ESC heart failure
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Soluble suppression of tumourigenicity 2 (sST2) and catestatin (CST) reflect myocardial fibrosis and sympathetic overactivity during the acute worsening of heart failure (AWHF). We aimed to determine serum levels and associations of sST2 and CST with in-hospital death as well as the association between sST2 and CST among AWHF patients. ⋯ Elevated sST2 and CST levels, reflecting two distinct pathophysiological pathways in heart failure, might indicate impending clinical deterioration among AWHF patients during hospitalization and facilitate prognosis beyond traditional biomarkers regarding the risk of in-hospital death (CATSTAT-HF ClinicalTrials.gov Number NCT03389386).
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Observational Study
Direct oral anticoagulants compared to vitamin K antagonist for the management of left ventricular thrombus.
Left ventricular (LV) thrombus is increasingly detected in patients with and without ischaemic heart disease due to the increased availability of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Risk factors include anterior ST elevation myocardial infarction, delayed reperfusion therapy, and non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy with severe LV systolic dysfunction. We aimed to report the characteristics and outcomes of patients with LV thrombus treated with either vitamin K antagonist (VKA) or direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) with a view to describing differences in efficacy, specifically, subsequent thromboembolic events, thrombus resolution, and also side effects of therapy including clinically significant bleeding. ⋯ Our data suggest that DOACs are likely to be at least as effective and safe as VKA for stroke prevention in patients with LV thrombus and, despite their lack of a licence for this indication, are therefore likely to represent a reasonable and more convenient option for this setting. The optimal timing and type of anticoagulation for LV thrombus, as well as the role of screening for high-risk patients, should be tested in prospective, randomized trials.
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Heart rate reduction therapy using ivabradine, a selective inhibitor of the funny current of the sinoatrial node, is widely used in the systolic heart failure cohort. However, the optimal target of heart rate remains controversial. The association between heart rate and 'overlap' between E-wave and A-wave in the pulse wave transmitral flow Doppler echocardiography might be a key to find the ideal heart rate in each individual. ⋯ We proposed a novel formula using deceleration time to estimate ideal heart rate that achieves a zero overlap between E-wave and A-wave in patients with systolic heart failure. Prognostic impact of the formula-guided heart rate optimization should be studied.
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Comorbidities are highly prevalent in patients with heart failure (HF) and affect clinical outcome. The CHA2 DS2 -VASc score is a validated score to estimate assessment of thromboembolic risk in patients with atrial fibrillation. ⋯ The CHA2 DS2 -VASc score has a significant impact on outcome in HF patients.