Impact of percutaneous closure device type on vascular and bleeding complications after TAVR: A post hoc analysis from the BRAVO-3 randomized trial

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE

Prostar XL (PS) and ProGlide (PG) are common vascular closure devices (VCD) used in TAVR via transfemoral vascular approach. The impact of these VCD on vascular and bleeding complications remains unclear.

METHODS

The BRAVO-3 trial randomized 802 patients undergoing transfemoral TAVR. We stratified patients according to type of VCD used and examined the 30-day incidence of major or minor vascular complications, major bleeding (BARC ≥3b), AKI and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE; death, myocardial infarction or stroke).

RESULTS

A total of 746 (93%) patients were treated with either PS (n = 352, 47%) or PG (n = 394, 53%) VCD, without significant differences in successful deployment rate (PS 322 [91.2%] vs. PG 373 [94.2%] respectively, p = .20). PG was associated with a significantly lower incidence of major or minor vascular complications, compared to PS (adjusted OR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.37-0.80; p < .01). Rates of acute kidney injury were also lower with the PG device. There was no significant difference between bleeding, MACCE, and death.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared to PS, the PG VCD was associated with a lower rate of major or minor vascular complications and lower rates of AKI after transfemoral TAVR.

Overlapping bio-absorbable scaffolds: Aim for D2D technique?

The results of overlapping metallic stents have been concerning but this practice is often unavoidable in the setting of long or tortuous lesions, diameter discrepancy of proximal and distal vessel, and for residual dissections. Theoretically, bio-absorbable scaffolds may carry an advantage over metallic stents due to the progressive resorption of the scaffold theoretically rendering the overlap a non-issue; this has not been clinically evident. Since stent/scaffold overlap cannot be entirely avoided, improved stent delivery/deployment and scaffold design modification may reduce complications in this complex patient subset.

Comparison of Local Versus General Anesthesia Following Transfemoral Transcatheter Self-Expanding Aortic Valve Implantation (from the Transcatheter Valve Therapeutics Registry)

Transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TF-TAVR) is mostly performed under general anesthesia (GA) in most US centers. We examined in-hospital and 30-day outcomes in patients who underwent TF-TAVR with a self-expanding bioprosthesis using local anesthesia (LA) or GA. Patients from the Transcatheter Valve Therapeutics Registry who underwent TF-TAVR from January 2014 to June 2016 with LA or GA were evaluated. Propensity matching was performed and procedural and clinical outcomes compared up to 30 days. A total of 11,006 patients were included (GA: 8,239 [74.9%] and LA: 2,767 [25.1%]). After propensity matching (n = 1,988 matched sets), device success was similar (94.5% vs 94.6%, p = 0.905). No differences in in-hospital stroke (2.7% vs 2.3%, p = 0.413) or paravalvular regurgitation grade (p = 0.113) were noted. Fewer LA patients were converted to open heart surgery (0.2% vs 0.6%, p = 0.076) or experienced an in-hospital major vascular complication (0.7% vs 1.4%, p = 0.026). Intensive care unit time (40.1 ± 58.4 vs 50.9 ± 72.1 hours, p < 0.001) and postprocedure length of stay (4.1 ± 3.6 vs 5.0 ± 4.5 days, p < 0.001) were significantly shorter with LA. In-hospital and 30-day all-cause mortality were lower in the LA cohort compared to the GA cohort ([1.1% vs 2.7%, p < 0.001] and [2.1% vs 3.9%, p = 0.001]). In conclusion, in the largest series of self-expanding bioprostheses for TF-TAVR, these propensity-matched cohorts demonstrate that LA is an acceptable alternative to GA with comparable success, lower safety outcomes, complications rates, and in-hospital and 30-day all-cause mortality.

Leave nothing behind: Promising results for coronary drug-coated balloons in clinical practice

1,025 patients with de novo coronary artery disease (66.9%) or in-stent restenosis (ISR) (33.1%) underwent treatment with paclitaxel drug-coated balloons in a multinational single-arm registry. Bail-out stenting rate was only 4.8%. One-year target lesion revascularization was 2.3% for de novo lesions, 2.9% for bare metal stent ISR, and 5.8% for drug-eluting stent ISR. Short-term results with coronary drug-coated balloons are promising. Nonetheless, long-term data, preferably from randomized trials are necessary to confirm their safety and efficacy.

Residual inflammatory risk and the impact on clinical outcomes in patients after percutaneous coronary interventions

Aims

It remains unknown what percentage of patients treated with percutaneous coronary artery intervention (PCI) have high residual inflammatory risk (RIR). Moreover, the impact of RIR on clinical outcomes has not been established. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of patients with persistent high levels of inflammation after PCI and to evaluate clinical outcomes according to inflammatory response.

Methods and results

This is a retrospective cohort study assessing patients undergoing PCI between 2009 and 2016 with serial inflammatory status assessment from a large, prospective, and single-centre PCI registry. Assessment of inflammation status with at least two high sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) measurements at baseline and follow-up with >4 weeks apart. High RIR was defined as an hsCRP≥ 2 mg/L. Patients were divided into four groups: persistent high RIR, increased RIR (first low-, then high hsCRP), attenuated RIR (first high-, then low hsCRP), or persistent low RIR. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality at 1 year follow-up. Occurrence of myocardial infarction (MI) was assessed as secondary outcome. Seven thousand and twenty-six patients were identified with serial hsCRP measurements (30.8% of all PCI patients). Of these patients 2654 (38%) had persistent high RIR, 719 patients (10%) had increased RIR, 1088 patients (15%) had attenuated RIR, and persistent low RIR was seen in 2565 patients (37%). All-cause mortality at 1 year was 2.6% in patients with persistent high RIR, compared with 1.0% in increased RIR, 0.3% in attenuated RIR, and 0.7% in persistent low RIR patients, P < 0.01. MI at 1 year was observed in 7.5% of persistent high RIR, compared with 6.4% in increased RIR, 4.6% in attenuated RIR, and 4.3% in persistent low RIR, P < 0.01. In an adjusted model, including accounting for diabetes mellitus, acute coronary syndrome, and baseline low-density lipoprotein, results were sustained.

Conclusion

Persistent high RIR is observed frequently in patients undergoing PCI. In these patients, significantly higher all-cause mortality and MI rates are observed at 1 year follow-up. Residual inflammatory risk in patients undergoing PCI should be identified and treatment options should be further explored.

Long-Term Survival Following Multivessel Revascularization in Patients With Diabetes: The FREEDOM Follow-On Study

BACKGROUND

The FREEDOM (Future Revascularization Evaluation in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus: Optimal Management of Multivessel Disease) trial demonstrated that for patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and multivessel coronary disease (MVD), coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is superior to percutaneous coronary intervention with drug-eluting stents (PCI-DES) in reducing the rate of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events after a median follow-up of 3.8 years. It is not known, however, whether CABG confers a survival benefit after an extended follow-up period.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term survival of DM patients with MVD undergoing coronary revascularization in the FREEDOM trial.

METHODS

The FREEDOM trial randomized 1,900 patients with DM and MVD to undergo either PCI with sirolimus-eluting or paclitaxel-eluting stents or CABG on a background of optimal medical therapy. After completion of the trial, enrolling centers and patients were invited to participate in the FREEDOM Follow-On study. Survival was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier analysis, and Cox proportional hazards models were used for subgroup and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS

A total of 25 centers (of 140 original centers) agreed to participate in the FREEDOM Follow-On study and contributed a total of 943 patients (49.6% of the original cohort) with a median follow-up of 7.5 years (range 0 to 13.2 years). Of the 1,900 patients, there were 314 deaths during the entire follow-up period (204 deaths in the original trial and 110 deaths in the FREEDOM Follow-On). The all-cause mortality rate was significantly higher in the PCI-DES group than in the CABG group (24.3% [159 deaths] vs. 18.3% [112 deaths]; hazard ratio: 1.36; 95% confidence interval: 1.07 to 1.74; p = 0.01). Of the 943 patients with extended follow-up, the all-cause mortality rate was 23.7% (99 deaths) in the PCI-DES group and 18.7% (72 deaths) in the CABG group (hazard ratio: 1.32; 95% confidence interval: 0.97 to 1.78; p = 0.076).

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with DM and MVD, coronary revascularization with CABG leads to lower all-cause mortality than with PCI-DES in long-term follow-up. (Comparison of Two Treatments for Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease in Individuals With Diabetes [FREEDOM]; NCT00086450).

Edoxaban Versus standard of care and their effects on clinical outcomes in patients having undergone Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation in Atrial Fibrillation-Rationale and design of the ENVISAGE-TAVI AF trial

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation, also called transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), is the treatment of choice for patients with severe aortic stenosis and intermediate to high operative risk. A significant portion of TAVR patients have atrial fibrillation (AF) requiring chronic oral anticoagulation. In moderate- to high-risk AF patients, the direct factor Xa inhibitor edoxaban is noninferior to vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) for prevention of stroke or systemic embolism with less bleeding and cardiovascular deaths. ENVISAGE-TAVI AF (NCT02943785) is a multinational, multicenter, prospective, randomized, open-label, blinded end point evaluation study comparing edoxaban to VKA-based therapy in approximately 1,400 patients with an indication for chronic oral anticoagulation after successful transfemoral TAVR. The coprimary end points are to assess the differential effects of the 2 treatments (a) on net adverse clinical events (the composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, systemic thromboembolism, valve thrombosis, and major bleeding events) and (b) on major bleeding. Twelve hours to 5 days after successful TAVR, patients will be randomized to 60 mg daily oral edoxaban or any VKA (international normalized ratio: 2.0-3.0 or 1.6-2.6 [numbers inclusive] in Japan if age ≥ 70 years). Antiplatelet therapy may be administered per physician's discretion. Randomization will be stratified by edoxaban dose reduction (per local label). Treatment duration will be up to 36 months. The study is powered (80%) to detect noninferiority (margin for the hazard ratio: 1.38) for the composite primary end points, followed by superiority testing.

Platelet Reactivity and Risk of Ischemic Stroke After Coronary Drug-Eluting Stent Implantation: From the ADAPT-DES Study

OBJECTIVES

The authors sought to investigate the association between P2Y₁₂ reaction units (PRU) and the risk of ischemic stroke (IS) after successful coronary drug-eluting stents (DES) implantation.

BACKGROUND

The association between platelet reactivity on clopidogrel and the risk for ischemic cerebrovascular events remains unclear.

METHODS

Incidence, predictors, and prognostic impact of IS were evaluated among patients enrolled in the multicenter, prospective ADAPT-DES (Assessment of Dual AntiPlatelet Therapy With Drug Eluting Stents) study. By protocol, patients were maintained on aspirin for 2 years and clopidogrel for at least 1 year. Baseline platelet reactivity on clopidogrel and aspirin were assessed by means of VerifyNow point-of-care assay after successful DES implantation.

RESULTS

Among 8,582 patients enrolled, 68 (0.8%) had an IS during 2-year follow-up. Across the spectrum of PRU, rates of IS were progressively greater as patients transitioned from the lowest quintile of PRU (more P2Y₁₂ receptor inhibition; 2-year rate of 0.51%) to the highest quintile of PRU (less P2Y₁₂ receptor inhibition; 2-year rate of 1.34%; adjusted p = 0.04). PRU >208 was independently associated with higher risk of IS at 2 years (adjusted hazard ratio 1.81; 95% confidence interval 1.08 to 3.04; p = 0.03). The association between higher PRU and risk for IS was also consistent in patients with versus without high CHA₂DS₂-VASc score (p_interaction = 0.30) and in those on or off oral anticoagulation at discharge (p_interaction = 0.99). Occurrence of IS was strongly associated with increased risk of all-cause mortality at 2 years (adjusted HR: 4.16; 95% CI: 1.95 to 8.87; p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Higher PRU was associated with increased risk of IS after coronary DES implantation. Ensuring adequate platelet P2Y₁₂ receptor inhibition may reduce the risk of IS in this patient population. (Assessment of Dual AntiPlatelet Therapy With Drug Eluting Stents [ADAPT-DES]; NCT00638794).

Sex differences in the effect of diabetes mellitus on platelet reactivity and coronary thrombosis: From the Assessment of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy with Drug-Eluting Stents (ADAPT-DES) study

BACKGROUND

Whether the consequences of diabetes mellitus (DM) are worse for women than for men treated with drug-eluting stents (DES) and antiplatelet therapy remain unclear.

METHODS

Patients from the Assessment of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy With Drug-Eluting Stents study were stratified according to sex and DM status. We investigated the sex-specific effect of DM on high on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity (HPR), defined as a P2Y₁₂ reaction units ≥208, and the adjusted association of DM on the 2-year risk for coronary thrombotic events (CTE), defined as spontaneous myocardial infarction or definite or probable stent thrombosis.

RESULTS

Out of 8582 patients included in the study, 829 were women with DM (9.6%) and 1954 were men with DM (16.2%). The prevalence of insulin-treated DM (ITDM) was greater in women (p<0.0001). By multivariable logistic regression, DM was associated with a greater likelihood of HPR that was uniform between sexes (p_int=0.88). Following adjustment for baseline variables and HPR, in women a stepwise increase in risk for CTEs was observed in the transition from no DM to non-ITDM (NITDM) (adjusted hazard ratio [adjHR]: 1.31; 95% CI: 0.78-2.18) to ITDM (adjHR: 2.69; 95% CI: 1.23-3.45). This increase in risk associated with subtypes of DM was of smaller magnitude in men (for NITDM, adjHR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.77-1.39; for ITDM, adjHR: 1.46; 95% CI: 1.05-2.03; p_int=0.016).

CONCLUSIONS

In a population treated with DES and antiplatelet therapy, the risk for CTE associated with DM seems to be greater in women and was independent of HPR.

The quest for a "diabetic" stent

Patients with diabetes mellitus and extensive coronary artery disease generally had worse outcomes with early generation drug eluting stents (DES) as compared to coronary artery bypass grafting. Initial results with Amphilimus eluting coronary stent in patients with diabetes have been promising in small studies The data from Sardella et al. should be used, in conjunction with previous clinical studies with this DES type, as hypothesis generating for a large multicenter randomized trial to aid in our quest to find the "new diabetic stent."

Percutaneous closure of patent foramen ovale vs. medical treatment for patients with history of cryptogenic stroke: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

BACKGROUND

Patients with history of cryptogenic stroke are more likely to have a patent foramen ovale (PFO) and should be managed with antithrombotic agents, while the alternative option is percutaneous closure of PFOs. Our aim was to perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing percutaneous closure vs. medical treatment for patients with PFO and prior cryptogenic stroke.

METHODS

Medline, Scopus and Cochrane databases were reviewed. A random-effect model meta-analysis was used and I-square was utilized to assess the heterogeneity. New ischemic stroke was defined as the primary endpoint. A sensitivity analysis was performed for Amplatzer device. Subgroup analyses were performed for different patient and PFO characteristics for the composite endpoints as defined by the included RCTs.

RESULTS

In total of 3440 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Closure devices were superior to medical therapy for prevention of recurrent ischemic strokes (HR = 0.29; CI: 0.02-0.56), but were associated with increased risk of new onset of atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (RR = 4.67; CI: 2.22-9.81). However, in the sensitivity analysis for Amplatzer device, there was no difference between the two groups in new onset of atrial arrhythmias. Closure devices were superior across all different subgroups when compared to medical treatment with the exception of patients with a small shunt.

CONCLUSION

This meta-analysis shows that closure devices for patients with PFO and history of cryptogenic stroke can significantly decrease the risk of a new ischemic stroke. The use of Amplatzer device was not associated with increased risk of newly diagnosed atrial arrhythmias.

Coronary chronic total occlusions: How to dilate the tough ones

Several chronic total occlusions (CTOs) may be undilatable despite successful wire passage; several techniques can be used for lesion preparation, such as high-pressure balloon inflations, rotational atherectomy laser, cutting balloon, and scoring balloons. Presence of moderate to severe calcification and lesion length over 40 mm in association with comorbidities, such as diabetes mellitus and reduced ejection fraction, may contribute to making a CTO lesion undilatable. Still, appropriate therapy selection for a patient with CTO should be individualized and procedure safety attended to.