European journal of clinical investigation
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · May 2022
Poor self-reported sleep is associated with risk factors for cardiovascular disease: a cross-sectional analysis in half a million adults.
Sleep is known to affect cardiovascular health, but some controversy exists on the independent association between different sleep characteristics (duration, restfulness, difficulties falling asleep) and specific risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). We aimed to assess the association between self-reported sleep characteristics and the likelihood of major CVD risk factors. ⋯ Poor sleep was associated with a higher likelihood of presenting major CVD risk factors. These findings might support the importance of monitoring and improving sleep patterns for primary CVD prevention.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · May 2022
Mechanical aortic valve prostheses offer a survival benefit in 50-65-year-olds: AUTHEARTVISIT study.
The present population-based cohort study investigated long-term mortality after surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR) with bioprosthetic (B) or mechanical aortic valve prostheses (M) in a European social welfare state. ⋯ Patients aged 50-65 years who underwent M-AVR had better long-term survival, and a lower risk of reoperation and myocardial infarction. Even though anticoagulation is crucial in patients with M-AVR, we did not observe significantly increased stroke rates in patients with M-AVR. This evident survival benefit in recipients of mechanical aortic valve prostheses aged <65 years critically questions current guideline recommendations.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · May 2022
Peripheral blood natural killer cells in sarcoidosis are associated with early cardiac involvement.
To evaluate the distribution of circulating immune cell subsets in peripheral blood of patients with sarcoidosis and investigate if there is an association with an underlying cardiac involvement. ⋯ We found that low NK cell count in peripheral blood of patients with sarcoidosis is associated with cardiac involvement, and the number of NK-T cells correlates with CMR findings indicative of myocardial inflammation. This finding might have a potential clinical application in detecting clinically silent cardiac involvement in sarcoidosis and may also suggest potential targets for therapeutic interventions.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · May 2022
Genetic and epigenetic alterations of cyclic AMP response element modulator in rheumatoid arthritis.
Genetic and epigenetic factors are strongly associated with the autoimmune disease rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Cyclic AMP response element modulator (CREM), a gene related to immune system regulation, has been implicated in various immune-mediated inflammatory processes, although it remains unknown whether CREM is involved in RA. ⋯ Collectively, our results indicate that CREM hypomethylation and CREM upregulation occur in RA and that CREM variants are involved in the development of serositis and lymphadenopathy in RA. This study highlights the novel roles of CREM in RA pathophysiology.