apical wall thickness gradually decreased and returned to normal on day 51 as observed on the TTE. Thus, we report a case of transient apical hypertrophy associated with coronary vasospasm, which was demonstrated by both the TTE and LVG. .

A 29-year-old woman who worked as a KAATSU (a type of body exercise that involves blood flow restriction) instructor visited our emergency room with a chief complaint of swelling and left upper limb pain. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed non-uniform contrast images corresponding to the site from the left axillary vein to the left subclavian vein; vascular ultrasonography of the upper limb revealed a thrombotic obstruction at the same site, leading to a diagnosis of Paget-Schroetter syndrome (PSS). We herein report our experience with a case of PSS derived from thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS), in a patient who was a KAATSU instructor.

Background Renal dysfunction is a common comorbidity in acute heart failure (AHF) patients. The prognostic significance of early treatment with tolvaptan in AHF patients complicated with renal dysfunction has not been elucidated. Methods Post hoc analysis was performed on a randomized clinical study for prespecified prognostic endpoints and prespecified subgroups. 217 AHF patients with renal dysfunction (eGFR 15 to 60mL/min/1.73m 2 ) were randomized within 6h from hospitalization to either tolvaptan treatment for 2days or conventional treatment. The primary outcome was the combined endpoint of all-cause death and HF readmission. Results During follow-up (636days, median) 99 patients experienced combined endpoint and 53 patients died. There was no significant difference in event-free survival rate for either the combined events (Log-rank: P=0.197) or all-cause death (Log-rank: P=0.894) between tolvaptan and conventional groups. In prespecified subgroup analysis, in patients whose BUN/creatinine ratio was above the median (>20), tolvaptan significantly reduced the risk of combined events (HR: 0.52, 95% CI: 0.30–0.91, P=0.021) with a significant interaction (P value for interaction=0.045). Likewise, in patients whose eGFR was 30mL/min/1.73m 2 or above, tolvaptan reduced the risk of combined events (HR: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.32–0.90, P=0.017) with a significant interaction (P value for interaction=0.015). Conclusion Short-term use of tolvaptan in acute-phase in AHF with renal dysfunction showed a neutral effect on prognosis. Patients with relatively preserved renal function and relatively high BUN/creatinine ratios are potentially favorable subgroups for treatment with tolvaptan.

Recently, incretin-related agents have been reported to attenuate insulin resistance in animal models, although the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we investigated whether anagliptin, the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, attenuates skeletal muscle insulin resistance through endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activation in the endothelial cells. We used endothelium-specific Irs2-knockout (ETIrs2KO) mice, which show skeletal muscle insulin resistance resulting from a reduction of insulin-induced skeletal muscle capillary recruitment as a consequence of impaired eNOS activation.In vivo, 8-week-old male ETIrs2KO mice were fed regular chow with or without 0.3% (wt/wt) DPP-4 inhibitor for 8 weeks to assess capillary recruitment and glucose uptake by the skeletal muscle. In vitro, human coronary arterial endothelial cells (HCAECs) were used to explore the effect of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) on eNOS activity.Treatment with anagliptin ameliorated the impaired insulin-induced increase in capillary blood volume, interstitial insulin concentration and skeletal muscle glucose uptake in ETIrs2KO mice. This improvement in insulin-induced glucose uptake was almost completely abrogated by the GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) antagonist exendin-(9-39). Moreover, the increase in capillary blood volume with anagliptin treatment was also completely inhibited by the NOS inhibitor. GLP-1 augmented eNOS phosphorylation in HCAECs, with the effect completely disappearing after exposure to the protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor H89. These data suggest that anagliptin treatment enhances insulin-induced capillary recruitment and interstitial insulin concentrations, resulting in improved skeletal muscle glucose uptake by directly acting on the endothelial cells via NO- and GLP-1-dependent mechanisms in vivo.Anagliptin may be a promising agent to ameliorate skeletal muscle insulin resistance in obese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background Dabigatran is a direct thrombin inhibitor and an anticoagulant that is prescribed to prevent ischemic stroke and systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Dabigatran (150 mg twice daily) is non-inferior to warfarin for the prevention of stroke and systemic embolism. A dose reduction to 110 mg twice daily should be considered for patients with decreased renal function, elderly patients, and those with a history of gastrointestinal bleeding. A small number of patients are prescribed 75 mg twice daily; however, excessive dose reduction below that indicated on the package insert may decrease the effectiveness of dabigatran. In this study, we investigated the incidence of thromboembolic events and hemorrhagic complications in patients receiving different doses of dabigatran, including patients receiving the very low-dose of 75 mg twice daily. Methods Five hospitals in Meguro and Setagaya areas of Tokyo were included in this study. The subjects were patients receiving dabigatran in the hospitals from March 2011 to February 2014. Thromboembolic events (stroke, systemic embolism, and transient cerebral ischemic attack) and hemorrhagic complications occurring before December 2014 were retrospectively evaluated. Results A total of 701 subjects received dabigatran during the study period: 187 patients (26.7%) received 150 mg twice daily (normal dose), 488 patients (69.6%) received 110 mg twice daily (low-dose), and 26 patients (3.7%) received 75 mg twice daily (very low-dose). Thromboembolism occurred in 4 (2.1%), 11 (2.3%), and 3 patients (11.5%), in the normal dose, low-dose, and very low-dose groups, respectively. The odds ratio of the 75 mg dose to the 150 and 110 mg doses was 5.73 (95% CI, 1.55–21.2; p = 0.009), and the incidence with the 75 mg dose was higher than that with the other doses. Although the number of events was limited, it should be noted that 3 patients in the very low-dose group had thromboembolic events. Conclusions The results suggest that sufficient anticoagulation efficacy may not be maintained when the dabigatran dose is excessively reduced to 75 mg twice daily.

A 70-years-old male with a history of hypertension and drug resistant paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) presented to our hospital for catheter ablation to his symptomatic AF. He had no prior surgical or percutaneous procedure to close or exclude the left atrial appendage (LAA). A transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) was performed to rule out intra-cardiac thrombus prior to the ablation procedure. Although the TEE imaging at multiple acquisition angles was obtained, the LAA could not be visualized and an absence of the LAA was suspected. An absence of the LAA was confirmed using cardiac computed tomography (CT), which included 3D reconstruction. Additionally, the LAA was not visualized with left atrium (LA) angiography. During the ablation procedure, 3D voltage mapping in LA was created and no low voltage area or abnormal potential was recorded around the usual root location of the LAA. Successful electrical pulmonary vein isolation was achieved with no major complications. After six months of follow-up, the patient remained in sinus rhythm without any antiarrhythmic drugs and showed no related clinical symptoms. He stopped his anticoagulation therapy due to lack of evidence of AF recurrence and an absence of LAA. Multimodality imaging allowed us to identify the congenital absence of LAA.

Objective: The objective of this study was to clarify whether or not pulse volume recoding (PVR) parameters have screening capability equivalent to ankle-brachial pressure index after walking (Ex-ABI) for patients with 0.91 or higher ABI. Patients and Methods: The subjects were 87 patients (147 limbs) with symptoms of lower extremities with 0.91 or higher ABI. In all patients, upstroke time (UT), percentage of mean artery pressure (%MAP) of PVR and Ex-ABI were measured, and computed tomographic angiography (CTA) was concomitantly performed. Results: Area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves of Ex-ABI, %MAP, and UT were 0.90, 0.70, and 0.81, respectively. A significant difference was noted in AUC between Ex-ABI and %MAP (p

A 33-year-old male was referred to our institute with acute heart failure. The patient was found to have a unicuspid aortic valve (UAV) and severe aortic stenosis. He had been followed at a local university hospital during childhood. However, he stopped visiting the outpatient clinic after becoming an adult. His condition subsequently worsened, and he ultimately presented to our hospital with cardiogenic shock. In Japan, some adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) patients continue to be followed by pediatric cardiologists, though the patterns of practice are variable. This report describes the case of a patient who became lost to follow-up in early adulthood. We thus focus on this ACHD case as an example of the effects of inadequate communication among doctors and the need to establish better ACHD management protocols for treating this patient population.

Chronic total occlusion (CTO) lesions are a challenging issue. When dealing with complex CTO lesions in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), it is important to evaluate not only the CTO lesion itself but also atherosclerotic lesions of the whole coronary artery tree. The utility of the SYNTAX (Synergy Between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery Trial) score in patients with CTO undergoing PCI is unclear.This retrospective study included 304 consecutive patients with CTO lesions who underwent PCI. Primary endpoints were procedural failure and major adverse cardiac events (MACE) within 30 days. The SYNTAX and J-CTO (Multicenter CTO Registry in Japan) scores were assessed before the procedures, and patients were divided into two groups according to SYNTAX criteria: high ( 22; n = 158) and low (≤ 22; n = 146) SYNTAX scores.Procedural success was achieved in 252 patients (82.9 %). Patients with a high SYNTAX score had significantly lower procedural success than those with a low SYNTAX score (74.7 % versus 91.8 %, p 0.0001). There were 13 MACE (8.2 %) in patients with high SYNTAX scores and two MACE (1.4 %) in those with low scores. The SYNTAX and J-CTO scores had odds ratios of 3.33 (95 %CI, 1.44-7.74) and 3.64 (95 %CI, 1.24-10.66) for procedural failure. A higher SYNTAX score ( 22) was also an independent predictor of 30-day MACE after PCI (odds ratio = 4.80, 95 %Cl 1.03-22.42).The SYNTAX score is predictive of procedural failure, as is the J-CTO score. Furthermore, a higher SYNTAX score is strongly associated with an increased risk of 30-day MACE. The SYNTAX score is useful for clinical decision making when treating patients with complex CTO lesions.

Hemodialysis (HD) patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI) suffer chronic inflammation and repeated infection, require intervention, and may have a protracted hospital stay. Therefore, early prediction is particularly important for management of CLI in patients with suspected peripheral artery disease. The purpose of this study is to develop a simple score for predicting the incidence of CLI in HD patients with suspected peripheral artery disease. The subjects were 139 asymptomatic patients receiving maintenance HD and with ABI

Introduccion y objetivos En estudios previos se ha descrito que la intervencion coronaria aplicada a lesiones complejas presenta una correlacion independiente con las hemorragias mayores. La puntuacion SYNTAX es un instrumento angiografico utilizado para evaluar el grado de complejidad de las enfermedades arteriales coronarias. El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar la capacidad de la puntuacion SYNTAX para predecir hemorragias mayores tras el implante de stents liberadores de farmacos. Metodos Se analizo a un total de 722 pacientes sometidos a implante de stents liberadores de farmacos de una poblacion de pacientes consecutivos incluidos en el estudio entre enero de 2007 y abril de 2010. Se investigo la incidencia de hemorragias mayores y trombosis del stent durante un periodo de 2 anos. La hemorragia mayor se evaluo mediante la puntuacion CRUSADE y los criterios del Bleeding Academic Research Consortium. Se estratifico a los pacientes en los siguientes grupos segun los criterios del ensayo SYNTAX: baja (= 22; n = 484), intermedia (23-32; n = 128) y alta (= 33; n = 110). Resultados Se observaron hemorragias mayores en 47 pacientes (6,5%) en el periodo de estudio de 2 anos, y hubo 12 episodios de trombosis del stent (1,7%). Las tasas de hemorragia mayor en los pacientes de los terciles bajo, intermedio y alto de la puntuacion SYNTAX fueron del 2,9, el 7,8 y el 20,9% respectivamente (p < 0,0001). La puntuacion SYNTAX mostro una hazard ratio ajustada de hemorragia mayor a los 2 anos de 1,81 (intervalo de confianza del 95%, 1,27-2,57). El valor predictivo del area bajo la curva de caracteristicas operativas del receptor ajustada por hemorragia mayor mejoro significativamente tras la inclusion de la puntuacion CRUSADE (estadistico C, 0,890 frente a 0,812). Conclusiones Aunque la puntuacion SYNTAX puede predecir el riesgo de hemorragias mayores, el valor predictivo de la puntuacion CRUSADE fue superior. Estas puntuaciones pueden resultar de utilidad en la toma de decisiones clinicas respecto a las estrategias de revascularizacion y la duracion optima del tratamiento antiagregante plaquetario doble tras implante de stents liberadores de farmacos.

Previous studies have reported that coronary intervention for complex lesions is independently correlated with major bleeding. The SYNTAX score is an angiographic tool used to grade the complexity of coronary artery diseases. The aim of this study was to assess the ability of the SYNTAX score to predict major bleeding following drug-eluting stent implantation.We analyzed 722 patients who underwent drug-eluting stent implantation in an all-comers population between January 2007 and April 2010. The incidence of major bleeding and stent thrombosis was investigated during a 2-year period. Major bleeding was evaluated using the CRUSADE score and Bleeding Academic Research Consortium criteria. Patients were stratified into the following groups according to the SYNTAX trial: low (≤ 22; n=484), intermediate (23-32; n=128), and high (≥ 33; n=110).Major bleeding was observed in 47 patients (6.5%) during the 2-year period, and there were 12 incidents of stent thrombosis (1.7%). Major bleeding rates for patients in the low, intermediate, and high SYNTAX score tertiles were 2.9%, 7.8%, and 20.9%, respectively (P.0001). The SYNTAX score had an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.81 (95% confidence interval, 1.27-2.57) for 2-year major bleeding. The predictive value of the adjusted area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for major bleeding significantly improved after inclusion of the CRUSADE score (C statistic, 0.890 vs 0.812).Although the SYNTAX score can predict major bleeding risk, the predictive value of the CRUSADE score was higher. These scores may be useful in clinical decision-making on revascularization strategies and on the optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy following drug-eluting stent implantation.

Defibrillation threshold (DFT) testing during implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantations is considered necessary for appropriate shock therapy and to measure the safety margin. However, the relationship between the DFT with modern era devices and the clinical outcome, including the total mortality is limited, which may lead to DFT testing itself being questioned. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the DFT and clinical outcome in ICD recipients.We enrolled 81 consecutive patients (66 males, aged 64.6 ± 13.8 years) who received an ICD implantation and underwent DFT testing. The DFT was measured with a step-by-step method in the patients upon implant. Further, we evaluated the relationship between the DFT and the clinical outcome, which included major cardiac adverse events and any cause of death.The mean DFT was 11.6 ± 9.24J in total. In 40 patients (49.4%), VF was terminated by a low output (5J), whereas 11 patients (13.6%) had a high DFT. The rates of atrial fibrillation were significantly higher in the high DFT group (63.6% versus 24.2%, P = 0.007). During the observational period (median 432 days; range from 151 days to 1146 days), the incidence of clinical events occurred in 22 patients (27.2%) in total. In a multivariate analysis, a high DFT was the only predictive factor for the incidence of the clinical outcome (OR 4.54, 95% CI 1.03-21.9, P = 0.045).

Aims To report a case of unexpected pulmonary hypertensive crisis caused by endothelin release from melanoma cells after surgery for choroidal melanoma. Main methods A 56-year-old man suddenly developed dyspnea after resection of choroidal melanoma. Worsening hypoxia required intensive treatment, including percutaneous cardiopulmonary support, after which a series of tests were immediately performed. The tentative diagnosis was idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension. Key findings Previous studies noted a significant association between melanoma and endothelin (ET)-1. We hypothesized that a substantial amount of ET-1 had been released from malignant melanoma cells during resection, thus triggering the pulmonary hypertensive crisis in our patient. The patient fully recovered after intensive treatment and administration of the endothelin receptor antagonist bosentan. Significance The success of bosentan treatment, along with the extremely high level of ET-1 on pathologic analysis, confirmed our hypothesis regarding the increase in plasma ET-1 level.

Background Pacemaker generators are routinely implanted in the anterior chest. However, where to place the generator may need to be considered from the mental, functional, and cosmetic standpoints. Methods In this study, we performed the left axillary pacemaker generator implantation with a direct puncture of the left axillary vein in 40 consecutive patients, and evaluated the late safety and efficacy of this implantation. Complications, changes in the lead sensing, pacing threshold, and impedance were used as safety indexes for a mean follow-up of 3.4 years. In addition, the efficacy was also evaluated by comparing their questionnaire survey results to 119 patients in a control group of anterior chest implantation. Results Lead dislodgements were observed in two patients of the experiment group. There were no migrations of generators from the implantation site or abnormal variations in the pacing threshold, lead sensing, or impedance. In the left anterior chest and left axillary groups, 85% and 10% of the patients were worried about an external impact, 80% and 25% were worried about electromagnetic interference, and 68% and 0% answered that the pacemaker implantation site was noticeable, respectively. Apparently, more patients had a sense of security and cosmetic satisfaction with the left axillary implantation. Conclusion The left axillary generator implantations may reduce the mental burden and cause no safety concerns, and may be performed if functional or cosmetic outcomes are required.

Causative arrhythmias of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) are changing in this age of improved coronary care.The purpose of this study was to examine the frequency of terminal arrhythmias and the electrical events prior to SCA.We analyzed 24-hour Holter recordings of 132 patients enrolled from 41 institutions who either died (n = 88) or had an aborted death (n = 44). The Holter recordings were obtained for diagnosing and evaluating diseases and arrhythmias in those without any episodes suggestive of SCA.In 97 patients (73%), SCA was associated with ventricular tachyarrhythmias and in 35 (27%) with bradyarrhythmias. The bradyarrhythmia-related SCA patients were older than those with a tachyarrhythmia-related SCA (70 ± 13 years vs. 58 ± 19 years, P.001). The most common arrhythmia for a tachyarrhythmia-related SCA was ventricular tachycardia degenerating to ventricular fibrillation (45%). The bradyarrhythmia-related SCA was caused by asystole (74%) or AV block (26%). Spontaneous conversion was observed in 37 patients (38%) with ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Of those, 62% of the patients experienced symptoms including syncope, chest pain, or convulsion. Multivariate logistic analysis revealed that independent predictors of mortality for tachyarrhythmia-related SCAs were advanced age (odds ratio 1.04, 95% confidence interval 1.02-1.08) and ST elevation within the hour before SCA (odds ratio 3.54, 95% confidence interval 1.07-13.5). In contrast, the presence of preceding torsades de pointes was associated with spontaneous conversion (odds ratio 0.20, 95% confidence interval 0.05-0.66).The most frequent cause of SCA remains ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Advanced age and ST elevation before SCA are risk factors for mortality in tachyarrhythmia-related SCAs.

PurposePatients with normal stress myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) results generally have an excellent prognosis with

AIM Reactive hyperemia peripheral arterial tonometry (RH-PAT) can be used to noninvasively assess the vascular function with respect to the digital microcirculation. Abnormalities are associated with coronary endothelial dysfunction. We therefore investigated whether impaired digital reactive hyperemia is associated with restenosis after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). METHODS This study included 86 patients with ACS who underwent successful primary PCI of native vessels for de novo lesions. The reactive hyperemia index (RHI) was calculated using RH-PAT at three weeks and eight months after ACS. The RHI was defined as the ratio of the digital pulse volume during reactive hyperemia to that observed at baseline. Restenosis was defined as diameter stenosis of ≥ 50% in the in-segment area based on the findings of quantitative coronary angiography performed at eight months. RESULTS Restenosis was detected in 17 patients (20%). There were no differences in the RHI at three weeks between the patients with and without restenosis (1.70 vs. 1.87; p=0.13); however, the RHI values at eight months were significantly attenuated in the patients with restenosis versus those without (1.75 vs. 2.12; p=0.03). A univariate logistic regression analysis showed that the eight-month RHI (＜2, obtained from a receiver operating characteristic analysis) was a significant risk factor for restenosis (odds ratio: 4.23, 95% confidence interval: 1.25 to 14.28, p=0.02). CONCLUSIONS Impairment of the digital hyperemic response at eight months is associated with restenosis after primary intervention in patients with ACS, suggesting the potential of RH-PAT as a noninvasive test for identifying patients with a high risk of restenosis.

It is uncertain whether dynamic variation in the diameter of the aortic annulus occurs during the cardiac cycle in humans. The purpose of this study was to analyze cyclic changes of the aortic annulus using speckle-tracking trans-esophageal echocardiography. The subjects were 40 patients with aortic stenosis and 40 controls. Absolute and relative changes in the diameter of the aortic annulus and the times at which the maximum and minimum diameters occurred during the cardiac cycle were determined using speckle-tracking trans-esophageal echocardiography. The maximum and minimum diameters were 22.9 ± 2.7 and 20.0 ± 2.9 mm, respectively, in controls. The change in diameter of the aortic annulus was 2.9 ± 0.7 mm, and the relative change was 12.9 ± 3.5%. The maximum aortic annulus diameter was reached at the onset of aortic valve opening, and the minimum diameter occurred in the rapid filling phase. The change in diameter of the aortic annulus was significantly smaller (2.2 ± 0.6 mm vs. 2.9 ± 0.7 mm, p < 0.0001), and the time to reach the maximum diameter was significantly longer (98.5 ± 17.5 ms vs. 83.4 ± 18.2 ms, p = 0.0004), in the aortic stenosis group than in the control group. The study found that dynamic changes of the aortic annulus occur in the cardiac cycle and can be measured using speckle-tracking trans-esophageal echocardiography. We also found that aortic stenosis has an effect on the extent and timing of these changes. This suggests that accurate assessment of aortic annulus diameter requires consideration of the timing of the cardiac cycle.

A 76-year-old male who had already been diagnosed with ischemic heart disease and severe aortic stenosis was transferred to our hospital in a state of cardiogenic shock. We finally diagnosed him with severe aortic stenosis. We decided to perform emergency balloon aortic valvuloplasty (BAV) as a bridge treatment to surgical repair. We first performed BAV with a double balloon technique, and next with a triple balloon technique. As a result, the blood pressure recovered, and surgical aortic valve repair could thus be successfully performed.

Pioglitazone (PIO) is widely used as an insulin-sensitizing agent in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but it also causes an increase in body weight in a dose-dependent manner. Beraprost sodium (BPS), a stable prostaglandin I2 analog, is used clinically for the treatment of peripheral arterial disease and primary pulmonary hypertension. BPS has recently been demonstrated to promote insulin-induced glucose uptake by skeletal muscle. In this study, we examined whether low-dose PIO (PIO-L; 3 mg/kg/day) plus BPS treatment might exert antidiabetic effects without causing body weight gain in obese/diabetic KKAy mice. Treatment with PIO-L plus BPS tended to improve the hepatic insulin resistance and significantly improved the skeletal muscle insulin resistance, yielding a similar degree of hyperglycemia improvement to that obtained with high-dose PIO (PIO-H; 30 mg/kg/day) treatment. Moreover, the increase in body weight observed following PIO-H treatment was not observed following PIO-L plus BPS treatment. An increase in plasma adiponectin levels, which have been shown to be negatively correlated with hepatic glucose production, but not with the glucose disappearance rate during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp, was observed in the animals treated with PIO-L, PIO-L plus BPS, and PIO-H. This suggests that the improvement in hepatic insulin resistance was associated, at least in part, with an increase in the plasma adiponectin levels observed during PIO treatment. In contrast, treatment with BPS, which failed to increase the plasma adiponectin levels, ameliorated skeletal, but not hepatic insulin resistance. PIO-L plus BPS treatment may represent efficacious treatment for insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes without causing body weight gain.

The association of fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23) with vascular disease in patients with preserved renal function is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of serum FGF-23 with coronary calcification in patients without chronic kidney disease and diabetes mellitus (DM).A cross-sectional study was performed in 148 consecutive patients with suspected coronary artery disease who underwent 64-slice computed tomography coronary angiography for diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Patients with eGFR60 mL/min/1.73 m(2), proteinuria, or DM were excluded. Associations of coronary calcification (evaluated by Agatston score) were examined with classical risk factors and with inflammatory markers, adipocytokines and FGF-23.The median creatinine, eGFR and FGF-23 levels were 0.7 mg/dL, 74.6 mL/min/1.73 m(2), and 26 pg/mL respectively. The strongest association was found between age and Agatston score (r = 0.367, p 0.001) in univariate logistic regression analysis. No atherogenic risk factors, including inflammatory markers and adipocytokine levels, were associated with Agatston score. Among calcium/phosphate metabolism markers, FGF-23 showed a weak but significant correlation with Agatston score (r = 0.169, p = 0.039). In multivariate linear regression analysis, age and FGF-23 (r = 0.188, p = 0.016) were independently associated with the Agatston score.Serum FGF-23 levels were associated with coronary calcification independently of classical risk factors and of adipocytokines and inflammatory markers in patients with preserved renal function. FGF-23 may also have a direct effect on progression of coronary calcification and further studies are required to examine this issue.

Objective Electrical cardioversion (EC) is associated with an increased risk of thrombotic events in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). Patients who experience AF for a period of >48 hours therefore require adequate anticoagulation therapy for at least 3 weeks before and 4 weeks after EC. While the guidelines address the management of vitamin K antagonists (VKAs), there are limited data on the use of novel oral anticoagulants (NOAC). One NOAC, rivaroxaban, has a rapid onset of action and might therefore shorten the time for which anti-coagulant treatment is required before a patient undergoes EC. Methods This study included 91 patients with NVAF of >48 hours in duration or in whom the time of onset was unknown who were undergoing EC after pretreatment with rivaroxaban. All of the patients were pretreated with rivaroxaban for at least 2 hours before EC and the same dose of rivaroxaban was prescribed for 4 weeks after EC. The primary endpoint was a successful EC without any thrombotic events or bleeding complications within 30 days after EC. The secondary endpoint was the time to EC. Results The mean age was 63±12 years and 70 of the 91 patients were male. The CHADS2 and HAS-BLED scores were 1.0±1.0 and 1.7±1.3, respectively. Although there were no thrombotic events, minor bleeding (gingival hemorrhage) occurred 20 days after the initiation of rivaroxaban treatment in one patient. The average time to EC was 11.9±11.1 days. Conclusion Rivaroxaban is safe and effective drug for NVAF patients who are scheduled for an EC. Furthermore, since VKAs take a substantial amount of time to establish adequate anticoagulation, pretreatment with rivaroxaban could shorten the time to the EC.

BACKGROUND To reduce myocardial damage caused by implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) shock, the left axilla was studied as an alternative pulse generator implantation site, and compared with the traditional implantation site, the left anterior chest. METHODS AND RESULTS Computer simulation was used to study the defibrillation conduction pattern and estimate the simulated defibrillation threshold (DFT) and myocardial damage when pulse generators were placed in the left axilla and left anterior chest, respectively; pulse generators were also newly implanted in the left axilla (n=30) and anterior chest (n=40) to compare the corresponding DFT. On simulation, when ICD generators were implanted in the left axilla, compared with the left anterior chest, the whole heart may be defibrillated with a lower defibrillation energy (left axilla 6.4 J vs. left anterior chest 12.0 J) and thus the proportion of cardiac myocardial damage may be reduced (2.1 vs. 4.2%). Clinically, ventricular fibrillation was successfully terminated with a defibrillation output ≤5 J in 86.7% (26/30) of the left axillary group, and in 27.5% (11/40) of the left anterior group (P

Objectives The aim of this study was to characterize coronary plaque in target lesions with vessel remodeling using iMap-intravascular ultrasound (IVUS). Background The relationship between the plaque component and vessel remodeling remains to be elucidated. iMAP-IVUS is an imaging system that can be used to assess the plaque composition by radiofrequency signals from 40 MHz IVUS. Methods IVUS examinations were performed for the de novo target vessels of 146 stable angina pectoris patients (174 vessels). The patients were divided into two groups: including a nonpositive remodeling group (non-PR, remodeling index ≤ 1.0, 125 vessels) and a positive remodeling group (PR, remodeling index > 1.0, 49 vessels). Results The percent plaque burden in the PR group were lager than those in the non-PR group (79.05% vs. 74.36%, P < 0.01). Attenuation plaques were more frequently observed in PR group (40.8% vs. 12.1%, P < 0.0001). The percentages of lipidic and necrotic relative areas at the minimum lumen sites were greater in the PR group than in the non-PR group (7.22% vs. 6.03%, P

Summary Background Circadian variation has been accepted as a factor in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). An increased incidence of cardiac events in the morning has been reported for a long time. Recent reports have indicated that the onset of AMI shows two peaks, which occur in the morning and evening. It has also been demonstrated that circadian pattern of AMI may vary with sex and age. Methods and results We investigated 522 consecutive patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) between 2000 and 2010. The patients were classified into 3 age groups: younger (≤59 years old), intermediate (60–79 years old), and older (≥80 years old). Clinical data were investigated, including the age and sex, angiographic characteristics, and time of onset of STEMI. There were two peaks in the onset of STEMI throughout the day, which were at 7:00–10:00 and 19:00–21:00 h, among all patients (male and female). Stratified analysis showed that older females formed the main part of the second peak. Conclusions There were two peaks in the onset of STEMI in a Japanese population in Tokyo. The second peak was significantly dominated by the older female group. Age and gender influenced the second peak in the circadian variation of AMI in a Japanese population in Tokyo.

Previous epidemiological studies demonstrated plaque vulnerability to be high in diabetic patients. iMap-intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) is a recently developed radiofrequency 40 MHz IVUS imaging system for tissue characterization. This study aimed to characterize coronary plaque in target lesions of diabetic patients using iMap-IVUS.We studied 175 treated vessels in 146 patients with stable angina pectoris and analyzed plaque components of culprit lesions by iMAP-IVUS. Patients were divided into 2 groups: non-diabetic (non-DM: 112 vessels, 93 patients) and diabetic (DM: 63 vessels, 53 patients).In gray-scale IVUS 2D analysis, there were no differences in IVUS parameters. In 3D analysis, the DM group tended to have a larger plaque volume (p=0.07) and plaque burden (p=0.10). At minimum lumen sites, the absolute lipidic and necrotic areas (0.84 ± 0.44 mm(2) vs. 0.58 ± 0.41 mm(2), p0.001, and 2.42 ± 1.65 mm(2) vs. 1.46 ± 1.76 mm(2), p0.001, respectively) and percent lipidic and necrotic areas were significantly greater in the DM than in the non-DM group (8.39 ± 3.38% vs. 5.25 ± 2.30%, p0.0001, and 23.65 ± 11.54% vs. 12.99 ± 10.71%, p0.0001, respectively). In addition, the absolute lipidic and necrotic volumes (11.75 ± 10.59 mm(3) vs. 8.18 ± 6.24 mm(3), p0.01, and 29.99 ± 28.90 mm(3) vs. 19.44 ± 19.35 mm(3), p0.01, respectively) and percent lipidic and necrotic volumes were significantly greater in the DM than in the non-DM group (6.27 ± 1.92% vs. 5.13 ± 1.82%, p0.0001, and 16.54 ± 7.56% vs. 12.08 ± 6.05%, p0.0001, respectively).Characterization of coronary plaque by iMAP-IVUS in diabetic patients showed increased lipidic amount and necrotic plaque volume relative to subjects without DM.

Background: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is effective in reducing morbidity and mortality in systolic heart failure patients with cardiac dyssynchrony as demonstrated in studies with primarily Western populations. Although CRT devices with a defibrillator (CRT-D) became available in Japan since 2006, their efficacy remains uncertain in Japanese patients. In this prospective, multicenter study, the efficacy of CRT-D therapy in an all-Japanese population was compared with the study conducted in the US, Multicenter InSync ICD Randomized Clinical Evaluation (MIRACLE-ICD). Methods and Results: Ninety-three patients were evaluated according to the subject selection criteria of the MIRACLE-ICD study, and 80 patients were enrolled. Results at baseline and 6-month post-CRT-D implantation were compared in terms of composite clinical response (CCR) and other secondary endpoints. Quality of life (QOL) was assessed with a validated Japanese version of the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure questionnaire. CCR was improved in 55 patients (68.8%), unchanged in 14 (17.5%), and worsened in 11 patients (13.7%) (MIRACLE-ICD general phase: 62.0%, 13.4% and 24.6%, respectively). Non-inferiority was verified by 1-sided test with 10% equivalence margin. QOL score improved significantly (50.0±26.2 vs. 23.6±20.2, P

Intravascular ultrasound studies have shown that patients with unstable angina pectoris (UAP) more frequently had soft plaques in the culprit coronary arteries than patients with stable angina pectoris (SAP). We evaluated coronary plaque characteristics of culprit lesions in patients with UAP by 64-slice computed tomographic coronary angiography (64-slice CTCA). 64-slice CTCA (Aquilion 64, Toshiba Medical Systems, Otawara, Japan) was performed in 30 patients (UAP = 14, SAP = 16) before percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Coronary plaque area was measured by manual tracing for the difference between the area within the external elastic membrane and the area of the vessel lumen at the site of maximal luminal narrowing as observed on a cross-sectional 64-slice CTCA image where PCI was performed. Within this plaque area, CT low-density plaque area (< 50 Hounsfield units) was automatically calculated. There were no differences in stenotic rate and whole plaque area of the culprit lesion between patients with UAP and SAP. However, the CT low-density plaque area was significantly greater in patients with UAP than in those with SAP. A greater area of CT low-density plaque in the culprit lesion is associated with UAP rather than SAP. Measuring CT-low density plaque area on 64-slice CTCA images could be useful for understanding the clinical setting of UAP.

Sixty-four-slice multidetector row computed tomography is a noninvasive method of assessing coronary artery stenosis and plaque composition. The aim of this study was to clarify the relation between plaque composition and coronary heart disease. Three hundred sixty consecutive patients and 1,085 plaques were evaluated using 64-slice multidetector row computed tomography. On axial or cross-sectional multiplanar reconstruction images, 3 regions of interest were randomly selected within each plaque. Soft plaques and calcified plaques were defined as having computed tomographic densities 130 Hounsfield units, respectively. The association between coronary risk factors and plaque composition was analyzed. The number of plaques and the mean computed tomographic density of plaques were significantly higher in men than in women (p = 0.002 and p = 0.04, respectively). Coronary plaques were more frequent in patients with stroke, diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia than in patients without these conditions (all p values