Jneid, Hani

Abstract Aims Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) has become increasingly recognized. It accounts for <1-4% of acute coronary syndrome presentations. Overall, however, it makes up over 40% of pregnancy-associated myocardial infarction. Furthermore, pregnancy-associated spontaneous coronary artery dissection (P-SCAD) is described to have a greater degree of clinical manifestations, including left ventricular dysfunction, shock, and left main or multivessel involvement. The findings are disconcerting, though many studies evaluating P-SCAD are based on case series data or are single centre studies. Methods and results The aim of this study was to evaluate a larger national dataset to evaluate the outcomes of SCAD and specifically P-SCAD in an attempt to better characterize the severity and clinical nature of this condition. To conduct this study, we analysed the National Readmission Database from January 2016 to December 2020. Propensity matching was done using the Greedy 1:1 method. Multivariate logistics and time-to-event Cox regression analysis models were built by including all confounders significantly associated with the outcome on univariable analysis with a cut-off P-value of 0.2. In multivariate regression analysis, P-SCAD patients had a non-propensity matched odds ratio (OR) of 0.21 (0.3-1.54, P = 0.123) of dying and a propensity matched OR of 0.11 (0.02-0.61, P = 0.012) of dying. Thirty-day readmission rate for P-SCAD was 15.8% (n = 93) and for non-pregnant spontaneous coronary artery dissection (NP-SCAD) was 11.2% (n = 2286); non-propensity matched OR for readmission for PSCAD patients was 1.68 (1.24-2.29, P = 0.001) and propensity matched OR was 3.39 (1.93-5.97, P < 0.001). Conclusion Among hospitalized patient, P–SCAD was associated with similar clinical outcomes and reduced incidence of death when compared with NP–SCAD, though had higher rates of 30–day readmission. Larger–scale observational data will be needed to ascertain the true incidence of cardiovascular complications as it relates to P–SCAD.

Background: Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is defined as a non-traumatic separation of the epicardial coronary artery walls that creates a false lumen. SCAD poses a difficult challenge in management, as decisions regarding revascularization and medical management seem to be tailored to the individual patient. We evaluated and compared outcomes based on cardiogenic shock in patients with SCAD utilizing Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD) between January 1, 2016, to December 30, 2020. Methods: We utilized the NRD 2016–2019 to carry out this study. We evaluated demographics (e.g., age, gender), conventional risk factors, comorbidities present on the index admission, and in-hospital outcomes using their specific ICD-10-CM codes. The primary outcomes were In-hospital mortality and 30-day readmission, and the secondary outcome was to compare the complications in SCAD patient with cardiogenic shock (CS) compared to those without CS. Results: We analyzed 2473 individuals with SCAD, 2199 of these individuals did not have cardiogenic shock whereas 274 of these individuals did have cardiogenic shock. When comparing SCAD with cardiogenic shock to SCAD without cardiogenic shock, there was a statistically significant increased odds ratio (OR) for death (propensity matched OR 24.93 (7.49–83.05), use of mechanical circulatory support (propensity matched OR 15.30 (6.87–34.04), ventricular tachycardia (propensity matched OR 4.45 (1.92–10.34), utilization of blood transfusions (propensity matched OR 3.82 (1.86–7.87), acute kidney injury (propensity matched OR 4.02 (1.45–11.13), need for mechanical ventilation (propensity matched OR 8.87 (3.53–22.31), and respiratory failure (propensity matched OR 4.95 (1.83–13.41)))))))). There was no statistically significant difference in 30-day readmission rates between the two groups. Conclusions: SCAD is a unique condition that can lead to many complications. In our analysis, we showed that SCAD associated with cardiogenic shock compared to SCAD not associated with cardiogenic shock results in greater odds of complications including death, use of mechanical circulatory support, need for blood transfusions, ventricular tachycardia, acute kidney injury, use of mechanical ventilation, and respiratory failure. SCAD with cardiogenic shock represents a significantly critical clinical scenario that requires a multi-disciplinary approach to prevent the many potential complications associated with this disease process.

The utilization of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has become the treatment of choice in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) with intermediate-to-high surgical risk for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) [...]

Background: There is a paucity of data regarding the temporal trends and outcomes of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) among patients with prior coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. Methods: We queried the Nationwide Readmissions Database (2016-2019) for hospitalized patients who underwent TAVR using ICD-10 codes. We evaluated the trends and outcomes of TAVR among patients with versus without a history of prior CABG. Multivariable regression analysis was used to adjust for patients’ and hospitals' characteristics when comparing the study groups. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Results: The final analysis included 173,274 admissions who underwent TAVR of whom 31,271 (18.3%) had a history of prior CABG. During the study years, there was a decrease in the proportion of patients with prior CABG among those undergoing TAVR (22.0% in 2016 vs. 16.2%, Ptrend=0.01), while there was no change in their in-hospital mortality rate (1.08% in 2016 vs. 1.25% in 2019, Ptrend= 0.43). Patients with prior CABG were younger and less likely to be women compared with those without prior CABG. On multivariable adjustment, In-hospital mortality was lower among the group with versus without prior CABG (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.65-0.91, p<0.01). Adjusted analysis showed lower rate of 90-day readmission (OR 0.95; 95%CI 0.90-0.98, p=0.01), and similar rate of ischemic stroke (aOR 0.89; 95%CI 0.76-1.03, p=0.89), permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation (aOR 0.99; 95%CI 0.93-1.05, p=0.99). Among those with prior CABG, female gender, and chronic kidney disease ≥3 were independently associated with higher in-hospital mortality, and obesity was associated with lower in-hospital mortality. Conclusion: In this analysis, there was a decrease in the proportion of patients with prior CABG among those undergoing TAVR. TAVR among those with prior CABG was not associated with increased short-term mortality or PPM implantation.

Introduction: There is paucity of data on the relationship between hospital procedural volume and outcomes of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures in the past decade. Methods: We queried the National Inpatient Sample database (2010-2016) for hospitalizations undergoing primary PCI for STEMI. Hospitals were divided into 3 groups: low-volume (<36 primary PCI/ year), moderate-volume (36-72 primary PCI/year) and high-volume (>72 primary PCI/ year). The main outcome was in-hospital mortality. Results: The analysis included 694,505 hospitalizations for primary PCI. There were 329,878 (47.5%) primary PCI procedures performed at low-volume hospitals, 224,317 (32.3%) at moderate-volume, and 140,223 (20.2%) at high-volume hospitals. Compared with high-volume hospitals, low-volume hospitals were associated with higher in-hospital mortality in the unadjusted model (5.3% vs. 4.8%, odds ratio [OR] 1.10; 95% confidence interval-CI 1.02-1.18, p=0.01) and on multivariable analysis (adjusted-OR 1.15; 95%CI 1.04-1.27, p=0.01). There was no difference between moderate-volume and high-volume hospital in unadjusted analysis (5.1% vs. 4.8%, OR 1.07; 95%CI 0.99-1.15, p=0.11) and on multivariable analysis (adjusted-OR 1.08; 95%CI 0.97-1.20, p=0.17). Conclusions: This nationwide analysis showed that low-volume hospitals are associated with higher in-hospital mortality after primary PCI compared with high-volume hospitals even in recent years. The current threshold set by national guidelines for primary PCI hospitals remains valid in contemporary practice.

Background Elderly patients have a higher burden of comorbidities that influence clinical outcomes. We aimed to compare in‐hospital outcomes in patients ≥80 years old to younger patients, and to determine the factors associated with increased risk of major adverse events (MAE) after left atrial appendage closure. Methods and Results The National Inpatient Sample was used to identify discharges after left atrial appendage closure between October 2015 and December 2018. The primary outcome was in‐hospital MAE defined as the composite of postprocedural bleeding, vascular and cardiac complications, acute kidney injury, stroke, and death. A total of 6779 hospitalizations were identified, of which, 2371 (35%) were ≥80 years old and 4408 (65%) were <80 years old. Patients ≥80 years old experienced a higher rate of MAE compared with those aged <80 years old (6.0% versus 4.6%, P =0.01), and this difference was driven by a numerically higher rate of cardiac complications (2.4% versus 1.8%, P =0.09) and death (0.3% versus 0.1%, P =0.05) among individuals ≥80 years old. In patients ≥80 years old, higher odds of in‐hospital MAE were observed in women (1.61‐fold), and those with preprocedural congestive heart failure (≈2‐fold), diabetes (≈1.5‐fold), renal disease (≈2.6‐fold), anemia (≈2.7‐fold), and dementia (≈5‐fold). In patients <80 years old, a higher risk of in‐hospital MAE was encountered among women (≈1.4‐fold) and those with diabetes (≈1.3‐fold), renal disease (≈2.6‐fold), anemia (≈2‐fold), and dyslipidemia (≈1.2‐fold). Conclusions Patients ≥80 years old had higher rates of in‐hospital MAE compared with patients aged <80 years old. Female sex and the presence of heart failure, diabetes, renal disease, and anemia were factors associated with in‐hospital MAE among both groups.

Key Points The optimal management of acute decompensated aortic stenosis (AS) remains a clinical conundrum. Urgent transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is feasible and associated with lower readmissions rates than urgent balloon aortic valvuloplasty. In contemporary practice, TAVI may be the treatment of choice of patients admitted with acute decompensated AS.

Objective This manuscript aims to explore the impact of race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status on in-hospital complication rates after left atrial appendage closure (LAAC). Methods The US National Inpatient Sample was used to identify hospitalisations for LAAC between 1 October 2015 to 31 December 2018. These patients were stratified by race/ethnicity and quartiles of median neighbourhood income. The primary outcome was the occurrence of in-hospital major adverse events, defined as a composite of postprocedural bleeding, cardiac and vascular complications, acute kidney injury and ischaemic stroke. Results Of 6478 unweighted hospitalisations for LAAC, 58% were male and patients of black, Hispanic and ‘other’ race/ethnicity each comprised approximately 5% of the cohort. Adjusted by the older Americans population, the estimated number of LAAC procedures was 69.2/100 000 for white individuals, as compared with 29.5/100 000 for blacks, 47.2/100 000 for Hispanics and 40.7/100 000 for individuals of ‘other’ race/ethnicity. Black patients were ~5 years younger but had a higher comorbidity burden. The primary outcome occurred in 5% of patients and differed significantly between racial/ethnic groups (p<0.001) but not across neighbourhood income quartiles (p=0.88). After multilevel modelling, the overall rate of in-hospital major adverse events was higher in black patients as compared with whites (OR: 1.60, 95% CI 1.22 to 2.10, p<0.001); however, the incidence of acute kidney injury was higher in Hispanics (OR: 2.19, 95% CI 1.52 to 3.17, p<0.001). No significant differences were found in adjusted overall in-hospital complication rates between income quartiles. Conclusion In this study assessing racial/ethnic disparities in patients undergoing LAAC, minorities are under-represented, specifically patients of black race/ethnicity. Compared with whites, black patients had higher comorbidity burden and higher rates of in-hospital complications. Lower socioeconomic status was not associated with complication rates.