Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:Cardiac lipomas are usually benign but can cause significant hemodynamic and arrhythmic complications, such as ventricular tachycardia, depending on size, location, and myocardial involvement. CASE 1 SUMMARY: An 18-year-old man presented with cardiac arrest during exercise. Following a normal coronary angiogram, a defibrillator was implanted. After recurrent shocks, imaging demonstrated a large cardiac lipoma. Surgical excision resulted in cessation of his recurrent ventricular tachycardia. CASE 2 SUMMARY: A 25-year-old woman presented with ventricular tachycardia, and imaging revealed a large cardiac lipoma with coronary artery encasement. Surgical resection led to resolution of ventricular arrhythmias, and permanent defibrillator implantation was avoided. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSIONS:These cases highlight how cardiac lipomas can lead to ventricular arrhythmias through mass effect and proximity to the coronary vasculature. Multimodal imaging was indispensable for the diagnosis and surgical planning for these cases. TAKE-HOME MESSAGES/CONCLUSIONS:Cardiac lipomas can cause life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. A multimodal imaging approach combined with multidisciplinary team evaluation is essential for accurate diagnosis and management.

BACKGROUND:Leadless pacemakers (LPs) avoid the lead- and pocket-related complications of transvenous systems, but they pace exclusively from the right ventricle (RV), and chronic RV pacing carries a recognized risk of pacing-induced cardiomyopathy (PICM). Whether implant location within the RV, a potentially modifiable factor, contributes to this risk has not been established. METHODS:Patients undergoing LP implantation with ≥50% RV pacing, pre-and post-procedural echocardiograms, and post-implant 3-dimensional radiographic imaging were included. All implants targeted the RV septum per manufacturer recommendation. PICM was defined as ≥10% decline in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) to <50% without alternative cause. RESULTS:PICM developed in 20/81 patients (24.7%), with LVEF declining from 61±8% to 37±9%. Post-implant 3-dimensional radiographic imaging demonstrated inadvertent free wall implantation in 15/20 patients who developed PICM (75%) compared with 8/61 patients who did not (13%; P <0.001). Paced QRS duration was wider in patients with PICM than in those without (186±19 vs 155±13 ms, P <0.001) and discriminated free wall from non-free wall implantation with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.85; a QRS duration of 172 ms provided optimal discrimination. Baseline LVEF, baseline QRS duration, and comorbidity burden did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS:Inadvertent free wall LP implantation is strongly associated with the subsequent development of PICM. Paced QRS duration is a readily available surrogate for implant location, and targeting a paced QRS duration below approximately 172 ms at the time of implant may serve as a practical, non-invasive check on appropriate septal placement.

BACKGROUND:Coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) is present in approximately 40% of patients with ischemia with no obstructive coronary arteries (INOCA) and has been associated with inflammation. We investigated associations between measures of inflammation of the coronary perivascular adipose tissue assessed by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) and results of invasive coronary function testing (CFT) to diagnose CMD. METHODS:Adults referred for clinically indicated invasive coronary angiography who had less than 50% stenosis in all epicardial arteries were prospectively enrolled. CMD was defined as a coronary flow reserve (CFR) less than 2.5 or index of microvascular resistance (IMR) greater than or equal to 25 using bolus thermodilution in the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery. Coronary perivascular fat attenuation index was assessed by CCTA in the right coronary artery (RCA) and LAD. T tests were used to evaluate differences in perivascular FAI by CMD status. RESULTS:A total of 31 participants underwent CFT and CCTA. The mean age was 58 ± 11.7 years, 77% were female, and 61% were white. CMD was present in 15 participants (48%). No differences in perivascular FAI were observed in patients with and without CMD, either in the RCA [-74.2 ± 9.8 vs. -69.9 ± 10.3 Hounsfield units (HU), P = 0.24] or LAD (-76.4 ± 10.2 vs. -74.8 ± 12.7 HU, P = 0.69). Perivascular FAI was not correlated with CFR or IMR measurements in the RCA or LAD. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:There were no associations between CMD diagnosed by invasive CFT and perivascular FAI by CCTA in patients with INOCA. Further research is needed to understand the relationship between vascular inflammation and CMD in INOCA.

BACKGROUND:The diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is often challenging, particularly in atypical cases. CASE SUMMARY/METHODS:This case involves a previously healthy 33-year-old woman who was found to have a biatrial mass and evidence of a diffuse inflammatory or neoplastic process on multimodality imaging. Percutaneous biopsy of the cardiac mass was performed, and histopathologic examination revealed granulomas consistent with CS. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSIONS:This case adds to the growing number of reports of CS manifesting as an intracardiac mass. TAKE-HOME MESSAGES/CONCLUSIONS:The clinical presentation of CS is highly variable, and it may rarely manifest as an intracardiac mass. The diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis is often challenging, particularly in patients with atypical presentations. Indeterminate cardiac masses often require direct tissue sampling because the changes in treatment and prognosis are substantial.

BACKGROUND/UNASSIGNED:Catheter ablation (CA) for ventricular tachycardia (VT) can be a useful treatment strategy, however, few studies have compared CA to medical therapy (MT) in the sarcoidosis population. OBJECTIVE/UNASSIGNED:To assess in-hospital outcomes and unplanned readmissions following CA for VT compared to MT in patients with sarcoidosis. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:Data was obtained from the Nationwide Readmissions Database between 2010 and 2019 to identify patients with sarcoidosis admitted for VT either undergoing CA or MT during elective and non-elective admission. Primary endpoints were a composite endpoint of inpatient mortality, cardiogenic shock, cardiac arrest and 30-day hospital readmissions. Procedural complications at index admission and causes of readmission were also identified. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED: = 0.343). The most common cause of readmission were ventricular arrhythmias (VA) in both groups, however, those undergoing elective CA were less likely to be readmitted for VA compared to non-elective CA. The most common complication in the CA group was cardiac tamponade (4.8 %). CONCLUSION/UNASSIGNED:VT ablation is associated with similar rates of 30-day readmission compared to MT and does not confer increased risk of harm with respect to inpatient mortality, cardiogenic shock or cardiac arrest. Further research is warranted to determine if a subgroup of sarcoidosis patients admitted with VT are better served with an initial conservative management strategy followed by VT ablation.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS/OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to determine the prognostic value of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA)-derived atherosclerotic plaque analysis in ISCHEMIA. METHODS:Atherosclerosis imaging quantitative computed tomography (AI-QCT) was performed on all available baseline CCTAs to quantify plaque volume, composition, and distribution. Multivariable Cox regression was used to examine the association between baseline risk factors (age, sex, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, ejection fraction, prior coronary disease, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and statin use), number of diseased vessels, atherosclerotic plaque characteristics determined by AI-QCT, and a composite primary outcome of cardiovascular death or myocardial infarction over a median follow-up of 3.3 (interquartile range 2.2-4.4) years. The predictive value of plaque quantification over risk factors was compared in an area under the curve (AUC) analysis. RESULTS:Analysable CCTA data were available from 3711 participants (mean age 64 years, 21% female, 79% multivessel coronary artery disease). Amongst the AI-QCT variables, total plaque volume was most strongly associated with the primary outcome (adjusted hazard ratio 1.56, 95% confidence interval 1.25-1.97 per interquartile range increase [559 mm3]; P = .001). The addition of AI-QCT plaque quantification and characterization to baseline risk factors improved the model's predictive value for the primary outcome at 6 months (AUC 0.688 vs. 0.637; P = .006), at 2 years (AUC 0.660 vs. 0.617; P = .003), and at 4 years of follow-up (AUC 0.654 vs. 0.608; P = .002). The findings were similar for the other reported outcomes. CONCLUSIONS:In ISCHEMIA, total plaque volume was associated with cardiovascular death or myocardial infarction. In this highly diseased, high-risk population, enhanced assessment of atherosclerotic burden using AI-QCT-derived measures of plaque volume and composition modestly improved event prediction.

• Scleroderma-related heart disease is usually secondary to lung disease or PH. • Scleroderma rarely causes systolic HF in young patients or those without CAD. • A multimodality strategy should be used to characterize scleroderma cardiomyopathy.

There remains significant controversy in the risk stratification and management of patients with anomalous right coronary artery originating from the opposite sinus (R-ACAOS). We present the case of a patient with an inferior ST-elevation myocardial infarction, found to have R-ACAOS and severe atherosclerotic right coronary artery disease, treated with fractional flow reserve and intravascular ultrasound-guided percutaneous coronary intervention.