Journal of the American Heart Association
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Background Offspring of parents with premature cardiovascular disease (CVD) have an increased risk of developing subclinical and clinical CVD. It is unclear whether this association differs by vascular beds in the offspring or by the age cut points used to define premature parental CVD. Methods and Results Using 3 generations of Framingham Heart Study participants, we assessed prevalent coronary artery calcification, the progression of coronary artery calcification over 6.1 years (median), carotid intima media thickness and the ankle-brachial index in 1046 offspring of parents with premature CVD before age 70 years, in 1618 offspring with both parents free of CVD and in 923 offspring with parents with CVD after age 70 years. ⋯ The association with the progression of coronary artery calcification was less consistent. Conclusions Parental premature CVD is associated with increased subclinical CVD burden in the offspring, with consistent relations across different vascular beds and for different age cut points used to define premature parental CVD. Future studies should evaluate whether screening for subclinical CVD traits is warranted in offspring with premature parental CVD.
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Background Increasing studies demonstrated that the cardiac involvements are related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Thus, we investigated the clinical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 and further determined the risk factors for cardiac involvement in them. Methods and Results We analyzed data from 102 consecutive laboratory-confirmed and hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (52 women aged 19-87 years). ⋯ Elevated CRP levels, old age, underlying comorbidities, and novel coronavirus pneumonia severity are the main risk factors for cardiac involvement in patients with COVID-19. More attention should be given to cardiovascular protection during COVID-19 treatment for mortality reduction. Registration URL: https://www.chictr.org; Unique identifier: ChiCTR2000029955.
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E-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury was recognized in the United States in the summer of 2019 and is typified by acute respiratory distress, shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, and fever, associated with vaping. It can mimic many of the manifestations of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). ⋯ Lung lesions included thickening of the alveolar wall with foci of inflammation, red blood cell congestion, obliteration of alveolar spaces, and pneumonitis in some cases; bronchi showed accumulation of fibrin, inflammatory cells, and mucus plugs. Electronic cigarette users should be cautioned about the potential danger of operating electronic cigarette units at high settings; the possibility that certain heating elements may be deleterious; and that E-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury may not be dependent upon tetrahydrocannabinol, vitamin E, or nicotine.
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Atrial Arrhythmias in Clinically Manifest Cardiac Sarcoidosis: Incidence, Burden, Predictors, and Outcomes.
Background Recent data have suggested a substantial incidence of atrial arrhythmias (AAs) in cardiac sarcoidosis (CS). Our study aims were to first assess how often AAs are the presenting feature of previously undiagnosed CS. Second, we used prospective follow-up data from implanted devices to investigate AA incidence, burden, predictors, and response to immunosuppression. ⋯ Second, AAs occurred in a minority of patients at follow-up; the burden was very low in most patients. Only 2 patients had clinically significant AA burden, and both had a reduction after CS was treated. Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; unique identifier NCT01477359.