Odat, Ramez M

Background: Sarcoidosis is a multisystem disorder characterized by non-caseating granulomas in various organs. While cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is clinically rare, it has significant implications, including heart failure, ventricular arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death. Speckle-tracking echocardiography has emerged as a promising tool for detecting subclinical myocardial dysfunction, which is cost-efficient and readily available. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate differences in functional echocardiographic parameters between patients with CS and extracardiac sarcoidosis (ECS) to improve early recognition and management. Methods: A comprehensive search of major bibliographic databases was conducted to identify studies up to December 2024. Mean differences (MDs) with 95% CIs were pooled using the inverse-variance random-effect model. Results: Seven studies with 478 patients with sarcoidosis (CS: 159 and ECS: 319) were included. Patients with CS had a significant reduction in left ventricular global longitudinal strain (MD: −2.73; 95% CI: −4.09, −1.38; p < 0.0001) and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (MD: −0.59; 95% CI: −1.12, −0.05; p = 0.03) compared to patients with ECS. No significant differences in the LV global circumferential strain, interventricular septum thickness, left ventricular ejection fraction, E/A ratio, E/E’ ratio, LV end-diastolic diameter, and LV end-systolic diameter were noted. Conclusions: LV GLS and TAPSE are promising parameters for the early detection of cardiac involvement in sarcoidosis, with significant prognostic implications. Although STE provides a cost-effective and accessible alternative to CMR and FDG-PET, further research is needed to standardize its use and validate diagnostic cut-offs.

ABSTRACTBackgroundAnemia is frequently observed as a comorbidity in atrial fibrillation (AF), especially in elderly patients and in those on anticoagulation. This has been associated with poor clinical outcomes. We aim to investigate the impact of anemia on clinical outcomes in patients with AF on oral anticoagulation.MethodsWe comprehensively searched PubMed, WOS, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and CENTRAL through March 2024 and conducted a prognostic systematic review and meta‐analysis. All analyses were performed using R V. 4.3.1. This meta‐analysis was registered at PROSPERO (CRD42024556023).ResultsWe included 23 studies comprising 286,781 patients for analysis. Anemia had a significant association with an 84% increase in risk of major bleeding (HR: 1.84 with 95% CI [1.59, 2.13], p < 0.01), a 32% increase in the risk of intracranial hemorrhage (HR: 1.32 with 95% CI [1.10, 1.58], p < 0.01), a 98% increase in the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding (HR: 1.98 with 95% CI [1.67, 2.35], p < 0.01), and a 91% increase in the risk of all‐cause mortality (HR: 1.91 with 95% CI [1.46, 2.51], p < 0.01). However, the impact of anemia did not significantly affect the risk of stroke, transient ischemic stroke (TIA), or systemic embolism (HR: 1.07 with 95% CI [0.93, 1.22], p = 0.36).ConclusionAnemia was significantly associated with an increased risk of major bleeding, intracranial hemorrhage, gastrointestinal bleeding, and all‐cause mortality. However, anemia did not significantly impact stroke, TIA, or systemic embolism.