Search

Background and aims Myocardial infarction triggers an inflammatory response involved in cardiac repair. We studied the association of the interleukin 6 (IL-6) cascade with infarct size and cardiac function after ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Methods In 369 STEMI patients IL-6, soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R), and soluble glycoprotein (sgp) 130 were measured at baseline (hospital admission), 24 h, 2 weeks, 7 weeks, 4 months, and 1 year post-PCI and sIL-6R/IL-6 ratio was calculated. At 4 months, infarct size and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were assessed by magnetic resonance imaging. Diastolic function (E/e′) was determined by echocardiography. Results Hospital admission levels for IL-6, sIL-6R, sgp 130 were 3.7 pg/ml (IQR 2.1–6.7 pg/ml), 51.6 ng/ml (IQR 37.3–69.0 ng/ml), and 332 ng/ml (IQR 280–399 ng/ml), respectively. 24 h after admission, IL-6 had increased threefold compared to baseline (p

Background Myocardial infarction is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in both men and women. Atypical or the absence of symptoms, more prevalent among women, may contribute to unrecognized myocardial infarctions and missed opportunities for preventive therapies. The aim of this research is to investigate sex‐based differences of undiagnosed myocardial infarction in the general population. Methods and Results In the Lifelines Cohort Study, all individuals ≥18 years with a normal baseline ECG were followed from baseline visit till first follow‐up visit (≈5 years, n=97 203). Individuals with infarct‐related changes between baseline and follow‐up ECGs were identified. The age‐ and sex‐specific incidence rates were calculated and sex‐specific cardiac symptoms and predictors of unrecognized myocardial infarction were determined. Follow‐up ECG was available after a median of 3.8 (25th and 75th percentile: 3.0–4.6) years. During follow‐up, 198 women experienced myocardial infarction (incidence rate 1.92 per 1000 persons‐years) compared with 365 men (incidence rate 3.30; P P Conclusions A substantial proportion of myocardial infarctions are unrecognized, especially in women. Opportunities for secondary preventive therapies remain underutilized if myocardial infarction is unrecognized.

Even in the era of percutaneous reperfusion therapy, left ventricular (LV) remodeling after myocardial infarction (MI) leading to heart failure remains a major health concern. Contractile dysfunction of the infarcted myocardium results in an increased pressure load, leading to maladaptive reshaping of the LV. Several percutaneous transcatheter procedures have been developed to deliver devices that restore LV shape and function. The purposes of this review are to discuss the spectrum of transcatheter devices that are available or in development for attenuation of adverse LV remodeling and to critically examine the available evidence for improvement of functional status and cardiovascular outcomes.

Inleiding Patienten met een stil hartinfarct blijven verstoken van secundaire preventie en lopen daarom onnodig risico op een hart- en vaatziekte. Wij onderzochten de prevalentie van stille hartinfarcten en de associatie met risicofactoren en mortaliteit. Methode In de periode 2006-2013 nodigden we alle deelnemers van 18 jaar en ouder aan LifeLines, een cohortonderzoek onder drie generaties in de algemene bevolking van Noord-Nederland, uit om deel te nemen. Op basis van vragenlijstonderzoek en een ecg-meting identificeerden we deelnemers met een doorgemaakt hartinfarct op basis van afwijkingen in het ecg. Als de deelnemer dit hartinfarct vermeld had in de vragenlijst, werd het gecategoriseerd als ‘bekend hartinfarct’; een niet-gemeld infarct werd gedefinieerd als ‘stil hartinfarct’. Resultaten Van de 152.124 deelnemers hadden er 1881 (1,2%) een hartinfarct doorgemaakt. Daaronder waren 431 (22,9%) stille hartinfarcten. Deelnemers met een stil hartinfarct hadden minder vaak hypertensie, hypercholesterolemie of diabetes en rookten minder vaak dan deelnemers met een bekend hartinfarct. Gedurende de follow-up van mediaan 5,4 jaar overleed 6,4% van de deelnemers met een bekend hartinfarct, 4,4% van de deelnemers met een stil hartinfarct en 2,2% van de deelnemers zonder hartinfarct. Conclusie De prevalentie van stille hartinfarcten is substantieel. Patienten met een doorgemaakt stil hartinfarct hebben minder vaak de klassieke cardiovasculaire risicofactoren. Daarnaast zijn stille hartinfarcten geassocieerd met een verhoogd risico op overlijden.

Background: Cardiogenic shock due to severe aortic regurgitation in patients with left ventricle assist devices is a life threatening condition. Here, we consider transcatheter aortic valve implantation as a treatment option. Methods and results: A patient with a left ventricle assist device was presented to us with cardiogenic shock due to severe aortic regurgitation. We successfully implanted a transcatheter aortic valve in emergency setting. The patient recovered and underwent cardiac transplantation three months afterwards. We performed a systematic literature review and identified 10 cases of patients with a left ventricle assist device undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation. In these cases, there was no procedural related mortality reported. In four (40%) patients, transcatheter aortic valve implantation resulted in significant paravalvular aortic regurgitation. In two of these cases it was due to migration of the valve towards the left ventricle. Conclusions: Our case report and review of literature suggests that transcatheter aortic valve implantation is a feasible and lifesaving treatment option for left ventricle assist device patients presenting with severe aortic regurgitation.

Objectives Preclinical and clinical studies suggested cardioprotective effects of metformin treatment. In the GIPS-III trial, 4 months of metformin treatment did not improve left ventricular ejection fraction in patients presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Here, we report the 2-year follow-up results. Methods Between January 2011 and May 2013, 379 STEMI patients without diabetes undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention were randomized to a 4-month treatment with metformin (500 mg twice daily) (N = 191) or placebo (N = 188) in the University Medical Center Groningen. Two-year follow-up data was collected to determine its effect on predefined secondary endpoints: the incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE), its individual components, all-cause mortality, and new-onset diabetes. Results For all 379 patients all-cause mortality data were available. For seven patients (2%) follow-up data on MACE was limited, ranging from 129 to 577 days. All others completed the 2-year follow-up visit. Incidence of MACE was 11 (5.8%) in metformin and 6 (3.2%) in placebo treated patients [hazard ratio (HR) 1.84, confidence interval (CI) 0.68–4.97, P = 0.22]. Three patients died in the metformin group and one in the placebo treatment group. Individual components of MACE were also comparable between both groups. New-onset diabetes mellitus was 34 (17.8%) in metformin and 32 (17.0%) in placebo treated patients (odds ratio 1.15, CI 0.66–1.98, P = 0.84). After multivariable adjustment the incidence of MACE was comparable between the treatment groups (HR 1.02, CI 0.10–10.78, P = 0.99). Conclusions Four months metformin treatment initiated at the time of hospitalization in STEMI patients without diabetes did not exert beneficial long-term effects. Trial registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01217307. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00392-017-1140-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Percutaneous mitral valve repair with the MitraClip is an established treatment for patients with mitral regurgitation (MR) who are inoperable or at high risk for surgery. Atrial Fibrillation (AF) frequently coincides with MR, but only scarce data of the influence of AF on outcome after MitraClip is available. The aim of the current study was to compare the clinical outcome after MitraClip treatment in patients with versus without atrial fibrillation. Between January 2009 and January 2016, all consecutive patients treated with a MitraClip in 5 Dutch centers were included. Outcome measures were survival, symptoms, MR grade, and stroke incidence. In total, 618 patients were treated with a MitraClip. Patients with AF were older, had higher N-terminal B-type natriuretic peptide levels, more tricuspid regurgitation, less often coronary artery disease and a better left ventricular function. Survival of patients treated with the MitraClip was similar for patients with AF (82%) and without AF (non-AF; 85%) after 1 year (p = 0.30), but significantly different after 5-year follow-up (AF 34%; non-AF 47%; p = 0.006). After 1 month, 64% of the patients with AF were in New York Heart Association class I or II, in contrast to 77% of the patients without AF (p = 0.001). The stroke incidence appeared not to be significantly different (AF 1.8%; non-AF 1.0%; p = 0.40). In conclusion, patients with AF had similar 1-year survival, MR reduction, and stroke incidence compared with non-AF patients. However, MitraClip patients with AF had reduced long-term survival and remained more symptomatic compared with those without AF. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Background: Identifying unrecognizedmyocardial infarction (MI) is important for secondary prevention. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence and correlates of unrecognizedMI and the associationwithmortality in the general population.Methods: All participants >= 18 years participating in the Lifelines population, a three- generation Cohort Study and Biobank, were included (n= 152,180). Participants with unrecognized MI were matched with controls without MI (1: 2) based on age and gender. Unrecognized MI was defined when no history of MI was reported in combinationwith electrocardiographic (ECG) signs corresponding to MI. A history ofMIwas defined as a reported history of MI in combination with ECG signs and/ or the use of antithrombotic medication.Results: MI was present in 1881(1.2%) of participants and was unrecognized in 431 (22.9%) participants. Under the age of 50 years, percentages of unrecognized MI relative to the total amount of MI were 34% and 55% in men and women respectively. Compared to recognized MI, classical cardiovascular risk factors were less prevalent in participants with unrecognized MI. During a median follow- up time of 5, 4 and 4 years, 4.4%, 6.4% and 2.2% of participants with unrecognizedMI, recognized MI and without MI died, respectively. In a multivariable logistic regression unrecognized MI was an independent predictor of death.Conclusions: The prevalence of unrecognized MI is substantial and classical cardiovascular risk factors are less prevalent in participants with unrecognized MI. Nevertheless, unrecognized MI is associated with mortality. Risk stratification and early diagnosis is necessary to reduce the morbidity and mortality after MI. (C) 2017 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.

Background We aimed to compare the rate of neurological events in patients with or without cerebral embolic protection (CEP) during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Methods and Results Data on clinical end points including neurological events ≤30 days post-TAVR were collected for all patients who underwent transfemoral TAVR in 2 academic tertiary care institutions. Patients were matched through propensity scoring, which resulted in 333 pairs of patients with versus without CEP out of a total of 831 consecutive patients. The median age was 81 (76-85) years, and the median logistic EuroScore was 14% (9%-20%). The CEP group experienced less neurological events at 24 hours (1% versus 4%; P=0.035) and at 30 days (3% versus 7%; P=0.029). There were significantly more disabling strokes in unprotected patients at 30 days (1% versus 4%; P=0.039). CEP was associated with significantly fewer neurological events at 24 hours after TAVR (odds ratio, 0.20; 95% CI, 0.06-0.73; P=0.015) by multiple regression analysis, while age and valve type did not contribute significantly. Overall, 67% (2 of 3) in the CEP versus 83% (10 of 12) in the non-CEP cohort experienced neurological events in protected areas (ie, not dependent on the left vertebral artery). Conclusions The use of filter-based CEP during TAVR was associated with less neurological events, especially in CEP-protected brain territories.

AIMS: Treatment strategies of high-risk patients with mitral regurgitation (MR) differ between disease based on functional and disease based on degenerative origin. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of surgical, percutaneous, or conservative treatment of MR according to MV mechanism, for high-risk patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: Survival outcomes of MitraClip, surgical, or conservative strategies were compared for 688 high-risk patients with functional MR and 275 with degenerative MR. Cox regression and propensity analyses were used to correct for differences in baseline characteristics. For functional MR, conservative treatment proved to have a higher mortality hazard when compared to MitraClip treatment (hazard ratio [HR] 1.79, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.34 to 2.39, p

Background: We aimed to compare the rate of neurological events in patients with or without cerebral embolic protection (CEP) during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Methods and Results: Data on clinical end points including neurological events ≤30 days post-TAVR were collected for all patients who underwent transfemoral TAVR in 2 academic tertiary care institutions. Patients were matched through propensity scoring, which resulted in 333 pairs of patients with versus without CEP out of a total of 831 consecutive patients. The median age was 81 (76–85) years, and the median logistic EuroScore was 14% (9%–20%). The CEP group experienced less neurological events at 24 hours (1% versus 4%; P =0.035) and at 30 days (3% versus 7%; P =0.029). There were significantly more disabling strokes in unprotected patients at 30 days (1% versus 4%; P =0.039). CEP was associated with significantly fewer neurological events at 24 hours after TAVR (odds ratio, 0.20; 95% CI, 0.06–0.73; P =0.015) by multiple regression analysis, while age and valve type did not contribute significantly. Overall, 67% (2 of 3) in the CEP versus 83% (10 of 12) in the non-CEP cohort experienced neurological events in protected areas (ie, not dependent on the left vertebral artery). Conclusions: The use of filter-based CEP during TAVR was associated with less neurological events, especially in CEP-protected brain territories.

Radial access is the preferential access route in patients undergoing diagnostic coronary angiography. We hypothesised that we could reduce hospital stay and improve patient comfort by accelerated deflation of the radial compression device (Terumo radial band).The aim of this study was to compare accelerated pressure reduction with a standard Terumo radial band protocol with regard to local bleeding complications and reported pain scores after cardiac catheterisation.We performed a single centre prospective randomised trial to compare accelerated care to standard care for patients undergoing diagnostic catheterisation through radial access. Patients in the accelerated care group started deflation after 1 hour, with a 2 ml/10-minute interval. Patients in the standard care group started after 2 hours with additional steps of deflation at 3 and 4 hours.Of the 173 analysed patients 86 received accelerated care and 87 patients standard care. A total of 19 patients had pulsatile bleeding, which occurred similarly in the two groups (standard care 11 vs. accelerated care 8, P=0.47). The time to Terumo radial band removal was on average 129 minutes shorter for accelerated care patients compared to standard care ( P0.01). At 1 hour after Terumo radial band placement, accelerated care patients more often reported pain scores of 0 than standard care patients (89% vs. 74%, P=0.02).There was no increase in local bleedings in the accelerated pressure reduction of the Terumo radial band after diagnostic cardiac catheterisation, increasing patient comfort and reducing hospital stay. These findings will further facilitate the widespread implementation of radial access.

Background— Survival outcome after MitraClip treatment, compared with surgical or conservative treatment, is not well defined. We examined survival after MitraClip treatment in a large multicenter real-life setting. Methods and Results— We retrospectively formed matched high-risk surgically and conservatively treated control cohorts to compare to a high-risk MitraClip cohort. One thousand thirty-six patients were included in 4 Dutch centers, of which 568 were treated with the MitraClip. The observed survival at 5-year follow-up in our MitraClip cohort was low (39.8%) but was comparable to our conservative cohort (40.5%). Observed 5-year survival for our surgical cohort was 76.3%. However, there were significant differences between the baseline characteristics of the 3 studied cohorts, with the MitraClip cohort having the highest comorbidity burden. After adjusting for baseline differences by using Cox regression, the MitraClip and surgical cohorts showed similar survival ratios (hazard ratio, 0.92; 95% confidence interval, 0.67–1.26; P =0.609), whereas both showed a lower mortality hazard when compared with conservative treatment (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% confidence interval, 0.49–0.77; P P Conclusions— This matched analysis suggests a lower mortality hazard for MitraClip intervention in a high-risk population with symptomatic mitral regurgitation when compared with conservative management alone.

Background: In vitro studies have shown the feasibility of coronary lesion grading with computed tomography angiography (CTA), intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) as compared to histology, whereas OCT had the highest discriminatory capacity.Objective: We investigated the ability of CTA and IVUS to differentiate between early and advanced coronary lesions in vivo, OCT serving as standard of reference.Methods: Multimodality imaging was prospectively performed in 30 NSTEMI patients. Plaque characteristics were assessed in 1083 cross-sections of 30 culprit lesions, co-registered among modalities. Absence of plaque, fibrous and fibrocalcific plaque on OCT were defined as early plaque, whereas lipid rich-plaque on OCT was defined as advanced plaque. Odds ratios adjusted for clustering were calculated to assess associations between plaque types on CTA and IVUS with early or advanced plaque.Results: Normal findings on CTA as well as on IVUS were associated with early plaque. Non-calcified, calcified plaques and the napkin ring sign on cm were associated with advanced plaque. On IVUS, fatty and calcified plaques were associated with advanced plaque.Conclusions: In vivo coronary plaque characteristics on CTA and IVUS are associated with plaque characteristics on OCT. Of note, normal findings on CTA and IVUS relate to early lesions on OCT. Nevertheless, multiple plaque features on CTA and IVUS are related to advanced plaques on OCT, which may make it difficult to use qualitative plaque assessment in clinical practice. (C) 2017 Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Contains fulltext : 182726.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access) PURPOSE: Data on MitraClip procedural safety and efficacy in the Netherlands are scarce. We aim to provide an overview of the Dutch MitraClip experience. METHODS: We pooled anonymised demographic and procedural data of 1151 consecutive MitraClip patients, from 13 Dutch hospitals. Data was collected by product specialists in collaboration with local operators. Effect on mitral regurgitation was intra-procedurally assessed by transoesophageal echocardiography. Technical success and device success were defined according to modified definitions of the Mitral Valve Academic Research Consortium (MVARC). RESULTS: Median age was 76 (interquartile range 69-82) years and 59% were males. Patients presented with >/=moderate mitral regurgitation and a predominance of functional mitral regurgitation (72%). Overall, 611 (53%) patients were treated with one Clip, 486 (42%) with >/=2 Clips and 54 (5%) received no Clip. The number of patients with >/=2 Clips increased from 22% in 2009 to 52% in 2016. Device success and technical success were 91 and 95%, respectively, and were consistent over the years. Significant reduction of mitral regurgitation by MitraClip was achieved in 94% of patients and was observed more often in patients with functional mitral regurgitation (95% vs. 91%, p = 0.025). Device time declined from 145 min in 2009 to 55 min in 2016. CONCLUSION: MitraClip experience in the Netherlands is growing with excellent technical success and device success. Over the years, device time decreased and more patients were treated with >/=2 Clips.

Importance Metformin treatment is associated with improved outcome after myocardial infarction in patients with diabetes. In animal experimental studies metformin preserves left ventricular function. Objective To evaluate the effect of metformin treatment on preservation of left ventricular function in patients without diabetes presenting with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Design, Setting, and Participants Double-blind, placebo-controlled study conducted among 380 patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for STEMI at the University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands, between January 1, 2011, and May 26, 2013. Interventions Metformin hydrochloride (500 mg) (n = 191) or placebo (n = 189) twice daily for 4 months. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary efficacy measure was left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) after 4 months, assessed by magnetic resonance imaging. A secondary efficacy measure was the N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) concentration after 4 months. The incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE; the combined end point of death, reinfarction, or target-lesion revascularization) was recorded until 4 months as a secondary efficacy measure. Results At 4 months, all patients were alive and none were lost to follow-up. LVEF was 53.1% (95% CI, 51.6%-54.6%) in the metformin group (n = 135), compared with 54.8% (95% CI, 53.5%-56.1%) ( P = .10) in the placebo group (n = 136). NT-proBNP concentration was 167 ng/L in the metformin group (interquartile range [IQR], 65-393 ng/L) and 167 ng/L in the placebo group (IQR, 74-383 ng/L) ( P = .66). MACE were observed in 6 patients (3.1%) in the metformin group and in 2 patients (1.1%) in the placebo group ( P = .16). Creatinine concentration (79 µmol/L [IQR, 70-87 µmol/L] vs 79 µmol/L [IQR, 72-89 µmol/L], P = .61) and glycated hemoglobin (5.9% [IQR, 5.6%-6.1%] vs 5.9% [IQR, 5.7%-6.1%], P = .15) were not significantly different between both groups. No cases of lactic acidosis were observed. Conclusions and Relevance Among patients without diabetes presenting with STEMI and undergoing primary PCI, the use of metformin compared with placebo did not result in improved LVEF after 4 months. The present findings do not support the use of metformin in this setting. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier:NCT01217307.

In selected patients, mitral valve repair using MitraClip® (Abbott, USA) is a relatively safe and well-tolerated treatment for significant mitral regurgitation [1–3]. We describe a 56-year-old female with congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (ccTGA) and dextrocardia (Fig. 1a) with recurrent episodes of heart failure caused by a combination of systemic (right) ventricular failure and tricuspid valve regurgitation (Fig. 1b). ccTGA is a rare congenital heart defect with discordance at both the atrioventricular and the ventriculoarterial level. In 20 % of the patients dextrocardia exists. Moderate to severe tricuspid valve regurgitation has a clear impact on cardiac prognosis [4]. We performed a percutaneous tricuspid valve repair using MitraClip® in 2014 (off-label use) (Fig. 1c). Six months after valve clipping, the tricuspid regurgitation was mild and there was an important reduction in heart failure symptoms. Mitral clipping may be feasible in selected patients with ccTGA. As far as we know, this is the first percutaneous tricuspid valve repair using MitraClip® in a patient with ccTGA and dextrocardia.

Functional and degenerative mitral regurgitation (MR) is common among the elderly with a prevalence of approximately 7% [(1)][1]. Many are denied for surgery because of high risks, but suitable patients may benefit from percutaneous mitral valve repair (MitraClip, Abbott Vascular, Santa Clara

The efficacy of cerebral embolic protection (CEP) during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is unresolved. We aimed to compare the rates of neurological events and all-cause mortality after TAVR in patients with or without CEP. We studied all patients who underwent transfemoral TAVR with

The case is presented of a 75-year-old man referred for transcatheter aortic valve implantation. During the procedure the prosthetic aortic valve became dislocated into the left ventricle shortly after expansion. The subsequent steps taken to reposition the valve using only materials at hand are described.

This editorial refers to ‘Patient selection criteria and midterm clinical outcome for MitraClip therapy in patients with severe mitral regurgitation and severe congestive heart failure,’ by M. Neuss et al., published in this issue on pages 786–795. Mitral regurgitation is common in patients with advanced heart failure, and is associated with poor outcome. Mitral valve surgery has traditionally been the treatment of choice, but a proportion of patients with severe mitral regurgitation and severe heart failure are inoperable or their operative risk is considered too high. Such patients will in general be treated with conventional heart failure drugtreatment,whiletheroleofmitralvalvesurgeryisquestionable, particularly in those in whom no additional coronary surgery is performed. 1 Use of CRT is another treatment option in severe heart failure patients who have significant mitral regurgitation, but only in those with a broad QRS complex. 1

We present a case of a 51-year-old male patient with severe mitral regurgitation and a dilated left ventricle with a poor function (LVEF 15%). The mitral regurgitation initially was considered to be due to annular dilatation and malcoaptation. Mitral surgery was considered too riskful. The patient was accepted for …