RESUMEN
Thromboembolic events have been reported as frequent and fearsome complications in patients affected by SARS-CoV-2 infection. Patients undergoing cardiac valve replacement exhibit an increased risk of valve thrombosis, even with prosthetic biological valves, and especially in the first period after surgery. The management of these patients is challenging and requires prompt interventions. We report the case of a young woman infected by SARS-CoV-2 three months after double cardiac valve replacement that developed a massive prosthetic biological valve thrombosis despite optimal anticoagulant therapy.
RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: In nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) patients at high bleeding risk, oral anticoagulants (OAC) may be contraindicated, and percutaneous left atrial appendage (LAA) closure has been advocated. However, following percutaneous procedure, either OAC or dual antiplatelet treatment is required. In this study, we present our experience in treating nonvalvular AF patients at high bleeding risk with thoracoscopic LAA closure with no subsequent antithrombotic therapy. METHODS: From April 2019 to January 2020, 20 consecutive AF patients, mean age 75.1 years, 16 (80%) males, underwent thoracoscopic LAA closure as a stand-alone procedure, using an epicardial clip device. OAC and antiplatelet therapy were contraindicated. Mean CHA2DS2-VASc score was 3.61, and the mean HAS-BLED score was 4.42. Successful LAA closure was assessed by transesophageal echocardiography. Primary endpoints were complete LAA closure (no residual LAA flow), operative complications, and all-cause mortality; secondary endpoints were 30-day and 6-month complications (death, ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, transient ischemic attack, any bleeding). Mean follow-up was 6 ± 4 months. RESULTS: Complete LAA closure was achieved in all patients. No operative clip-related complications or deaths occurred. At follow-up, freedom from postoperative complications was 95% and from any cerebrovascular events was 100%. Overall survival rate was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: In nonvalvular AF patients at high bleeding risk (HAS-BLED score >3), thoracoscopic LAA closure appears to be a valid alternative to percutaneous techniques not requiring dual antiplatelet or OAC treatment. Apparently, external LAA clipping minimizes the risk of thromboembolic events as compared with percutaneous procedures.
Asunto(s)
Apéndice Atrial , Fibrilación Atrial , Procedimientos Quirúrgicos Cardíacos , Accidente Cerebrovascular , Tromboembolia , Anciano , Apéndice Atrial/diagnóstico por imagen , Apéndice Atrial/cirugía , Fibrilación Atrial/complicaciones , Fibrilación Atrial/cirugía , Ecocardiografía Transesofágica , Humanos , Masculino , Accidente Cerebrovascular/epidemiología , Accidente Cerebrovascular/etiología , Accidente Cerebrovascular/prevención & control , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
Cardiotoxicity as a result of cancer treatment is a novel and serious public health issue that has a significant impact on a cancer patient's management and outcome. The coexistence of cancer and cardiac disease in the same patient is more common because of aging population and improvements in the efficacy of antitumor agents. Left ventricular dysfunction is the most typical manifestation and can lead to heart failure. Left ventricular ejection fraction measurement by echocardiography and multigated radionuclide angiography is the most common diagnostic approach to detect cardiac damage, but it identifies a late manifestation of myocardial injury. Early non-invasive imaging techniques are needed for the diagnosis and monitoring of cardiotoxic effects. Although echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance are the most commonly used imaging techniques for cardiotoxicity assessment, greater attention is focused on new nuclear cardiologic techniques, which can identify high-risk patients in the early stage and visualize the pathophysiologic process at the tissue level before clinical manifestation. The aim of this review is to summarize the role of nuclear imaging techniques in the non-invasive detection of myocardial damage related to antineoplastic therapy at the reversible stage, focusing on the current role and future perspectives of nuclear imaging techniques and molecular radiotracers in detection and monitoring of cardiotoxicity.
RESUMEN
Endothelium plays a key role in maintenance of vascular homeostasis. Cardiovascular risk factors promote development of endothelial dysfunction, characterized by increased vasoconstriction and by procoagulant/pro-inflammatory endothelial activities. In coronary artery, endothelium-dependent dilation improves blood flow, while the occurrence of endothelial dysfunction reduces myocardial perfusion, so new methods have been developed for assessment of endothelial function in coronary and peripheral arteries. The quantitative angiography with intracoronary infusion of acetylcholine remains the "gold standard" to assess the endothelium-dependent vasodilatation. The use of this technique is restricted to patients who have a clinical indication for coronary angiography, so new imaging methods have been considered for noninvasive diagnosis of coronary microvascular disease, such as magnetic resonance imaging phase contrast and positron emission tomography. The advent of new techniques has facilitated testing of endothelial dysfunction in peripheral arteries with non-invasive methods. This review presents available in-vivo and ex-vivo methods for evaluating endothelial function with special focus on more recent ones. The diagnostic tools include local vasodilatation by venous occlusion plethysmography and assessment of flow-mediated dilatation, arterial pulse wave analysis and pulse amplitude tonometry, laser Doppler flowmetry. The possibility to detect endothelial dysfunction as an early marker of atherosclerosis makes these instruments useful for early stratification of patients at risk for cardiovascular events. Aim of this review is to summarize the characteristics of non-invasive assessment of endothelial function in order to optimize cardiovascular risk management.