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Aims: In 2010, the European Society of Cardiology Guidelines on atrial fibrillation (AF) introduced the CHA2DS2‐VASc score to guide initiation of oral anticoagulation. In patients with AF undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), triple therapy with oral anticoagulation and dual antiplatelet therapy was recommended to reduce ischaemic risk. We examined how the CHA2DS2‐VASc score impacted oral anticoagulation use and risks of ischaemic and hospitalized bleeding events in patients with AF undergoing PCI. Methods: We included 6,014 patients with AF undergoing first‐time PCI in Western Denmark between 2003 and 2017. We divided patients into four groups based on year of PCI and estimated 1‐year risks of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and hospitalization for bleeding. Results: The proportion of oral anticoagulation users was 48% in 2003–2006 and 49% in 2006–2010. Following the CHA2DS2‐VASc score implementation, the proportion increased to 59% in 2011–2014 and 77% in 2015–2017. Using 2003–2006 as reference, risks of MACE were similar in 2007–2010 (adjusted relative risk [RRadj] 0.99, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.83–1.18) and 2011–2014 (RRadj 0.92, 95% CI 0.78–1.09), but declined by 23% in 2015–2017 (RRadj 0.77, 95% CI 0.65–0.92). Hospitalizations for bleeding did not increase despite wider use of triple therapy. Conclusion: Implementation of the CHA2DS2‐VASc score in the 2010 European guidelines on AF was associated with an increased utilization of oral anticoagulation and triple therapy among AF patients undergoing PCI. These changes were associated with a gradual decline in the risk of MACE, while the risk of hospitalized bleeding remained unchanged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background--Quantitative flow ratio (QFR) is a novel diagnostic modality for functional testing of coronary artery stenosis without the use of pressure wires and induction of hyperemia. QFR is based on computation of standard invasive coronary angiographic imaging. The purpose of WIFI II (Wire-Free Functional Imaging II) was to evaluate the feasibility and diagnostic performance of QFR in unselected consecutive patients. Methods and Results--WIFI II was a predefined substudy to the Dan-NICAD study (Danish Study of Non-Invasive Diagnostic Testing in Coronary Artery Disease), referring 362 consecutive patients with suspected coronary artery disease on coronary computed tomographic angiography for diagnostic invasive coronary angiography. Fractional flow reserve (FFR) was measured in all segments with 30% to 90% diameter stenosis. Blinded observers calculated QFR (Medis Medical Imaging bv, The Netherlands) for comparison with FFR. FFR was measured in 292 lesions from 191 patients. Ten (5%) and 9 patients (5%) were excluded because of FFR and angiographic core laboratory criteria, respectively. QFR was successfully computed in 240 out of 255 lesions (94%) with a mean diameter stenosis of 50±12%. Mean difference between FFR and QFR was 0.01±0.08. QFR correctly classified 83% of the lesions using FFR with cutoff at 0.80 as reference standard. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.86 (95% confidence interval, 0.81-0.91) with a sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value, and positive predictive value of 77%, 86%, 75%, and 87%, respectively. A QFR-FFR hybrid approach based on the present results enables wire-free and adenosine-free procedures in 68% of cases. Conclusions--Functional lesion evaluation by QFR assessment showed good agreement and diagnostic accuracy compared with FFR. Studies comparing clinical outcome after QFR- and FFR-based diagnostic strategies are required. Clinical Trial Registration--URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT02264717. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient access to reperfusion therapy and the use of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (p-PCI) or thrombolysis (TL) varies considerably between European countries. The aim of this study was to obtain a realistic contemporary picture of how patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) are treated in different European countries. Methods and results The chairpersons of the national working groups/societies of interventional cardiology in European countries and selected experts known to be involved in the national registries joined the writing group upon invitation. Data were collected about the country and any existing national STEMI or PCI registries, about STEMI epidemiology, and treatment in each given country and about PCI and p-PCI centres and procedures in each country. Results from the national and/or regional registries in 30 countries were included in this analysis. The annual incidence of hospital admission for any acute myocardial infarction (AMI) varied between 90-312/100 thousand/year, the incidence of STEMI alone ranging from 44 to 142. Primary PCI was the dominant reperfusion strategy in 16 countries and TL in 8 countries. The use of a p-PCI strategy varied between 5 and 92% (of all STEMI patients) and the use of TL between 0 and 55%. Any reperfusion treatment (p-PCI or TL) was used in 37-93% of STEMI patients. Significantly less reperfusion therapy was used in those countries where TL was the dominant strategy. The number of p-PCI procedures per million per year varied among countries between 20 and 970. The mean population served by a single p-PCI centre varied between 0.3 and 7.4 million inhabitants. In those countries offering p-PCI services to the majority of their STEMI patients, this population varied between 0.3 and 1.1 million per centre. In-hospital mortality of all consecutive STEMI patients varied between 4.2 and 13.5%, for patients treated by TL between 3.5 and 14% and for patients treated by p-PCI between 2.7 and 8%. The time reported from symptom onset to the first medical contact (FMC) varied between 60 and 210 min, FMC-needle time for TL between 30 and 110 min, and FMC-balloon time for p-PCI between 60 and 177 min. Conclusion Most North, West, and Central European countries used p-PCI for the majority of their STEMI patients. The lack of organized p-PCI networks was associated with fewer patients overall receiving some form of reperfusion therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To report procedural results and mortality rates from the first 4 years after establishing primary angioplasty as the preferred treatment for acute myocardial infarction in a single Scandinavian centre. Design and results: From August 1995 to October 1999 all patients with the diagnosis of suspected acute myocardial infarction (n = 529, mean age 62 ± 13 years, 72% men), either transferred (73%) or directly admitted to our institution for coronary angiography with the intention of performing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (primary PCI), were prospectively registered. Procedural success in terms of residual stenosis ≤ 30% and a final Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) 3 flow was achieved in 94 and 85% of patients treated, respectively. In-hospital delay and procedure times decreased significantly during the 4-year study period. A low in-hospital mortality was observed in each of the 4 years studied (8.7, 8.7, 7.7 and 6.0%). Conclusion: In a centre with both directly admitted and transferred patients primary angioplasty can be established as the preferred treatment for acute myocardial infarction with an initially low complication and mortality rate. During the first years after implementing the primary angioplasty programme a learning effect can be anticipated with reductions in procedural times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background New-generation drug-eluting coronary stents have reduced the risk of coronary events, especially in patients with complex disease or lesions. To what extent different stent platforms, polymers, and antiproliferative drugs affect outcomes, however, is unclear. We investigated the safety and efficacy of a third-generation stent by comparing a highly biocompatible durable-polymer-coated zotarolimus-eluting stent with a biodegradable-polymer-coated biolimus-eluting stent. Methods This open-label, randomised, multicentre, non-inferiority trial was done at three sites across western Denmark. All patients who presented with stable coronary artery disease or acute coronary syndromes and at least one coronary artery lesion (more than 50% stenosis) from March, 2011, to August, 2012, were assessed for eligibility. Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive either the durable-polymer zotarolimus-eluting stent or the biodegradable-polymer biolimus-eluting stent. The primary endpoint was a composite of safety (cardiac death and myocardial infarction not clearly attributable to a non-target lesion) and efficacy (target-lesion revascularisation) at 12 months, analysed by intention to treat. The trial was powered to assess non-inferiority of durable-polymer zotarolimus-eluting stent compared with the biodegradable-polymer biolimus-eluting stent with a predetermined non-inferiority margin of 0·025. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01956448. Findings Of 7103 screened, 1502 patients with 1883 lesions were assigned to receive the durable-polymer zotarolimus-eluting stent and 1497 patients with 1791 lesions to receive the biodegradable-polymer biolimus-eluting stent. 79 (5·3%) and 75 (5·0%) patients, respectively, met the primary endpoint (absolute risk difference 0·0025, upper limit of one-sided 95% CI 0·016%; p=0·004). The individual components of the primary endpoint did not differ significantly between stent types at 12 months. Interpretation The durable-polymer-coated zotarolimus-eluting stent was non-inferior to the biodegradable-polymer-coated biolimus-eluting stent in unselected patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: In 2010, the European Society of Cardiology Guidelines on atrial fibrillation (AF) introduced the CHA 2 DS 2 -VASc score to guide initiation of oral anticoagulation. In patients with AF undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), triple therapy with oral anticoagulation and dual antiplatelet therapy was recommended to reduce ischaemic risk. We examined how the CHA 2 DS 2 -VASc score impacted oral anticoagulation use and risks of ischaemic and hospitalized bleeding events in patients with AF undergoing PCI., Methods: We included 6,014 patients with AF undergoing first-time PCI in Western Denmark between 2003 and 2017. We divided patients into four groups based on year of PCI and estimated 1-year risks of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and hospitalization for bleeding., Results: The proportion of oral anticoagulation users was 48% in 2003-2006 and 49% in 2006-2010. Following the CHA 2 DS 2 -VASc score implementation, the proportion increased to 59% in 2011-2014 and 77% in 2015-2017. Using 2003-2006 as reference, risks of MACE were similar in 2007-2010 (adjusted relative risk [RR adj ] 0.99, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.83-1.18) and 2011-2014 (RR adj 0.92, 95% CI 0.78-1.09), but declined by 23% in 2015-2017 (RR adj 0.77, 95% CI 0.65-0.92). Hospitalizations for bleeding did not increase despite wider use of triple therapy., Conclusion: Implementation of the CHA 2 DS 2 -VASc score in the 2010 European guidelines on AF was associated with an increased utilization of oral anticoagulation and triple therapy among AF patients undergoing PCI. These changes were associated with a gradual decline in the risk of MACE, while the risk of hospitalized bleeding remained unchanged., (© 2021 Stichting European Society for Clinical Investigation Journal Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: To evaluate the safety of heparin neutralisation by protamine immediately after PCI., Design: Retrospective analysis of prospectively registered data., Setting: A Danish mono-centre study., Patients: All angina pectoris patients treated with PCI between January 1999 and December 2002. The cohort was divided into two groups. Group I (n=1.129 procedures) were patients admitted January 1999 to December 1999, and group II n=4.193 procedures) were admitted January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2002., Interventions: In group I, the femoral sheath was removed 4 hours after the PCI procedure. In group II, circulating heparin was neutralised by protamine sulphate, and the femoral sheath removed immediately after the procedure., Main Outcome Measures: Rates of puncture site complications, stent thrombosis, non-fatal myocardial infarction and death during admission., Results: The rates of stent thrombosis, non-fatal myocardial infarction and in-hospital mortality were similar in the two groups. The rate of puncture site complications were 4,7% in group 1 and 2,6% in group 2 (p<0,001)., Conclusions: Circulating heparin can be safely neutralised by protamine sulphate immediately after PCI.

Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) provides a rapid and accurate diagnosis in patients with dissection of the thoracic aorta. The procedure is considered to be safe. We report a case where rupture of a dissecting thoracic aneurysm occurred during attempted TEE in a patient, who had been clinically stable for 1 week. TEE was performed because aortic valve endocarditis was suspected, and the procedure did not include close surveillance of the blood pressure. Careful manipulation of the probe, adequate sedation, monitoring, and treatment of acute rises in blood pressure was recommended in patients with even a slight suspicion of dissection undergoing TEE. (ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Volume 13, July 1996)