Faculty Bibliography

Background/UNASSIGNED:Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) is characterized by transient left ventricular dysfunction with symptoms and ECG changes mimicking acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The objective of the present study was to evaluate in-hospital death and hospital readmission in patients with TTS and to compare outcomes to patients with AMI. Methods/UNASSIGNED:Patients diagnosed with TTS and AMI were identified using the United States Nationwide Readmission Database from 2010-2014. In-hospital outcomes for the index admission, and rates and causes of 30-day readmissions were compared between TTS patients and AMI patients without TS. Results/UNASSIGNED:61,412 patients with TTS and 3,470,011 patients with AMI without TTS were identified. Patients with TTS were younger, more often women (89% vs. 41%), and less likely to have cardiovascular risk factors than AMI patients. Mortality during the index admission was lower in TTS compared to AMI (2.3% vs. 10.2%, p < 0.0001). Cardiogenic shock occurred at the same frequency (5.7%) with TTS or AMI. Among TTS survivors, 7,132 patients (11.9%) were readmitted within 30 days, and mortality associated with readmission was 3.5%. The most common reason for readmission after TTS was heart failure (10.6% of readmissions). Conclusions/UNASSIGNED:TTS is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. Although outcomes are more favorable than AMI, ∼2% of patients died in-hospital and ∼12% of survivors were readmitted within 30-days; heart failure was the most frequent indication for re-hospitalization. Careful outpatient follow-up of TTS patients may be warranted to avoid readmissions. Condensed Abstract/UNASSIGNED:We evaluated in-hospital death and hospital readmission in patients with Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) and compared outcomes to those of patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the United States using the Nationwide Readmission Database from 2010-2014. Mortality during the index admission was lower with TTS than AMI (2.3% vs. 10.2%, p < 0.0001). Readmission within 30 days occurred in 11.9% of TTS survivors associated with 3.5% mortality during readmission. Readmission rates were lower after TTS than AMI (16.7%), p < 0.0001 vs. TTS. The most common reason for readmission was heart failure (10.6% of TTS survivors). TTS is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality.

BACKGROUND:Myocardial infarction (MI) presentations are more common during winter months and morning hours. However, it is unknown whether MI with obstructive coronary artery disease (MI-CAD) and non-obstructive CAD (MINOCA) display similar patterns. METHODS:We evaluated seasonal and circadian patterns of MI presentation by coronary artery disease (CAD) status and sex in patients with MI from 2007 to 2014 in the National Cardiovascular Data Registry (NCDR) Acute Coronary Treatment Intervention Outcomes Network (ACTION) Registry-Get With the Guidelines. Adult patients who underwent coronary angiography for MI were included. Patients with missing age, sex, or angiographic data, cocaine use, thrombolytic therapy prior to catheterization, or prior revascularization were excluded. Baseline demographics and characteristics of symptom onset, including season and time of day of presentation, were compared by CAD status and sex. RESULTS:Among 322,523 patients, 112,547 were female (35%); 18,918 had MINOCA (5.9%). There was no seasonal pattern of MI overall. However, both men and women with MINOCA presented more often in the summer and fall while MI-CAD presentations were equally distributed across seasons. The most common time of presentation was 8 am-2 pm regardless of CAD status or sex. A secondary peak in women with MINOCA during late afternoon hours was also identified. CONCLUSIONS:Seasonal variation of MI differed between MINOCA and MI-CAD, with a small increase in MINOCA incidence in the summer and fall. MINOCA and MI-CAD most commonly occurred in the morning, with a secondary peak in late afternoon in women with MINOCA. These differences in presentation may relate to underlying MI pathophysiology.

Background/UNASSIGNED:Perioperative cardiovascular outcomes of transplant surgery are not well defined. We evaluated the incidence of perioperative major cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) after non-cardiac transplant surgery from a large database of hospital admissions from the United States. Methods/UNASSIGNED:Patients ≥18 years of age undergoing non-cardiac solid organ transplant surgery from 2004 to 2014 were identified from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's (HCUP) National Inpatient Sample (NIS). The primary outcome was perioperative MACCE, defined as in-hospital death, myocardial infarction (MI), or ischemic stroke. Results/UNASSIGNED:A total of 49,978 hospitalizations for transplant surgery were identified. Renal (67.3%), liver (21.6%), and lung (6.7%) transplantation were the most common surgeries. Perioperative MACCE occurred in 1,539 transplant surgeries (3.1%). Recipients of organ transplantation were more likely to have perioperative MACCE in comparison to non-transplant, non-cardiac surgery (3.1% vs. 2.0%, p < 0.001; adjusted OR [aOR] 1.29, 95% CI 1.22-1.36). MACCE after transplant surgery were driven by increased mortality (1.7% vs. 1.1%, p < 0.001; aOR 1.15, 95% CI 1.07-1.23) and MI (1.2% vs. 0.6%, p < 0.001; aOR 2.26, 95% CI 2.09-2.46) versus non-transplant surgery, with lower rates of stroke (0.3% vs. 0.5%, p < 0.001; aOR 0.56, 95% CI 0.47-0.65). Among patients hospitalized for renal, liver, and lung transplantation, MACCE occurred in 1.7%, 5.6%, and 7.5%, respectively, with no difference in the frequency of MI by surgery type. Conclusions/UNASSIGNED:Cardiovascular outcomes of transplant surgery vary by surgical subtype and are largely driven by increased perioperative death and MI. Efforts to reduce cardiovascular risks of non-cardiac organ transplant surgery are necessary.

Introduction: Thrombocytopenia is a common laboratory abnormality among patients presenting with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We sought to evaluate associations between thrombocytopenia, in-hospital management and cardiovascular outcomes in patients hospitalized for AMI in the United States.
Method(s): Patients hospitalized from 2004 to 2014 with a primary diagnosis of AMI were identified from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS). Thrombocytopenia was identified based on ICD-9 codes. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate odds of in-hospital adverse events stratified by thrombocytopenia and adjusted for demographics, cardiovascular risk factors, comorbidities, and treatment.
Result(s): A total of 6,717,769 patients were hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of AMI and thrombocytopenia was reported in 219,351 (3.3%). Patients with thrombocytopenia were older, more likely to have medical comorbidities, were more likely to undergo coronary artery bypass grafting [CABG] (28.8% vs. 8.2%, p<0.001), and were less likely to receive a drug eluting stent [DES] (15.5% vs. 29.5%, p<0.001). After multivariable adjustment, thrombocytopenia remained an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality, ischemic stroke, cardiogenic shock, cardiac arrest and bleeding complications (Table).
Conclusion(s): This is the largest analysis of AMI outcomes for patients with and without thrombocytopenia. AMI patients with thrombocytopenia have a significantly greater risk of adverse outcomes, are more likely to undergo CABG and less likely receive a DES during hospitalization compared to other AMI patients. Thrombocytopenia may identify AMI patients at high risk for in-hospital morbidity and mortality. Future investigations to mitigate the poor prognosis of patients with AMI and thrombocytopenia are warranted

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), comprised of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, is a common health problem both in the United States and worldwide, with significant associated morbidity and mortality. Despite multiple known genetic and situational risk factors, an estimated 30% of all events remain classified as idiopathic, demonstrating a significant knowledge gap in the pathophysiology VTE. While platelets are well established as an essential contributor to thrombus formation and there has been recent interest in the role of neutrophil extracellular traps, specific cell types and pathways involved in the pathogenesis of VTE remain uncertain. In this study, our primary aims were to define a unique transcriptional signature for VTE and to identify the types of cells and specific pathways involved in development of VTE. Whole blood was collected in PAX gene tubes and RNA sequencing for coding mRNA was performed in an unbiased manner in 201 patients with prevalent VTE as well as 43 healthy controls. We used a bioinformatics approach to develop a unique signature for VTE by identifying differentially expressed genes, developing cell-type modules, and ascertaining pathways driving differentially expressed transcripts. We performed additional analyses on subgroups of patients with idiopathic VTE, patients with incident VTE, and VTE patients matched to healthy controls by age and sex. We went on to use machine learning methods to learn models that best differentiate VTE patients from healthy controls and validated it on a left out test set within our VTE population. Genes specific to neutrophils, erythrocytes, and platelets, in that order, were most significantly upregulated in patients with VTE compared to healthy controls. Genes related to T-cells were downregulated. Pathway analysis revealed upregulated neutrophil activation and degranulation, erythrocyte differentiation and homeostasis, and platelet degranulation. A gene signature of 217 transcripts was outstanding at differentiating patients with VTE versus healthy controls (AUC 0.94). Following adjustment for age, sex, and race/ethnicity our genetic signature remained significantly robust at differentiating patients with VTE versus controls (AUC 0.83). Our expression signature remained stable across patients with idiopathic VTE (AUC 0.93), and in patients who went on to develop future VTE events (AUC 0.95). In summary, we have demonstrated a whole blood transcriptional signature for prevalent and incident VTE. Genes related to neutrophils, erythrocytes, and platelets are upregulated in patients with VTE and genes related to T-cells were downregulated. These findings suggest an active role of cell types once thought to be passively entrapped within thrombus and provide new areas of study to establish the pathophysiology of VTE