Kardiologiya最新文献

Aim: Comparative analysis of the height of atherosclerotic plaques (AP) in the descending thoracic aorta (TA) according to two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), and contrast-enhanced multislice computed tomography (MSCT).

Material and methods: The TA was examined using 2D, 3D TEE and contrast-enhanced MSCT in 34 patients (20 men and 14 women aged 68 [62; 71] years). AP heights were compared using the Bland-Altman method and the Spearman correlation analysis. This was a blinded comparative study which assessed the AP morphometry using each of the radiation modalities without knowing the results of the method being compared.

Results: 100 APs were examined in the descending TA. The mean height of all analyzed APs in the descending TA was 2.2 mm [2; 2.7] for 2D TEE, 3.1 mm [2.7; 3.55] for 3D TEE, and 3.05 mm [2.55; 3.55] for MSCT. The AP heights measured with 2D TEE was statistically significantly smaller than the heights of similar APs measured either with 3D TEE or MSCT. The mean difference (bias) was 0.88±0.34 mm between 2D and 3D TEE, and 0.83±0.41 mm between 2D TEE and MSCT. The correlation coefficients for the AP heights were r=0.87 (p<0.001) between 2D and 3D TEE and r=0.86 (p<0.001) between 2D TEE and MSCT. There were no differences in the height of similar APs between 3D TEE and MSCT.

Conclusion: The three-dimensional reconstruction of AP in the TA by TEE is more accurate for quantitative assessment of AP than a two-dimensional study.

Based on the available modern medical literature, the article summarizes data on the morpho-functional significance of epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) in health and heart failure, analyzes the likelihood and reliability of the formation of the obesity paradox, and also discusses its possible morpho-functional mechanisms. The authors reviewed and analyzed the consequences of the obesity paradox in the aspect of the normal EAT phenotype protectivity. The review proposed ways of further research in this direction aimed at a deep anatomical and physiological analysis and at determining the morpho-functional role of EAT in the adaptive mechanisms of myocardial trophic provision, which may be an important part of the pathogenetic connection between obesity and CHF and, therefore, can improve outcomes in such patients.

Aim: Identification of interleukin-6 (IL-6) signaling pathways in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).

Material and methods: The diversity of IL-6 effects is due to the presence of classical signaling and trans-signaling pathways. The study included 164 patients with CHF hospitalized for acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF), of which 129 had reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (HFrEF), and 35 had preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Blood concentrations of IL-6, soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R), soluble transducer protein gp130 (sgp130), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were measured.

Results: Patients with HFpEF had lower concentrations of IL-6 (6.15 [2.78, 10.65] pg/ml) and hsCRP (11.27 [5.84, 24.40] mg/ml) than patients with HFrEF (9.20 [4.70; 15.62] pg/ml and 17.23 [8.70; 34.51 mg/ml], respectively). In contrast, concentrations of rIL-6R were higher in HFpEF (59.06 [40.00; 75.85] ng/ml) than in HFrEF (49.15 [38.20; 64.89] ng/ml). Concentrations of sgp130 were not significantly different. In patients with HFrEF, positive correlations were found between the concentrations of IL-6 and hsCRP, IL-6 and rIL-6R, and IL-6 and sgp130, while in patients with HFpEF, there was a correlation only between IL-6 and hsCRP, which appeared stronger than in patients with HFrEF (r=0.698; p<0.001 and r=0.297; p<0.05, respectively).

Conclusion: Classical IL-6 signaling and trans-signaling are expressed to different degrees in patients with HFrEF and HFpEF in ADHF. The results of the study supplement the existing knowledge about the pathogenesis of inflammation in CHF and may contribute to the development of new methods and approaches to the treatment of the disease.

Aim: To study the predictive capabilities of the MADIT-ICD Benefit Score calculator in assessing the benefit of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) placement for the primary prevention of sudden cardiac death (SCD).

Material and methods: This study included 388 patients with NYHA II-IV functional class chronic heart failure (CHF) with a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤35 % who underwent ICD placement for the primary prevention of SCD. Patients were followed up for two years to record the endpoints of first-time paroxysmal sustained ventricular tachyarrhythmia (VT) or non-arrhythmic death.

Results: According to the results of calculation with the MADIT-ICD Benefit Score calculator, 276 (71 %) patients had a high risk of VT (score ≥7) and 150 (39 %) had a high risk of non-arrhythmic death (score ≥3). 336 (94%) patients would benefit from an ICD: 148 (38 %) with a high level of probability and 218 (56 %) with a medium level of probability. According to the incidence of endpoints, VT episodes predominated in the low-ICD benefit group (36%), while the high-ICD benefit group had a relatively high incidence of non-arrhythmic death (12%).

Conclusion: The results obtained for a cohort of Russian patients with CHF and reduced LVEF indicated that the use of the MADIT-ICD Benefit Score in routine clinical practice does not improve the stratification of SCD risk compared to the traditional approach to selecting patients with CHF for ICD based on the LVEF value.

Aim: Vitamin D deficiency has a high prevalence in the population and is highly associated with cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate subclinical left ventricular (LV) function using strain analysis in healthy individuals with vitamin D deficiency.

Material and methods: 113 healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study (age, 44.1±7 yrs, 34 male). All volunteers underwent two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) speckle tracking echocardiography after conventional echocardiographic evaluation. The subjects were divided into two groups according to their vitamin D concentrations. 61 subjects with vitamin D less than 20 ng / ml were included in the vitamin D deficiency group. The baseline clinical characteristics, laboratory measurements, echocardiographic data, including 2D and 3D global longitudinal strain (GLS) values, were compared between the groups.

Results: The 2D GLS values of the subjects with vitamin D deficiency were lower (mathematically less negative) than subjects with normal vitamin D (-16.1±3.4 vs -19.3±4.2, p<0.001). Similarly, the 3D GLS results were lower in subjects with vitamin D deficiency (-18.3±5.2 vs -24.1±6.9, p<0.001). A significant correlation was detected between the vitamin D concentrations and the 2D and 3D GLS measurements. (r=0.765 and r=0.628, respectively, p<0.001). Vitamin D was found to be an independent predictor of impaired 2D and 3D LV GLS (p=0.031, p=0.023, respectively).

Conclusion: Subclinical LV dysfunction in healthy individuals with vitamin D deficiency was demonstrated by 3D and 2D strain analysis. Due to potential negative effects of vitamin D deficiency on cardiac function, more attention should be paid to healthy individuals with vitamin D deficiency.

Aim: The MAPH score is a new score that combines mean platelet volume (MPV), hematocrit, and total protein, which are markers of whole blood viscosity (WBV). We aimed to investigate the relationship between the MAPH score and the coronary slow flow phenomenon (CSF).

Material and methods: A total of 201 patients were included in the study. 105 had CSF and 96 had normal coronary flow (NCF). Coronary flow was measured by the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction frame count (TFC) method. The patients' MPV, age, hematocrit, and total protein were recorded. High (HSR) and low shear rates (LSR) were calculated, based on total protein and hematocrit values. Cut-off values for CSF were determined using the Youden's index, and the score was determined as 0 or 1 according to the cut-off values. The sum of these scores was the MAPH score.

Results: The mean age of the patients included in the study was 51.1±7.9 (n=201, 54.2 % male). Hyperlipidemia, DM, and HT rates of both groups were similar, but the mean age of the CSF group was higher (p=0.773; p=0.549; p=0.848; p <0.001, respectively). Total protein, MPV, hematocrit, HSR and LSR were higher in the CSF group (p< 0.001, for all values). Comparative receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that the performance of the MAPH score in predicting CSF is better than the performance of these parameters separately.

Conclusion: A new score, the MAPH score, may be used to identify the presence of CSF.

Ticagrelor is a potent, direct-acting, and reversible P2Y12‑adenosine diphosphate receptor blocker. It has a rapid onset of action and an intense and consistent platelet reactivity inhibition that has been demonstrated to be superior to clopidogrel in decreasing major adverse events in acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Although ticagrelor is well tolerated in ACS patients, it has side effects, such as dyspnea and bradyarrhythmia, as reported in the Platelet Inhibition and Patient Outcomes (PLATO) study. Furthermore, it was reported that ticagrelor's bradyarrhythmic potential was transient and not clinically significant beyond the acute initiation phase. Nor was there a difference in rates of syncope or need for pacemaker insertion during 30 days of follow-up. Here we report a case of ticagrelor associated with Cheyne-Stokes respiration and asystolic ventricular standstill in a patient with ACS who required resuscitation and insertion of a temporary pacemaker.

Aim: To evaluate the features of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction with the Aslanger pattern in comparison with traditional forms of inferior myocardial infarction in metabolic syndrome.

Material and methods: This study included 30 patients with inferior myocardial infarction in the presence of metabolic syndrome: 9 patients with the Aslanger electrocardiographic pattern (group 1, age 59.7 [58.4; 63.1] years) and the rest with one of the traditional forms (control group, 59.9 [57.2; 63.8] years, matched by all criteria of metabolic syndrome). All patients underwent primary percutaneous intervention with assessment of the angiographic picture. The magnitude of ST-segment elevation was measured in lead III at the J point and following 0.06 seconds, and the optimal threshold value of this indicator was determined for a new picture of myocardial infarction.

Results: The infarct-related artery in the Aslanger pattern was more often the circumflex artery (p=0.0099), and coronary thrombosis was characterized by a lower TIMI thrombus grade (p=0.014). SYNTAX values for the Aslanger pattern and for the traditional picture of inferior infarction with ST elevation in lead II≥III were higher than for a similar picture with ST elevation in lead III>II. The level of cTnI at admission (p=0.013) and after 24 hours (p=0.0017), the platelet count (p=0.0011) and mean volume (p=0.0047) in group 1 had smaller values than with traditional inferior infarction. The ST elevation at J point and at J+0.06 s point for lead III with the Aslanger pattern was significantly lower than values of such shift in lead III>II and lead II≥III with traditional inferior infarction (p<0.001). An elevation value ≤1.5 mm at J point +0.06 s was a predictor of infarction with the Aslanger pattern. Constructing the ROC curve made it possible to determine that with the Aslanger pattern, the best cutoff value for this index is 2 mm.

Conclusion: Myocardial infarction with the Aslanger pattern as compared with traditional lower infarction in metabolic syndrome is characterized by specific individual angiographic signs, lower ST segment elevation, cTnI level, and thrombotic disorders.

Aim: To study how physicians' commitment to the basic provisions of clinical guidelines (CGs) for the diagnosis and treatment of chronic heart failure (CHF) has changed over the two years of the document existence.

Material and methods: An anonymous survey was performed for 263 physicians (204 cardiologists, 46 internists and 13 other specialists) who were trained in advanced training programs in 2022. The questionnaire included questions regarding self-assessment of the respondents' professional knowledge, their attitude to the role of CGs in everyday practice and ideas about methods for treatment of CHF.

Results: Respondents gave 60.6 % correct answers to questions related to the treatment of CHF. More than 70% correct answers were given by 42.7% of cardiologists and 17.4% of internists. Compared to 2020, the proportion of cardiologists who gave more than 70 % correct answers increased significantly (p<0.05). CGs were considered mandatory by 26.2% and important or sometimes useful by 71.5% of respondents. Cardiologists considered CGs mandatory more frequently than internists (29.9 and 15.2 %, respectively; p=0.04). The mean number of correct answers was greater in the subgroup of respondents who considered CGs mandatory (p<0.001). More than 70% correct answers were given by only 43.8% of cardiologists, who considered themselves fully informed and able to advise colleagues on complex issues of diagnosis and treatment of CHF, and 40.6% of physicians who considered their knowledge acceptable for managing patients with CHF.

Conclusion: The majority of physician consider CGs an important methodological document but only a little more than 25 % are aware that CGs are mandatory. Cardiologists are better informed than internists about the principal provisions of National Clinical Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of CHF, but the average level of physician knowledge remains low.

Aim: To determine the correlation between the results of the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) and peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak) for populations of patients with chronic heart failure with pronounced clinical and demographic differences; to study a possibility of indirect measurement of VO2peak based on the results of 6MWT using the formulas available from the literature.

Material and methods: Two databases were analyzed: 50 patients included in the AEROFIT study (group A), and 31 patients from the Almazov National Medical Research Center (group B). The inclusion criteria were the availability of data from the cardiopulmonary stress test and the 6MWT. The possibility of predicting VO2peak was calculated based on the results of 6MWT using the formulas reported in the literature (L. P. Cahalin et al., 1996; R. M. Ross et al., 2010; R. A. Adedoyin et al., 2010). The predictive accuracy of the models was assessed using the coefficient of determination (R2). The relationship between functional and clinical-demographic indicators was assessed using the Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis.

Results: The study groups differed significantly in all parameters, except for the proportion of men and the mean VO2peak. Group B patients were 20 years younger than group A patients, had a lower left ventricular ejection fraction (24.06±7.75 and 41.52±10.48 %, respectively; p<0.001), and covered a 130 m shorter distance in the 6MWT. Despite the absence of a significant difference in VO2peak between groups A and B (13.6 and 13.1 ml / kg / min, respectively; p=0.6581), 61 % of group B patients and 20% of group A belonged to Weber functional class IV. In group A, the 6MWT distance correlated closely with VO2peak (R=0.78; p<0.01) and weakly with age (R=0.4) and body mass index (R=0.3). In group B, the 6MWT distance correlated only with VO2peak (R=0.77; p<0.01). For group A, the R.M. Ross et al. model demonstrated high accuracy in determining the mean VO2peak value with a 0.06% prediction error normalized to measured VO2peak. For group B, none of the models showed satisfactory predictive accuracy. The Ross and Cahalin models showed the best coefficients of determination for groups A and B: Group A, Ross et al. (R2=0.58) and Cahalin et al. (R2=0.59); Group B, Ross et al. (R2=0.59) and Cahalin et al. (R2=0.6).

Conclusion: In two groups of patients with a statistically insignificant difference in the mean values of VO2peak, the mean values of 6MWT distance were significantly different, although these indicators correlated closely. The VO2peak prediction models showed satisfactory accuracy for estimation of mean VO2, but poor accuracy for estimation of individual values. A better predictive accuracy is determined by similar clinical and demographic characteristics between the training and testing populations, and likely also by models based on larger, more diversified populatio