Objective: Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a serious complication in patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (p-PCI). An interarm systolic blood pressure difference (IASBD) ≥10 mmHg has been identified as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease and mortality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of the IASBD for the risk of CIN in patients with STEMI who underwent p-PCI.
Method: We prospectively investigated 2120 consecutive patients who were hospitalized with a diagnosis of STEMI and underwent p-PCI. A relative increase in serum creatinine levels of ≥ 25% or an absolute increase of ≥ 0.5 mg/dL from baseline within 72 h of contrast exposure was defined as CIN. The IASBD was calculated on admission to the emergency department. The risk of CIN was evaluated.
Results: The incidence of CIN was 6.6% (n = 139). The patients were divided into 2 groups based on the development of CIN. Age (p = .001), baseline creatinine levels (p < .001), DM (p < .001), HT (p < .001) and anemia (p = .001) were higher in patients with CIN. An IASBD ≥10 mmHg was noted in 13 (9.3%) patients in the CIN group and 83 (4.1%) (p = .001) in the non-CIN group (Table 1). According to the multivariate analysis, the IASBD was found to be a predictor of CIN development (OR: 2.36, 95% CI: 1.42-3.90, p: 0.001).
Conclusion: The IASBD on admission can be a potential predictor of CIN development in patients with STEMI who underwent p-PCI.
Background: There is strong evidence that oxidative stress and inflammation may contribute to the coronary artery ectasia (CAE) pathophysiology. Recent studies have shown that serum irisin and adropin levels are associated with oxidative stress and inflammation. In the light of this information, we aimed to investigate the possible relationship between serum irisin, adropin levels and CAE.
Patients & methods: A total of 50 consecutive patients with CAE and 50 consecutive patients with normal coronary anatomy (NCA) were enrolled into the study. Serum irisin, adropin and other clinical parameters were compared between groups.
Results: Adropin (p < .001) and irisin (p < .001) levels were lower in the CAE group. Low adropin (p = .014) and irisin (p < .001) levels were detected as an independent risk factor for CAE in multiple regression analysis. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that serum adropin (p < .001) and irisin (p < .001) leves was significant predictor of CAE.
Conclusions: The results of this study showed that serum irisin and adropin level was lower in the CAE group than in the NCA group. Irisin and adropin could play a role in the pathogenesis of CAE.
Background: Nano selenium (Nano Sel) has many therapeutic properties including antioxidant, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory actions.
Objective: Impacts of Nano Sel administration against cardiac fibrosis and heart and aorta tissue oxidative damage observed in hypothyroid rats were explored.
Methods: The animals were randomly grouped and treated as: 1) Control; 2) Propylthiouracil (PTU) in which PTU was added to the drinking water (0.05%) to induce hypothyroidism; 3-5) PTU-Nano Sel 50, PTU-Nano Sel 100, and PTU-Nano Sel 150 groups, which received daily PTU plus 50,100 or 150 µg/kg of Nano Sel for 6 weeks intraperitoneally. The heart and aorta tissues were removed under deep anesthesia and then biochemical parameters including malondialdehyde (MDA), total thiol groups, catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD), as well as cardiac fibrosis were assessed.
Results: Hypothyroidism induced by PTU was remarkably associated with myocardial hypertrophy and perivascular fibrosis in Masson's trichrome staining. Moreover, hypothyroidism increased MDA level, while it subtracted total thiol group content and activity of SOD and CAT. Treatment with Nano Sel recovered hypothyroidism-induced cardiac fibrosis in the histological assessment. Nano Sel also promoted CAT and SOD activity and thiol content, whereas alleviated MDA levels in the heart and aorta tissues.
Conclusion: Results propose that administration of Nano Sel exerts a protective role in the cardio vascular system via preventing cardiac fibrosis and inhibiting oxidative stress.
Background and aim: Preeclampsia (PE), a multifactorial disorder, is the main cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. Genetic polymorphisms in key proteins involved in the immune system may change the risk of PE risk. In this study, we examined the association of two rs2232365 and rs3761548 common polymorphisms of the FOXP3 immune response gene with PE susceptibility by a meta-analysis which was followed by an in-silico analysis.
Materials and methods: Through a systematic search in databases including PubMed, MEDLINE, Google Scholar, and Science Direct, we find eligible studies for meta-analysis. Some bioinformatics tools were used to detect the impact of rs2232365 and rs3761548 polymorphisms on the FOXP3 gene function.
Results: Our data revealed that there is a significant association between rs3761548 polymorphism and decreased risk of PE. In addition, we observed a significant association between rs2232365 and increased risk of mild preeclampsia. Also, our bioinformatic analysis showed that both rs2232365 and rs3761548 polymorphisms could affect FOXP3 gene function.
Conclusion: Based on our findings, the rs3761548 genetic variation could be a protective factor against PE risk. While the rs2232365 polymorphism may be a genetic risk factor for mild preeclampsia. Therefore, as a preliminary study, these genetic variations could be considered molecular biomarkers for PE disorder.
Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate relationships between insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism at angiotensin-converting enzyme gene (ACE) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as their interactions on blood pressure.
Methods: Variants of ACE I/D were identified by polymerase chain reaction method and verified by DNA sequencing. PTSD symptoms were assessed by the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) based on DSM-IV-TR criteria among high school students at 6 months after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake.
Results: Female subjects were found to have higher prevalence of PTSD and PCL-C scores than male counterparts in the II homozygotes (p = .038 for PTSD and p = .003 for PCL-C scores) and the ID heterozygotes (p = .000 for PTSD and p = .000 for PCL-C scores), but not in the DD homozygotes. Male subjects with the ID (p = .046) or the DD genotype (p = .039) had lower pulse pressure (PP) than the male II homozygotes, while the female II homozygotes had lower diastolic blood pressure (DBP) than the female DD homozygotes (p = .036). ACE I/D, PTSD, or PCL-C scores, as well as gender and BMI, were found to be the predictors of PP.
Conclusions: These results indicate that there are interactions of ACE I/D and PTSD, together with gender and BMI, on PP. This finding may be the additional explanation for the heterogeneous relationships between PTSD and blood pressure, and suggest psychiatry care and different medication strategies for patients with comorbidities of PTSD and hypertension and with different genotypes of ACE I/D.
In 2020, the National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases with National Committee on Hypertension Management in Primary Health Care in China issued revised national clinical practice guidelines on the management of hypertension in primary health care based on the 2018 Chinese guidelines for the management of hypertension. To evaluate adherence to the guidelines, this retrospective study assessed the real-world status of antihypertensive drug prescribing for Chinese patients with hypertension, classified by comorbidity: coronary heart disease, diabetes mellitus, heart failure, stroke, and renal disease. About 1088212 hypertensive patients who received their first prescription for antihypertensive therapy between January 2021 to June 2021, were obtained from a database of Hangzhou Kang Sheng Health Consulting CO., Ltd. Calcium channel blockers (CCBs) and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) were the most common drugs prescribed for each comorbidity subgroup. Whereas diabetes mellitus or renal disease is a compelling indication for use of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors, CCBs were often administered in these subgroups. The treatment pattern for patients with coronary heart disease was closely similar to that for the overall patient population. Beta-blockers (BBs) were prescribed more frequently for patients with heart failure than for those with other comorbidities. Although antihypertensive drug prescription varied by comorbidity, pharmacological decisions were largely made under Chinese recommendations while physicians could select antihypertensive drugs based on the patients' comorbidities. However, educational initiatives are still necessary to inspire clinicians to better familiarize themselves with the guidelines and manage hypertension comorbid diseases.
Objective: Resistant hypertension (RH) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events.Mean platelet volume (MPV) has been shown to indicate platelet activation and is associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between mean platelet volume and resistant hypertension.
Method: A total of 279 patientswere included in our study and divided into three groups (GroupI: seventy-eight patients with resistant hypertension, group II: seventy-nine patients with controlled hypertension and group III: one-hundred-five patients without hypertension). Routine laboratory tests and ambulatory blood pressure measurement (ABPM) were followed up in all patients.
Results: Of the patients in the study, 25% were female while 75% were male, and the mean age was 56.5 ± 11.8 years. The mean MPV values were found to be 9.34 ± 1.49 fL in the RHT group, 8.82 ± 0.83 fLin the controlled HT group, and 8.5 ± 0.85 fL in the normotensive individuals, and there was a significant correlation between the RHT group and the other groups (RHT versus controlled HT p1 = 0.008, RHT versus normotensive individuals p2 < 0,001). When we compared controlled HT and normotensive individuals, no significant relationship was found between MPV values (p3 = 0,157).
Conclusion: The MPV value was found to be higher in resistant hypertensive patients compared to controlled hypertensive and normotensive patients. MPV values can be used to predict adverse cardiovascular events in RHT patients.
Background and aim: There are conflicting results about the early administration of beta-blockers (bb) on in-hospital mortality and arrhythmias. Here, we wanted to investigate the effects of chronic bb use on in-hospital Atrial Fibrillation (AF) development in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) patients.
Materials and methods: A total of 814 consecutive patients with STEMI were included in the study. They were divided into two groups according to whether they are using bb on admission or not. They were followed for AF development in-hospital and predictors of AF were determined by multivariable logistic regression analysis.
Results: Of the 814 patients, 103 (12.67%) patients were already using bb, while 711 (87.3%) were not. There were no significant differences in the frequency of AF development [3 (%2.9) vs 30 (%4.2), p = .788] between the groups. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that left atrial (LA) diameter is the only independent predictor of in-hospital AF development.
Conclusions: Our study showed that chronic bb use does not have an effect on in-hospital AF development in STEMI patients. Nevertheless, LA diameter was found to be an independent predictor of AF.