Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:Patients with aortic stenosis are nearly twice as likely to have a diagnosis of gout compared with individuals without aortic valve disease. METHODS:, and/or decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction due to aortic stenosis. RESULTS:/year [-0.16, -0.01], p=0.09); annualized change in peak velocity and mean gradient did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS:Progression to severe aortic stenosis was more frequent in patients with gout versus those without gout supporting the hypothesis that gout is a risk factor for aortic stenosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS/OBJECTIVE:Renal disease is a risk factor for peripheral artery disease (PAD), yet its impact on outcomes after lower extremity (LE) revascularization is not well established. We aimed to characterize the association between chronic kidney disease (CKD) and/or end stage renal disease (ESRD) and post-procedural outcomes in PAD patients undergoing LE revascularization in the United States. METHODS:Adults age ≥18 years undergoing surgical or endovascular LE revascularization for PAD with and without CKD or ESRD were identified from the 2014 Nationwide Readmissions Database. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), defined as a composite of death, myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke, were identified for patients with and without renal disease. All-cause hospital readmissions within 6 months of discharge were determined for all survivors. RESULTS:Among 39,441 patients with PAD hospitalized for LE revascularization, 10,530 had renal disease (26.7%), of whom 69% had CKD without ESRD and 31% had ESRD. Patients with renal disease were more likely to have MACE after LE revascularization (5.2% vs. 2.5%; adjusted OR [aOR] 1.74, 95% CI 1.40-2.16), require LE amputation (26.1% vs. 12.2%; aOR 1.33, 95% CI 1.19-1.50), and require hospital readmission within 6 months (61.0% vs. 43.6%; adjusted HR [aHR] 1.38, 95% CI 1.28-1.48) compared to those without renal disease. CONCLUSIONS:Renal disease is common among patients undergoing LE revascularization for PAD and was independently associated with in-hospital MACE, LE amputation, and hospital readmission within 6 months. Additional efforts to improve outcomes of patients with renal disease and PAD requiring LE revascularization are necessary.

New-onset heart failure (HF) is associated with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. It is uncertain to what extent HF confers an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Adults ≥65 years old hospitalized with a new diagnosis of HF were identified from Medicare claims from 2007-2013. We identified the incidence, predictors and outcomes of VTE in HF. We compared VTE incidence during follow-up after HF hospitalization with a corresponding period 1-year prior to the HF diagnosis. Among 207,535 patients with a new HF diagnosis, the cumulative incidence of VTE was 1.4%, 2.5%, and 10.5% at 30 days, 1 year, and 5 years, respectively. The odds of VTE were greatest immediately after new-onset HF and steadily declined over time (OR 2.2 [95% CI 2.0-2.3], OR 1.5 [1.4-1.7], and OR 1.2 [1.2-1.3] at 0-30 days, 4-6 months, and 7-9 months, respectively). Over 26-month follow-up, patients with HF were at two-fold higher risk of VTE than patients without HF (adjusted HR 2.31 [2.18-2.45]). VTE during follow-up was associated with long-term mortality (adjusted HR 1.60, 95% CI 1.56-1.64). In conclusion, patients with HF are at increased risk of VTE early after a new HF diagnosis. VTE in patients with HF is associated with long-term mortality.

Background Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) mimics acute myocardial infarction in the absence of culprit coronary artery disease and is more common in women. Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) shares a predilection for women, can result in left ventricular wall motion abnormalities similar to TTS, and may manifest subtle angiographic findings. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of SCAD misdiagnosed as TTS. Methods and Results Coronary angiograms of patients presenting with a provisional diagnosis of TTS were retrospectively reviewed by an independent expert blinded to left ventriculography and the specific purpose of the study to assess for SCAD. TTS was defined using European Society for Cardiology criteria. SCAD was categorized according to the Saw angiographic classification. Among 80 women with a provisional diagnosis of TTS, 2 (2.5%) met angiographic criteria for definite SCAD. Both dissections were located in the distal left anterior descending coronary artery and classified as type 2b. The wall motion abnormality was apical in both cases. An additional 7 patients (9%) had angiography that was indeterminate for SCAD. Clinical characteristics of patients with and without SCAD were similar. Conclusions Among patients with a provisional diagnosis of TTS, definite SCAD in the left anterior descending coronary artery was present in 2.5% of cases, and coronary angiography was indeterminate for SCAD in an additional 9%. Careful review of coronary angiography may avoid missed diagnoses of SCAD in patients with myocardial infarction, nonobstructive coronary arteries, and wall motion abnormalities consistent with TTS. Intracoronary imaging maybe considered to establish a definitive diagnosis of SCAD when angiography is inconclusive.

Background/UNASSIGNED:Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disease associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk factors and vascular disease. The relative impact of psoriasis on vascular disease is the strongest in young patients with psoriasis, yet data are lacking on how sex differences influence cardiovascular risk factors and vascular disease in these patients. Objective/UNASSIGNED:This observational study aimed to identify the burden of cardiovascular risk factors and vascular disease in patients with psoriasis and to explore whether this burden is different between men and women age < 35 years. Methods/UNASSIGNED:Young (age ≥ 20 and < 35 years) hospitalized patients with psoriasis from the United States National Inpatient Sample were compared with those matched patients without psoriasis. Vascular disease was defined as ASCVD and/or venous thromboembolic disease. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the associations between psoriasis, sex, ASCVD risk factors, and vascular disease. Results/UNASSIGNED:Overall, patients with psoriasis (n = 18,353) were more often obese (16% vs. 6%); smokers (31% vs. 17%); and diagnosed with diabetes mellitus (10% vs. 6%), hypertension (16% vs. 8%), hyperlipidemia (6% vs. 2%), ASCVD (2.2% vs. 1.6%), and deep vein thrombosis (6% vs. 4%; all p < .001) compared with patients without psoriasis (n = 55,059; matched by age, sex, and race). When stratified by sex, women with psoriasis were more likely to have multiple cardiovascular risk factors and ASCVD (odds ratio: 2.6; 95% confidence interval [2.1-3.1]) compared with men with psoriasis (odds ratio: 1.2; 95% confidence interval [0.9-1.4]; interaction p < .01). The association between psoriasis and ASCVD in women remained unchanged after multivariable adjustment for traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Conclusion/UNASSIGNED:Psoriasis was associated with cardiovascular disease and risk factors in young hospitalized patients, with stronger associations among women than among men.

BACKGROUND:Prior registry data suggest that 4%-20% of patients require noncardiac surgery (NCS) within 2 years of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Contemporary data on NCS after PCI in the United States among women and men are limited. We determined the rate of early hospital readmission for NCS and associated outcomes in a large cohort of patients who underwent PCI in the United States. METHODS:Adults undergoing PCI between January 1 and June 30, 2014, were identified from the Nationwide Readmission Database. Patients readmitted for NCS within 6 months of PCI were identified. Outcomes of interest were in-hospital death, myocardial infarction (MI), and bleeding defined by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, codes. RESULTS:Among 221,379 patients who underwent PCI and survived to hospital discharge, 3.5% (n = 7,696) were readmitted for NCS within 6 months post-PCI, and 41% of these hospitalizations were elective. Early NCS was complicated by MI in 4.7% of cases, and 21% of perioperative MIs were fatal. Bleeding was recorded in 32.0% of patients. All-cause mortality occurred in 4.4% of patients (n = 339) readmitted for surgery. The risk of death or MI was greatest when NCS was performed within the first month after PCI. CONCLUSIONS:Despite clear guidelines to avoid surgery early after PCI, NCS was performed in 1 of every 29 patients with recent PCI, corresponding to as many as ~30,000 patients each year nationwide. Surgical mortality and perioperative MI were high in this setting. Strategies to minimize perioperative thrombotic and bleeding risks during readmission for NCS after PCI are necessary.

Stroke is a serious complication of noncardiac surgery. Congenital defects of the interatrial septum may be a potent risk factor for perioperative stroke. The aim of the present study was to determine the association between atrial septal defect (ASD) or patent foramen ovale (PFO) and in-hospital perioperative ischemic stroke after non-cardiac surgery in a large nationwide cohort of patients hospitalized in the United States. Patients undergoing noncardiac surgery between 2004 and 2014 were identified using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's National Inpatient Sample. Patients without an in-hospital echocardiogram were excluded. The presence of an ostium secundum-type ASD or PFO was identified by ICD-9 diagnosis code 745.5. The primary study outcome was perioperative acute ischemic stroke. Between 2004 and 2014, there were 639,985 admissions for noncardiac surgery with an in-hospital echocardiogram. An ASD or PFO was documented in 9,041 (1.4%) hospitalizations. Perioperative ischemic stroke occurred more frequently in patients with an ASD or PFO compared with those without an ASD or PFO (35.1% vs 6.0%, p <0.001). The association between ASD or PFO and ischemic stroke persisted after adjustment for demographics and clinical covariates (adjusted odds ratio 6.30, 95% confidence interval, 5.59 to 7.10) and in all non-cardiac surgery subtypes. In conclusion, in a large, nationwide analysis of patients undergoing noncardiac surgery, a diagnosis of ASD or PFO was associated with an increased risk of acute ischemic stroke overall and in all surgical subtypes. Additional measures are necessary to mitigate stroke risk in patients with septal defects who are planned for non-cardiac surgery.