Novel insights into an “old” phenomenon: the no reflow

Role of Intracoronary Adrenaline in the Treatment of No-Reflow Phenomenon in Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

The no-reflow phenomenon is defined as the failure to restore coronary flow demonstrated by the reduced or missing flow in angiography despite the patent artery. There are pharmacological strategies proposed and studied to manage the no-reflow phenomenon. The medication groups used are purine nucleoside (adenosine), calcium channel blockers (verapamil, nicardipine), beta 2 receptor agonists (adrenaline, nitroprusside), fibrinolytic agents (streptokinase, tissue plasminogen activators), glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (abciximab, tirofiban). We present a case of a woman hospitalized in non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) conditions. The patient underwent coronary angiography, in which a single vessel coronary artery disease (CAD); left anterior descending (LAD) stenosis of 90% was found. In this condition, the patient underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of LAD. The no-reflow phenomenon occurred with thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow grade of 0 during the procedure. As a consequence, the patient presented chest pain and important hypotension (BP of 70/45). Because of the hypotensive state of the patient, we decided to administer intracoronary (IC) adrenaline directly. In our case, we used adrenaline as a first-line treatment for the no-flow phenomenon due to the hypotensive state during the PCI procedure. Generally, we initially use IC nitrate or IC adenosine to resolve the phenomenon, and when the no-reflow persists we use IC adrenaline because of its side effects mentioned above. Anyway, we believe that in specific cases of hypotension and bradycardia, the use of adrenaline as the first line of therapy should be considered.

The Predictive Value of the Inflammatory Prognostic Index for Detecting No-Reflow in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients

BACKGROUND

No-reflow (NR) is characterized by an acute reduction in coronary flow that is not accompanied by coronary spasm, thrombosis, or dissection. Inflammatory prognostic index (IPI) is a novel marker that was reported to have a prognostic role in cancer patients and is calculated by neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) multiplied by C-reactive protein/albumin ratio.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to investigate the relationship between IPI and NR in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI).

METHODS

A total of 1541 patients were enrolled in this study (178 with NR and 1363 with reflow). Lasso panelized shrinkage was used for variable selection. A nomogram was created based on IPI for detecting the risk of NR development. Internal validation with Bootstrap resampling was used for model reproducibility. A two-sided p-value <0.05 was accepted as a significance level for statistical analyses.

RESULTS

IPI was higher in patients with NR than in patients with reflow. IPI was non-linearly associated with NR. IPI had a higher discriminative ability than the systemic immune-inflammation index, NLR, and CRP/albumin ratio. Adding IPI to the baseline multivariable logistic regression model improved the discrimination and net-clinical benefit effect of the model for detecting NR patients, and IPI was the most prominent variable in the full model. A nomogram was created based on IPI to predict the risk of NR. Bootstrap internal validation of nomogram showed a good calibration and discrimination ability.

CONCLUSION

This is the first study that shows the association of IPI with NR in STEMI patients who undergo pPCI.

No-Reflow Prediction in Acute Coronary Syndrome During Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: The NORPACS Risk Score

BACKGROUND

Suboptimal coronary reperfusion (no reflow) is common in acute coronary syndrome percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and is associated with poor outcomes. We aimed to develop and externally validate a clinical risk score for angiographic no reflow for use following angiography and before PCI.

METHODS

We developed and externally validated a logistic regression model for prediction of no reflow among adult patients undergoing PCI for acute coronary syndrome using data from the Melbourne Interventional Group PCI registry (2005-2020; development cohort) and the British Cardiovascular Interventional Society PCI registry (2006-2020; external validation cohort).

RESULTS

A total of 30 561 patients (mean age, 64.1 years; 24% women) were included in the Melbourne Interventional Group development cohort and 440 256 patients (mean age, 64.9 years; 27% women) in the British Cardiovascular Interventional Society external validation cohort. The primary outcome (no reflow) occurred in 4.1% (1249 patients) and 9.4% (41 222 patients) of the development and validation cohorts, respectively. From 33 candidate predictor variables, 6 final variables were selected by an adaptive least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression model for inclusion (cardiogenic shock, ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction with symptom onset >195 minutes pre-PCI, estimated stent length ≥20 mm, vessel diameter <2.5 mm, pre-PCI Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction flow <3, and lesion location). Model discrimination was very good (development C statistic, 0.808; validation C statistic, 0.741) with excellent calibration. Patients with a score of ≥8 points had a 22% and 27% risk of no reflow in the development and validation cohorts, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The no-reflow prediction in acute coronary syndrome risk score is a simple count-based scoring system based on 6 parameters available before PCI to predict the risk of no reflow. This score could be useful in guiding preventative treatment and future trials.

Development of Multi-Vessel Coronary No-Reflow Following Elective Percutaneous Intervention in One Vessel

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is a frequently performed procedure that can have minor or major complications. One of the more serious complications of PCI is the development of coronary no-reflow. No-reflow signifies reduced or absent coronary flow in the distal coronary circulation in the absence of flow-limiting lesions. We present a case of a middle-aged man who presented as an outpatient for elective coronary angiography due to angina pectoris and a high-risk exercise stress test. Coronary angiography demonstrated significant single-vessel disease with lesions in the proximal and mid-segments of the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery. Successful placement of drug-eluting stents in the LAD was followed by a severe drop in blood pressure, worsening chest pain, and ST elevation on telemetry. Immediate angiography showed the development of no-reflow in both the LAD and left circumflex coronary arteries. Ionotropic and intravenous anti-platelet agents were administered with simultaneous placement of an intra-aortic balloon pump, restoring normal flow in both arteries. No-reflow occurs most commonly following PCI in certain lesion subsets, and it is usually seen only in the vessel in which the PCI was performed (culprit vessel). It is important to realize that this phenomenon can occur in other circumstances since immediate recognition and treatment can be lifesaving.

Effect of optimized thrombus aspiration on myocardial perfusion and prognosis in acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction patients with primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Objective

To investigate the impact of optimized thrombus aspiration on myocardial perfusion, prognosis, and safety in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention(primary PCI).

Methods

A total of 129 patients with STEMI were randomly allocated into control group (Subgroup A and B) and experimental group(Subgroup C and D). Control group received percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA),thrombus aspiration and primary PCI. Experimental group received optimized thrombus aspiration and primary PCI. The number of thrombus aspiration was less than 4 times in Subgroup A and C. The number of thrombus aspiration was performed more than 4 times in Subgroups B and D. The classification of thrombi extracted, the TIMI flow grade, the incidence of no-reflow and slow flow, cTFC, TPI and CK-MB at 12 h and 24 h after stenting, ST segment resolution of ECG after stenting, NT-proBNP, LVEFat 24 h, 30 days and 180 days after stenting were compared between groups. The incidence of intraoperative and postoperative bleeding complications, stroke events and major cardiovascular events (MACE) were recorded and compared between groups.

Results

The classification of thrombi extracted in the experimental group was higher than that in the control group. The TIMI flow grade of the experimental group was better than the control group after thrombus aspiration. After stenting, the advantage still existed, but the difference was not statistically significant. On cTFC, the experimental group was lower than the control group, but the difference was not statistically significant; After stenting the experimental group was significantly lower than the control group. The CK-MB at 12 h and 24 h of the experimental group was lower than the control group. After thrombus aspiration the incidence of no-reflow in the experimental group was significantly lower than that in the control group; after stenting the incidence of no-reflow in the experimental group was still lower than the control group, but no statistically difference. After thrombus aspiration and stenting the incidence of slow flow in the experimental group were lower than that in the control group. After stenting, NT-proBNP at 24 h was lower in the experimental group than that in the control group, However, there was no statistical difference; after stenting, The NT-proBNP in the experimental group was lower than that in the control group at 30 days and 180 days. After stenting, LVEF of the experimental group was significantly higher than the control group at 24 h and 30 days; superiority remained after 180 days but no statistical difference. There was no statistical difference between two groups for intraoperative and postoperative bleeding complications, stroke events, and MACE events. In Subgroup analysis,there was no significant difference in the classification of thrombi extracted, TIMI flow grade, cTFC, CK-MB,NT-proBNP and LVEF between group C and D, but group A was better than group B. Analysis of variance showed that the optimal number of suction was 4-5 times.

Conclusions

Optimized thrombus aspiration can significantly improve myocardial perfusion and short-term and medium-term prognosis of STEMI patients after PCI, and reduce the incidence of slow flow and no-reflow. The optimal suction times were 4-5 times. Traditional aspiration method with more aspiration times is harmful to cardiac prognosis. Thrombus aspiration does not increase the incidence of stroke events and is safe.Clinical Trial Registration: identifier, ChiCTR2300073410.

Coronary No-Reflow after Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention-Current Knowledge on Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Clinical Impact and Therapy

Coronary no-reflow (CNR) is a frequent phenomenon that develops in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) following reperfusion therapy. CNR is highly dynamic, develops gradually (over hours) and persists for days to weeks after reperfusion. Microvascular obstruction (MVO) developing as a consequence of myocardial ischemia, distal embolization and reperfusion-related injury is the main pathophysiological mechanism of CNR. The frequency of CNR or MVO after primary PCI differs widely depending on the sensitivity of the tools used for diagnosis and timing of examination. Coronary angiography is readily available and most convenient to diagnose CNR but it is highly conservative and underestimates the true frequency of CNR. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is the most sensitive method to diagnose MVO and CNR that provides information on the presence, localization and extent of MVO. CMR imaging detects intramyocardial hemorrhage and accurately estimates the infarct size. MVO and CNR markedly negate the benefits of reperfusion therapy and contribute to poor clinical outcomes including adverse remodeling of left ventricle, worsening or new congestive heart failure and reduced survival. Despite extensive research and the use of therapies that target almost all known pathophysiological mechanisms of CNR, no therapy has been found that prevents or reverses CNR and provides consistent clinical benefit in patients with STEMI undergoing reperfusion. Currently, the prevention or alleviation of MVO and CNR remain unmet goals in the therapy of STEMI that continue to be under intense research.

Anti-inflammatory Therapy Progress in Major Adverse Cardiac Events after PCI: Chinese and Western Medicine

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is one of the leading causes of death in cardiovascular disease. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is an important method for the treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD), and it has greatly reduced the mortality of ACS patients since its application. However, a series of new problems may occur after PCI, such as in-stent restenosis, no-reflow phenomenon, in-stent neoatherosclerosis, late stent thrombosis, myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury, and malignant ventricular arrhythmias, which result in the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) that seriously reduce the postoperative benefit for patients. The inflammatory response is a key mechanism of MACE after PCI. Therefore, examining effective anti-inflammatory therapies after PCI in patients with ACS is a current research focus to reduce the incidence of MACE. The pharmacological mechanism and clinical efficacy of routine Western medicine treatment for the anti-inflammatory treatment of CHD have been verified. Many Chinese medicine (CM) preparations have been widely used in the treatment of CHD. Basic and clinical studies showed that effectiveness of the combination of CM and Western medicine treatments in reducing incidence of MACE after PCI was better than Western medicine treatment alone. The current paper reviewed the potential mechanism of the inflammatory response and occurrence of MACE after PCI in patients with ACS and the research progress of combined Chinese and Western medicine treatments in reducing incidence of MACE. The results provide a theoretical basis for further research and clinical treatment.

R wave peak time and no reflow following primary percutaneous coronary intervention: Immediate and short-term outcomes

BACKGROUND

No reflow (NR) remains an important constraint in management of ST elevation myocardial Infarction (STEMI) patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Most ECG parameters validated till date including ST resolution are postprocedural. R wave peak time (RWPT) is a dynamic parameter and reflects conduction delay in ischaemic myocardium in selected leads supplied by infarct related artery (IRA). The present study was undertaken to see whether preprocedural RWPT per se or RWPT following primary PCI can predict persistence of NR along with immediate and short-term clinical outcome.

METHODS

200 patients were enrolled after exclusion. Clinical, Biochemical, ECG parameters including RPWT and angiographic parameters (pre- and post-procedure) were recorded. ECG papers was analysed using digital image processing software (http://imagej.nih.gov/ij/). All patients were followed up for 6 months.

RESULTS

NR was observed in 35% of the patients. Age, Diabetes, symptom to balloon time, higher thrombus burden, peak CPK-MB level (pre and post procedure) were significantly higher in NR group. On ECG analysis, baseline RWPT, QRS duration and pathological Q wave were significantly higher in NR group. On multivariate analysis, age (OR 1.10 CI 1.00-1.21 P = 0.04), thrombus grade ≥ 3 in IRA (OR 12.38 CI 2.08-73.58 P = 0.006), symptom to balloon time (OR 2.18 CI 1.6-3.0 P < 0.001) and baseline RWPT on ECG [OR 1.86 CI 1.24-2.78, P = 0.003] were found to be independent predictors of NR. Increase in RWPT following primary PCI was found to both highly sensitive and specific for diagnosing persistence of NR after primary PCI. Follow up at the end of 6 months has shown that patients with increased RWPT following primary PCI had worse short-term cardiovascular outcomes compared to those with decreased RWPT following primary PCI.

CONCLUSION

Baseline RWPT is a significant predictor of NR in patients of STEMI undergoing primary PCI. A persistently increased RWPT following primary PCI is also a highly sensitive and specific ECG marker of persistence of NR which is associated with adverse short-term clinical outcome.

Influence of Stent Length on Periprocedural Outcomes After Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Patients with ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

PURPOSE

A longer stent is associated with adverse events after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, little information is available on the relationship between stent length and periprocedural prognosis in patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). We aimed to assess the target vessel stent length influence on angiographic outcomes and in-hospital major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE) during primary PCI in patients with STEMI.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This single-center retrospective observational study included 246 patients with STEMI admitted to the Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital between January 2019 and December 2021, who underwent primary PCI and successful stent implantation. The exclusion criteria included left main lesion, multiple diseased vessel-stenting, bleeding disorders, contrast allergy, and incomplete data. Patients were divided into two groups based on the median stents length: group A (≤29 mm, n=125) and group B (>29mm, n=121). Periprocedural outcomes were slow flow/no-reflow (SF-NR) and in-hospital MACE, which included acute heart failure, malignant arrhythmia, cardiovascular death, non-fatal stroke, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and urgent revascularization. Multivariate logistic analyses were used to explore the correlation between stent length and SF-NR.

RESULTS

A total of 246 patients (82.9% males) with a mean age of 59.9±12.6 years were included in the analysis. The incidence of SF-NR was significantly higher in group B than in group A (36.4% vs 23.2%, p=0.024). However, the in-hospital MACE incidence rate was similar between the two groups (7.2% vs 7.4%, p=0.943). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that stent length and diameter, and peak troponin I level were independent risk factors for SF-NR.

CONCLUSION

Excessive stent length is an independent risk factor for SF-NR, without any significant influence on the risk of MACE during hospitalization.

New R2-CHA2DS2-VASc score predicts no-reflow phenomenon and long-term prognosis in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction after primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Aims

Evaluating the prognostic validity of new R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc score for no-reflow phenomena and long-term prognosis in patients following primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Materials and methods

From January 2017 to December 2018, a total of 401 patients with STEMI were continuously enrolled. According to the cut-off value, the patients were separated into two groups: R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc < 3 group (n = 275) and R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3 group (n = 126).

Results

With a sensitivity of 52.6% and a specificity of 73.1%, the optimal cut-off value for predicting no-reflow is R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3. R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3 as the ideal cut-off value for predicting major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.781 [95% Confidence interval (CI): 0.738–0.801, P 0.001], a sensitivity of 50%, and a specificity of 91.1%. The incidence of MACE, death from all causes, and worsening heart failure was greater in the R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3 group, although there was no significant difference in the incidence of repeated revascularisation procedures following PCI between the two groups. R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3 was also an independent predictor of MACE (hazard ratio = 2.48, 95% confidence interval CI: 1.33–4.62, P = 0.04). Moreover, this score has a greater sensitivity (66.7%) and specificity (88.7%) for predicting the progression of heart failure.

Conclusion

R₂-CHA₂DS₂-VASc ≥ 3 was independently associated with no-reflow phenomenon and poor clinical outcomes for patients in STEMI after primary PCI.

Management of no Reflow during Percutaneous Transcoronary Angioplasty with Catheter-Directed Intracoronary Thrombolysis: A Retrospective Observational Study

Background

Intracoronary thrombus is common in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is the treatment of choice for these patients. Intracoronary thrombus is still a challenge during PCI in STEMI, even with dual antiplatelets, glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor, and anticoagulation. Intracoronary thrombus can cause distal or nonculprit vessel embolization and no-reflow state. No reflow results in large infarct size, adverse left ventricular remodeling, arrhythmias, and death. Recently, catheter-directed intracoronary thrombolysis (ICT) is gaining acceptance in patients with no-reflow due to a large thrombus burden.

Aim

Evaluation of catheter-directed ICT in patients with acute STEMI who develop no reflow due to large thrombus burden during PCI.

Materials and Methods and Results

This was a retrospective observational study conducted after approval of the institutional ethics committee in a tertiary care hospital of north India from April 15, 2021 to April 14, 2022, included 1020 adult patients who had undergone coronary evaluation. 37.25% patients had PCI, among these 10% had PCI for acute STEMI. Thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) Grade 5 in 79.17% and Grade 4 in 20.83%. ICT was done with low-dose tenecteplase (15 ± 5 mg). The TIMI flow III in 91.67% and II in 8.33% of patients was achieved after intracoronary thrombolysis. Major risk factor was tobacco smoking in 41.67%, and the major complication was left ventricular failure in 33.33%.

Conclusions

Catheter-directed ICT is safe and effective in reducing thrombus burden, thus improving myocardial reperfusion in STEMI. This condition has a grave prognosis and can lead to adverse cardiac outcomes. There are many drugs that have been tried to manage no reflow. The use of ICT to treat no-reflow state can be life saving with minimal systemic side effects.

Soluble ST2 in coronary artery disease: Clinical biomarkers and treatment guidance

The IL-33/ST2 L signaling pathway is involved in the pathophysiological processes of several diseases and mainly exerts anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects. Soluble suppression of tumorigenicity 2 (sST2), which serves as a competitive inhibitory molecule of this pathway, is a member of the interleukin (IL)-1 family, a decoy receptor for IL33, thought to play a role in cardiac remodeling and the inflammatory process. However, the association between sST2 and coronary artery disease (CAD), one of the most common causes of heart failure, is still being explored. We therefore reviewed the research on sST2 in the field of CAD, including reflecting the atherosclerosis burden, predicting no-reflow, predicting prognosis, responding to myocardial remodeling, and guiding management, hoping to provide cardiologists with new perspectives.

Gradual Versus Abrupt Reperfusion During Primary Percutaneous Coronary Interventions in ST‐Segment–Elevation Myocardial Infarction (GUARD)

Background

Intramyocardial edema and hemorrhage are key pathological mechanisms in the development of reperfusion‐related microvascular damage in ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction. These processes may be facilitated by abrupt restoration of intracoronary pressure and flow triggered by primary percutaneous coronary intervention. We investigated whether pressure‐controlled reperfusion via gradual reopening of the infarct‐related artery may limit microvascular injury in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Methods and Results

A total of 83 patients with ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction were assessed for eligibility and 53 who did not meet inclusion criteria were excluded. The remaining 30 patients with totally occluded infarct‐related artery were randomized to the pressure‐controlled reperfusion with delayed stenting (PCRDS) group (n=15) or standard primary percutaneous coronary intervention with immediate stenting (IS) group (n=15) (intention‐to‐treat population). Data from 5 patients in each arm were unsuitable to be included in the final analysis. Finally, 20 patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention who were randomly assigned to either IS (n=10) or PCRDS (n=10) were included. In the PCRDS arm, a 1.5‐mm balloon was used to achieve initial reperfusion with thrombolysis in myocardial infarction grade 3 flow and, subsequently, to control distal intracoronary pressure over a 30‐minute monitoring period (MP) until stenting was performed. In both study groups, continuous assessment of coronary hemodynamics with intracoronary pressure and Doppler flow velocity was performed, with a final measurement of zero flow pressure (primary end point of the study) at the end of a 60‐minute MP. There were no complications associated with IS or PCRDS. PCRDS effectively led to lower distal intracoronary pressures than IS over 30 minutes after reperfusion (71.2±9.37 mm Hg versus 90.13±12.09 mm Hg, P =0.001). Significant differences were noted between study arms in the microcirculatory response over MP. Microvascular perfusion progressively deteriorated in the IS group and at the end of MP, and hyperemic microvascular resistance was significantly higher in the IS arm as compared with the PCDRS arm (2.83±0.56 mm Hg.s.cm −1 versus 1.83±0.53 mm Hg.s.cm −1 , P =0.001). The primary end point (zero flow pressure) was significantly lower in the PCRDS group than in the IS group (41.46±17.85 mm Hg versus 76.87±21.34 mm Hg, P =0.001). In the whole study group (n=20), reperfusion pressures measured at predefined stages in the early reperfusion period showed robust associations with zero flow pressure values measured at the end of the 1‐hour MP (immediately after reperfusion: r =0.782, P <0.001; at the 10th minute: r =0.796, P <0.001; and at the 20th minute: r =0.702, P =0.001) and peak creatine kinase MB level (immediately after reperfusion: r =0.653, P =0.002; at the 10th minute: r =0.597, P =0.007; and at the 20th minute: r =0.538, P =0.017). Enzymatic myocardial infarction size was lower in the PCRDS group than in the IS group with peak troponin T (5395±2991 ng/mL versus 8874±1927 ng/mL, P =0.006) and creatine kinase MB (163.6±93.4 IU/L versus 542.2±227.4 IU/L, P <0.001).

Conclusions

In patients with ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction, pressure‐controlled reperfusion of the culprit vessel by means of gradual reopening of the occluded infarct‐related artery (PCRDS) led to better‐preserved coronary microvascular integrity and smaller myocardial infarction size, without an increase in procedural complications, compared with IS.

Registration

URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT02732080.

Risk Factors for No-Reflow in Patients with ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Who Underwent Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Case-Control Study

Methods

This case-control study retrospectively reviewed the medical data of patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention within 12 h after STEMI onset between January 2010 and January 2013 at the Department of Cardiology of the Beijing Anzhen Hospital.

Results

A total of 902 patients were included in the analysis. The basic characteristics between the reflow and no-reflow groups were similar, except for time-to-hospital admission, heart rate, plasma glucose, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP)/prealbumin (PAB), neutrophil count, intraaortic balloon pump, and aspiration thrombectomy. The multivariable analysis showed that hsCRP/PAB (OR = 1.003, 95% CI: 1.000–1.006, P=0.022), neutrophil count (OR = 1.085, 95% CI: 1.028–1.146, P=0.003), plasma glucose levels (OR = 1.086, 95% CI: 1.036–1.138, P=0.001), diabetes mellitus (OR = 0.596, 95% CI: 0.371–0.958, P=0.033), Killip classification >1 (OR = 2.002, 95% CI: 1.273–3.148, P=0.003), intraoperative intraaortic balloon pump (IABP) use (OR = 3.257, 95% CI: 1.954–5.428, P=0.001), and aspiration thrombectomy (OR = 3.412, 95% CI: 2.259–5.152, P=0.001) were independently associated with no-reflow.

Conclusion

hsCRP/PAB, neutrophil count, plasma glucose levels, diabetes mellitus, Killip classification, intraoperative IABP use, and aspiration thrombectomy were independent risk factors for no-reflow in patients with STEMI.

LncRNA MALAT1 functions as a biomarker of no-reflow phenomenon in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction patients receiving primary percutaneous coronary intervention

MALAT1 was reported to sponge miR-30e, miR-126 and miR-155 in the pathogenesis of many diseases. Plasma miR-30e can indicate the risk of no-reflow during primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI), while miR-126 can be used as a predictor of coronary slow flow phenomenon. In this study, we compared the diagnostic value of above genes in the prediction of no-reflow phenomenon in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) subjects receiving pPCI. Quantitative real-time PCR, ELISA, Western blot and luciferase assays were performed to explore the regulatory relationship of MALAT1/miR-30e, MALAT1/miR-126, MALAT1/miR-155, miR-126/HPSE, and miR-155/EDN1. ROC analysis was carried out to evaluate the potential value of MALAT1, miRNAs and target genes in differentiating normal reflow and no-reflow in STEMI patients receiving pPCI. Elevated MALAT1, CRP, HPSE, and EDN1 expression and suppressed miR-30e, miR-155 and miR-126 expression was found in the plasma of STEMI patients receiving pPCI who were diagnosed with no-reflow phenomenon. ROC analysis showed that the expression of MALAT1, miR-30e, miR-126 and CRP could be used as predictive biomarkers to differentiate normal reflow and no-reflow in STEMI patients receiving pPCI. MALAT1 was found to suppress the expression of miR-30e, miR-126 and miR-155, and HPSE and EDN1 were respectively targeted by miR-126 and miR-155. This study demonstrated that MALAT1 could respectively sponge the expression of miR-30e, miR-126 and miR-155. And miR-30e, miR-126 and miR-155 respectively targeted CRP, HPSE and EDN1 negatively. Moreover, MALAT1 could function as an effective biomarker of no-reflow phenomenon in STEMI patients receiving pPCI.

CHA2DS2 VASc score and brachial artery flow-mediated dilation as predictors for no-reflow phenomenon in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Background

Following primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), no-reflow is associated with a high rate of long-term unfavorable clinical outcomes. Despite the importance of early no-reflow prediction in cardiovascular medicine, noninvasive assessment is lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the preprocedural CHA2DS2 VASc score and the brachial artery flow-mediated dilation percentage (FMD%) as predictors of the no-reflow phenomenon in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary PCI.

Results

This study included 150 patients who presented with acute STEMI, underwent primary PCI, and were divided into two groups according to the flow result, reflow group and a no-reflow group. The CHA2DS2 VASc score was calculated and evaluation of endothelial function by measuring the brachial artery FDM% was done for each patient before the procedure. There were 39 (26%) patients in the no-reflow group and 111 (74%) in the reflow group. The no-reflow patients were older and had significantly higher body mass index (BMI), higher frequency of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, history of heart failure, dyslipidemia, Killip class IV on admission, thrombus grade V, multiple affected vessels, conventional stenting, and multiple stents placement, longer ischemic times, higher CHA2DS VASc score, and lower brachial artery FMD% (p-values of < 0.05 for all). Moreover, there was a significant negative correlation between CHA2DS VAS score and preprocedural FMD%, with the higher the score indicating lower FMD among cases (p-value = 0.000).

Conclusions

Preprocedural CHA2DS2 VASc score and the brachial artery FMD can be used as predictors for the no-reflow phenomenon in patients with STEMI, undergoing primary PCI.

A randomized controlled clinical trial of prolonged balloon inflation during stent deployment strategy in primary percutaneous coronary intervention for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: a pilot study

Background

Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is the standard procedure for reperfusion for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), but the occurrence of the no-reflow phenomenon remains common and is associated with adverse outcomes.

Aims

This study aimed to evaluate whether prolonged balloon inflation in stent deployment would lessen the occurrence of the no-reflow phenomenon in PPCI compared with conventional rapid inflation/deflation strategy.

Methods

Patients were randomly assigned to either the prolonged balloon inflation in stent deployment group (PBSG) or conventional deployment strategy group (CDSG) in a 1:1 ratio. A subset of patients was included in the cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) assessment.

Results

Thrombolysis in MI (TIMI) flow grade 3 was found in 96.7% and 63.3% of the patients of the PBSG and CDSG, respectively (P = 0.005). The results of the PBSG and CDSG are respectively shown as follows: 0% versus 30% no-reflow or slow flow (P = 0.002); 90% versus 66.7% ST-segment resolution ≥ 50% (P = 0.028); 35.6 ± 14.5 frames versus 49.18 ± 25.2 frames on corrected TIMI frame count (P = 0.014); and 60% versus 20% myocardial blush grade 3 (P = 0.001). At 1 month, the major cardiovascular adverse event (cardiovascular mortality) rate was 3.3% in both groups; at 1 year, the rate was 3.3% and 6.7% for the PBSG and CDSG, respectively (P = 1.00). In the CMR subset of cases, the presence of microvascular obstruction (MVO) was detected in 6.7% and 50% of the patients in the PBSG and CDSG, respectively (P = 0.023).

Conclusion

In our pilot trial, prolonged balloon inflation during stent deployment strategy in PPCI reduces the occurrence of the no-reflow phenomenon in patients with STEMI and improved the myocardial microcirculation perfusion (ClinicalTrials.gov number: NCT03199014; registered: 26/June/2017).

Association of CHA2DS2-VASc score with thrombus burden in patients with acute myocardial infarction undergoing SVG-PCI

BACKGROUND

The rate of saphenous vein graft (SVG) occlusion within the first year of bypass graft surgery is 15%. The CHA₂DS₂-VASc score is used to predict the risk of thromboembolic events in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. We aimed to evaluate the predictive role of the CHA₂DS₂-VASc score in the estimation of intracoronary thrombus burden in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) who underwent SVG-PCI.

METHODS

We retrospectively evaluated 221 patients who were admitted with AMI and underwent PCI of SVGs at the Department of Cardiology in the Turkiye Yuksek Ihtisas Education and Research Hospital between 2012 and 2018. The study population was divided into two groups according to their Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) thrombus grade: low thrombus burden (LTB; TIMI 0-3) and high thrombus burden (HTB; TIMI 4 and 5).

RESULTS

The study included 221 patients with a mean age of 63.3 ± 6.7 years. The patients with HTB had significantly higher CHA₂DS₂-VASc scores (p < 0.001) compared with LTB patients. Univariate and multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that both CHA₂DS₂-VASc score (OR: 1.573, 95% CI: 1.153-2.147, p = 0.004) as a continuous variable and a binary cut-off level of the CHA₂DS₂-VASc score > 3 (OR: 3.876, 95% CI: 1.705-8.808, p = 0.001) were significantly associated with HTB. The ability of the CHA₂DS₂-VASc score to predict HTB burden was evaluated by receiver-operating characteristics analysis curve analysis. The optimum cut-off value of the CHA₂DS₂-VASc score for predicting HTB was 3 (with a sensitivity of 67.9% and a specificity of 69.3%) according to the Youden index.

CONCLUSION

The CHA₂DS₂-VASc score can be used as an easy practical tool to predict HTB in AMI patients undergoing SVG-PCI.

Myocardial Infarction Quantification from Late Gadolinium Enhancement MRI Using Top-Hat Transforms and Neural Networks

Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) MRI is the gold standard technique for myocardial viability assessment. Although the technique accurately reflects the damaged tissue, there is no clinical standard to quantify myocardial infarction (MI). Moreover, commercial software used in clinical practice are mostly semi-automatic, and hence require direct intervention of experts. In this work, a new automatic method for MI quantification from LGE-MRI is proposed. Our novel segmentation approach is devised for accurately detecting not only hyper-enhanced lesions, but also microvascular obstruction areas. Moreover, it includes a myocardial disease detection step which extends the algorithm for working under healthy scans. The method is based on a cascade approach where firstly, diseased slices are identified by a convolutional neural network (CNN). Secondly, by means of morphological operations a fast coarse scar segmentation is obtained. Thirdly, the segmentation is refined by a boundary-voxel reclassification strategy using an ensemble of very light CNNs. We tested the method on a LGE-MRI database with healthy (n = 20) and diseased (n = 80) cases following a 5-fold cross-validation scheme. Our approach segmented myocardial scars with an average Dice coefficient of 77.22 ± 14.3% and with a volumetric error of 1.0 ± 6.9 cm3. In a comparison against nine reference algorithms, the proposed method achieved the highest agreement in volumetric scar quantification with the expert delineations (p< 0.001 when compared to the other approaches). Moreover, it was able to reproduce the scar segmentation intra- and inter-rater variability. Our approach was shown to be a good first attempt towards automatic and accurate myocardial scar segmentation, although validation over larger LGE-MRI databases is needed.

Associations of Lipoprotein(a) With Coronary Atherosclerotic Burden and All-Cause Mortality in Patients With ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction Treated With Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Background: The coronary atherosclerotic burden in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has been identified as the main predictor of prognosis. However, the association of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a well-established proatherogenic factor, with atherosclerotic burden in patients with STEMI is unclear.

Methods: In total, 1,359 patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for STEMI were included in analyses. Three prespecified models with adjustment for demographic parameters and risk factors were evaluated. Generalized additive models and restricted cubic spline analyses were used to assess the relationships of Lp(a) with Gensini scores and the no-reflow phenomenon. Kaplan–Meier curves were generated to explore the predictive value of Lp(a) for long-term all-cause mortality. Furthermore, mRNA expression levels of LPA in different groups were compared using the GEO database.

Results: Patients in the highest tertile according to Lp(a) levels had an increased incidence of heart failure during hospitalization. Furthermore, patients with high levels of Lp(a) (>19.1 mg/dL) had sharply increased risks for a higher Gensini score (P_{for trend} = 0.03) and no-reflow (P_{for trend} = 0.002) after adjustment for demographic parameters and risk factors. During a median follow-up of 930 days, 132 deaths (9.95%) were registered. Patients with high levels of Lp(a) (>19.1 mg/dL) had the worst long-term prognosis (P_{for trend} < 0.0001). In a subgroup analysis, patients with higher Lp(a) still had the highest all-cause mortality. Additionally, the mRNA expression levels of LPA in patients with STEMI with lower cardiac function were higher than those in other groups (P = 0.003). A higher coronary atherosclerotic burden was correlated with higher LPA expression (P = 0.01).

Conclusion: This study provides the first evidence that Lp(a) (at both the protein and mRNA levels) is independently associated with coronary atherosclerotic lesions and prognosis in patients with STEMI treated with PCI.

Clinical Trial Registration:http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx, identifier: ChiCTR1900028516.

Assessment of Admission Time Cell Blood Count (CBC) Parameters in Predicting Post-primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention TIMI Frame Count in Patients with ST-segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

OBJECTIVES

In this study, we aimed to assess the value of admission time CBC parameters in predicting post-primary PCI corrected TIMI frame count.

BACKGROUND

Recent years have witnessed a large series of studies evaluating different laboratory variables to predict no-reflow phenomenon following primary PCI (PPCI) in patients with STEMI. However, a general agreement about the most reliable predictor of the no-reflow phenomenon is challenging and also intriguing.

METHODS

The current study concluded 208 consecutive patients who underwent primary PCI for ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) from January 2014 to February 2016. Blood samples were obtained after taking ECG. Complete blood samples were collected and analyzed within 5 minutes from sampling. Post-PCI corrected Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) frame count was determined by one interventional cardiologist blinded to patients' clinical data. The correlation between admission time blood parameters and post-primary PCI corrected TIMI frame count in patients with STEMI were assessed.

RESULTS

Corrected TIMI frame count was positively correlated with WBC count (R: 0.18, P-value: <0.01), neutrophil count (R: 0.34, P-value: <0.01), and platelet count (R: 0.23, P-value: <0.01) and negatively correlated with lymphocyte count (R: -0.2, P-value: <0.01). Multiple linear regression results demonstrated that corrected TIMI frame count was positively correlated with neutrophil count (P < 0·001) and platelet count (P < 0·001) and negatively correlated with lymphocyte count (p=0.004).

CONCLUSION

High counts of WBC, neutrophil, and platelet and low count of lymphocyte may be predictors of no-reflow in STEMI patients undergoing PPCI. The clinical significance of such predictive parameters becomes clear as we consider the treatment approach in STEMI patients. Appropriate risk stratification leads to better treatment planning and allocation of resources.

Comparison of the Outcomes between Coronary No-Reflow and Slow-Flow Phenomenon in Non-STEMI Patients

BACKGROUND

Coronary slow-flow phenomenon (CSFP) and coronary no-reflow phenomenon (CNP) are associated with increased risk of major cardiovascular adverse events (MACE).

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to evaluate and compare the one-year clinical follow-up outcomes among patients with CNP and CSFP who underwent percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) in non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI).

METHODS

This study included a total of 858 patients who were diagnosed with NSTEMI and underwent PCI within 24 h of symptom onset. The patients were divided into two groups, the CSFP group (n=221) and the CNP group (n=25), regarding the angiographic characteristics of thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow of the infarct-related artery. Patients were followed for one-year. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

CNP was observed in 2.91%, and CSFP was observed in 25.75% of the patients. Clinical endpoints analyzed that stroke was significantly higher in the CNP group than in the CSFP group (6 (24%) vs. 6 (2.70%), p<0.001) and MACE was significantly higher in the CNP group than in the CSFP group (11 (44%) vs. 51 (23.10%), p=0.022). Forward conditional logistic regression analysis demonstrated that body mass index (BMI) (OR=1.11, 95%CI: 1.00-1.24, p=0.038) and baseline heart rate (HR) (OR=0.923, 95%CI: 0.88-0.96, p<0.001) were the independent predictors of CNP in NSTEMI.

CONCLUSION

CNP patients have worse clinical outcomes and a higher risk of stroke compared with CSFP patients in NSTEMI. (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2021; 116(5):856-864).

One-Year Outcome of Patients with Coronary Artery Ectasia Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Clinical Implications and Question Marks

Background: Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is a rare condition with unclear pathophysiology, optimal treatment, and prognosis. We aimed to determine the prognostic implications of CAE following coronary angioplasty.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study on 385 patients, including 87 subjects with CAE, who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were considered to consist of mortality, nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), repeated revascularization, and stroke.

Results: The mean age of the participants was 57.31±6.70 years. Multivariate regression analysis revealed that patients with diabetes, ST-segment–elevation MI at presentation, and high thrombus grades were more likely to have suboptimal post-PCI thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow. However, CAE was not a predictor of a decreased TIMI flow (OR: 1.46, 95% CI: 0.78–8.32; P=0.391). The Cox-regression model showed that CAE, the body mass index, and a family history of MI were risk factors for MACE, while short lesion lengths (<20 vs >20 mm) had an inverse relationship. The adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for the prediction of MACE in the presence of CAE was 1.65 (95% CI: 1.08–4.78; P=0.391). All-cause mortality (HR: 1.69, 95% CI: 0.12–3.81; P=0.830) and nonfatal MI (HR: 1.03, 95% CI: 0.72–4.21; P=0.341) occurred similarly in the CAE and non-CAE groups. Conversely, CAE increased urgent repeat revascularization (HR: 2.40; 95% CI: 1.13–5.86; P=0.013).

Conclusion: Although CAE had no substantial short-term prognostic effects on post-PCI TIMI flow, considerable concerns regarding adverse outcomes emerged during our extended follow-up. Stringent follow-ups of these patients should be underscored due to the high likelihood of urgent revascularization.

Outcomes in Coronary No-Reflow Phenomenon Patients and the Relationship between Kidney Injury Molecule-1 and Coronary No-Reflow Phenomenon

Fundamento

O fenômeno de no-reflow coronário (CNP, do inglês Coronary no-reflow phenomenon) está associado a um risco aumentado de eventos cardiovasculares adversos maiores (ECAM).

Objetivo

Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a relação entre os níveis séricos da Molécula-1 de lesão renal (KIM-1) e o CNP em pacientes com infarto agudo do miocárdio com supradesnivelamento do segmento ST (IAMCSST).

Métodos

Este estudo incluiu um total de 160 pacientes (113 homens e 47 mulheres; média de idade: 61,65 ± 12,14 anos) com diagnóstico de IAMCSST. Os pacientes foram divididos em dois grupos, o grupo reflow (GR) (n = 140) e o grupo no-reflow (GNR) (n = 20). Os pacientes foram acompanhados durante um ano. Um valor de p<0,05 foi considerado significativo.

Resultados

O CNP foi observado em 12,50% dos pacientes. O nível de KIM-1 sérico foi significativamente maior no GNR do que no GR (20,26 ± 7,32 vs. 13,45 ± 6,40, p<0,001). O índice de massa corporal (IMC) foi significativamente maior no GNR do que no GR (29,41 (28,48-31,23) vs. 27,56 (25,44-31,03), p=0,047). A frequência cardíaca (FC) foi significativamente menor no GNR do que no GR (61,6 ± 8,04 vs. 80,37 ± 14,61, p<0,001). O escore do European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation II (EuroSCORE II) foi significativamente maior no GNR do que no GR (3,06 ± 2,22 vs. 2,36 ± 2,85, p=0,016). A incidência de AVC foi significativamente maior no GNR do que no GR (15% vs. 2,90%, p=0,013). O nível basal de KIM-1 (OR = 1,19, IC 95%: 1,07-1,34, p=0,002) e HR (OR = 0,784, IC 95%: 0,69-0,88, p<0,001) foram os preditores independentes de CNP.

Conclusão

Em conclusão, os níveis séricos basais de KIM-1 e a FC mais baixa estão independentemente associados com CNP em pacientes com IAMCSST, e o acidente vascular cerebral foi significativamente maior no GNR em um ano de seguimento. (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2021; 116(2):238-247)

Tongmai Yangxin pill reduces myocardial No-reflow via endothelium-dependent NO-cGMP signaling by activation of the cAMP/PKA pathway

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The Tongmai Yangxin pill (TMYX) is derived from the Zhigancao decoction recorded in Shang han lun by Zhang Zhongjing during the Han dynasty. TMYX is used for the clinical treatment of chest pain, heartache, and qi-yin-deficiency coronary heart disease. Previous studies have confirmed that TMYX can improve vascular endothelial function in patients with coronary heart disease by upregulating nitric oxide activity and then regulating vascular tension. Whether TMYX can further improve myocardial NR by upregulating NO activity and then dilating blood vessels remains unclear.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study aimed to reveal whether TMYX can further improve myocardial NR by upregulating NO activity and then dilating blood vessels. The underlying cAMP/PKA and NO-cGMP signaling pathway-dependent mechanism is also explored.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The left anterior descending coronary arteries of healthy adult male SD rats were ligated to establish the NR model. TMYX (4.0 g/kg) was orally administered throughout the experiment. Cardiac function was measured through echocardiography. Thioflavin S, Evans Blue, and TTC staining were used to evaluate the NR and ischemic areas. Pathological changes in the myocardium were assessed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. An automated biochemical analyzer and kit were used to detect the activities of myocardial enzymes and myocardial oxidants, including CK, CK-MB, LDH, reactive oxygen species, superoxide dismutase, malonaldehyde, and NO. The expression levels of genes and proteins related to the cAMP/PKA and NO/cGMP signaling pathways were detected via real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blot analysis, respectively. A microvascular tension sensor was used to detect coronary artery diastolic function in vitro.

RESULTS

TMYX elevated the EF, FS, LVOT peak, LVPWd and LVPWs values, decreased the LVIDd, LVIDs, LV-mass, IVSd, and LV Vols values, demonstrating cardio-protective effects, and reduced the NR and ischemic areas. Pathological staining showed that TMYX could significantly reduce inflammatory cell number and interstitial edema. The activities of CK, LDH, and MDA were reduced, NO activity was increased, and oxidative stress was suppressed after treatment with TMYX. TMYX not only enhanced the expression of Gs-α, AC, PKA, and eNOS but also increased the expression of sGC and PKG. Furthermore, TMYX treatment significantly decreased ROCK expression. We further showed that TMYX (25-200 mg/mL) relaxed isolated coronary microvessels.

CONCLUSIONS

TMYX attenuates myocardial NR after ischemia and reperfusion by activating the cAMP/PKA and NO/cGMP signaling pathways, further upregulating NO activity and relaxing coronary microvessels.

Association of Soluble Suppression of Tumorigenicity with No-Reflow Phenomenon and Long-Term Prognosis in Patients with Non-ST-Segment Elevation Acute Coronary Syndrome after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Aims: Soluble suppression of tumorigenicity 2 (sST2) was validated to independently predict prognosis for heart failure (HF) and ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). In this study, we aimed to evaluate the relation between sST2 and coronary artery stenosis, and no-reflow phenomenon and one-year prognosis in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTE-ACS).

Methods: This prospective study consecutively enrolled 205 patients who were diagnosed with NSTE-ACS and underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). sST2 was measured for all patients during admission. Patients were divided into two groups based on the optimal cutoff value: sST2 ＞34.2 ng/ml and sST2 ≤ 34.2 ng/ml groups.

Results: Patients in the sST2 ＞34.2 ng/ml group was associated with higher Gensini scores and multivessel disease. sST2 had weak predictive value for no-reflow phenomenon (area under the curve [AUC], 0.662; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.53–0.79; P =0.015) with 66.7% sensitivity and 65.2% specificity, and it also had independent predictive value of no-reflow phenomenon after adjusting for confounding factors (odds ratio [OR], 3.802; 95% CI, 1.03–14.11; P =0.046). sST2 ＞34.2 ng/ml had a commendable predictive value for the one-year prognosis (AUC, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.75–0.93; P ＜0.001) with 72% sensitivity and 84% specificity, and it independently predicted one-year major cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) (hazard ratio [HR], 10.22; 95% CI, 4.05–25.7; P ＜0.001).

Conclusion: The sST2 concentration on admission is correlated with the degree of coronary artery stenosis. sST2 can predict both no-reflow and MACCE in patients with NSTE-ACS after PCI and was an independent predictor of MACCE and no-reflow phenomenon.

Novel predictors and adverse long-term outcomes of No-reflow phenomenon in patients with acute ST elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Objectives

The no-reflow phenomenon occurs in 25% of patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and may be associated with adverse outcomes. The aim of our study was to detect novel predictors of no-reflow phenomenon and the resulting adverse long term outcomes.

Methods

We enrolled 400 STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI; 228 patients had TIMI flow 3 after PCI (57%) and the remaining 172 patients had TIMI flow <3 (43%). Fibrinogen to albumin ratio (FAR), high sensitive C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CAR), and atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) were calculated. Long term mortality and morbidity during 6 months follow up were recorded. These data were compared among both groups.

Results

In multivariate regression analysis, old age (OR = 1.115, 95% CI: 1.032–1.205, P = 0.006), higher troponin level >5.6 ng/mL (OR = 1.040, 95% CI: 1.001–1.080, P = 0.04), diabetes mellitus (OR = 4.401, 95% CI: 1.081–17.923, P = 0.04) and heavy thrombus burden (OR = 16.915, 95% CI: 5.055–56.602, P < 0.001) could be considered as predictors for the development of no-reflow. Interestingly, CAR >0.21, FAR >11.56, and AIP >0.52 could be considered as novel powerful independent predictors (OR = 3.357, 95% CI: 2.288–4.927, P < 0.001, OR = 4.187, 95% CI: 2.761–6.349, P < 0.001, OR = 16.794, 95% CI: 1.018–277.01, P = 0.04, respectively). Higher long term mortality (P < 0.001) and heart failure (P < 0.001) was also strongly related to incidence of no-reflow.

Conclusion

No-reflow could be attributed to novel predictors as CAR, FAR, and AIP. This phenomenon was associated with long term adverse events as higher mortality and pump failure.

Tongmai Yangxin pill reduces myocardial no-reflow by regulating apoptosis and activating PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Tongmai Yangxin pill (TMYX) is derived from the Zhigancao decoction recorded in Shang han lun by Zhang Zhongjing during the Han dynasty and was further improved by Professor Ruan Shiyi, a cardiovascular expert at Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. TMYX is used for the clinical treatment of chest pain, heartache, and qi-yin-deficiency coronary heart disease and can improve vascular endothelial function in patients with angina pectoris or coronary heart disease by up-regulating nitric oxide activity and then regulating vascular tension. Whether TMYX can further improve myocardial no-reflow by up-regulating NO activity and then dilating blood vessels remains unclear.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study aimed to reveal whether TMYX can further improve myocardial NR by up-regulating NO activity and then dilating blood vessels. The mechanism underlying PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway activation and apoptosis regulation is also explored.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The left anterior descending coronary arteries of healthy adult male SD rats were ligated to establish a NR model. The rats were assigned to 14 groups: control, sham, NR, TMYX (4.0 g/kg), sodium nitroprusside (SNP), Tongxinluo capsule (TXL), PI3K blocker (LY), TMYX + LY, SNP + LY, TXL + LY, eNOS blocker (L-NAME), TMYX + L-NAME, SNP + L-NAME, and TXL + L-NAME groups. Cardiac function was measured through echocardiography. Thioflavin S, Evans Blue, and TTC staining were adopted to evaluate NR and ischemic areas. Cell inflammation degree and edema were assessed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. Automated biochemical analyzer and kit were used to detect the activities of myocardial oxidants, including reactive oxygen species, super oxide dismutase, malonaldehyde, and NO. The expression levels of genes and proteins in the PI3K/Akt/eNOS signaling pathway and apoptosis were detected via real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blot analysis, respectively. A microvascular tension sensor was adopted to detect coronary artery diastolic function in vitro.

RESULTS

TMYX reduced NR and ischemic areas; suppressed LV-mass; enhanced EF, FS, LVOT peak, and LVSV; and improved cardiac structure and function. Moreover, it decreased creatine kinase (CK), CK-MB, and lactic dehydrogenase activities. TMYX increased NO and super oxide dismutase activities; inhibited malonaldehyde activity; reduced muscle fiber swelling and inflammatory cell infiltration; and improved vasodilation in vitro. In the NR myocardium, TMYX stimulated myocardial PI3K activities and PI3K (Tyr458) phosphorylation and enhanced Akt activities and Akt phosphorylation at Tyr315. TMYX increased the activities of eNOS and the phosphorylation of eNOS at Ser¹¹⁷⁷ in the NR myocardium and attenuated cardiomyocyte apoptosis by increasing the expression of Bcl-2 and decreasing that of caspase-3 and Bax. All these effects of TMYX were abolished by the specific inhibitors of PI3K (LY) and eNOS (L-NAME).

CONCLUSIONS

TMYX attenuates myocardial NR after ischemia and reperfusion by activating the PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway and regulating apoptosis, further up-regulating NO activity and relaxing coronary microvessels.

Clinical, Laboratory, and Procedural Predictors of No-Reflow in Patients Undergoing Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Background: No-reflow is a major challenging issue in the management of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI). This study aimed to investigate the clinical, laboratory, and procedural predictors of no-reflow.

Methods: This study was conducted on 378 patients with STEMI admitted to Dr. Heshmat Educational and Remedial Center (a referral heart hospital in Rasht, Iran) between 2015 and 2017. The study population was divided based on the thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow grade and the myocardial blush grade into no-reflow and reflow groups. The clinical, laboratory, and procedural characteristics at admission were compared between the 2 groups using the multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Results: The mean age of the participants was 58.57±11.49 years, and men comprised 74.1% of the study population. The no-reflow phenomenon was found in 77 patients. The no-reflow group was significantly older and more likely to be female; additionally, it had higher frequencies of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, and a history of cardiovascular diseases. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age >60 years (OR=1.05, 95% CI:1.00–1.09), hypertension (OR=2.91, 95% CI:1.35–6.27), diabetes (OR=4.18, 95% CI:1.89–9.22), a low systolic blood pressure (OR=3.53, 95% CI:1.02–12.2), a history of cardiovascular diseases (OR=4.29, 95% CI:1.88–9.77), chronic heart failure (OR=4.96, 95% CI:1.23–20), a low initial TIMI flow grade (OR=7.58, 95% CI:1.46–39.2 ), anemia (OR=3.42, 95% CI:1.33–8.77), and stenting vs. balloon angioplasty (OR=0.42, 95% CI:0.19–0.91) were the significant independent predictors of no-reflow.

Conclusion: This study revealed some clinical, laboratory, and procedural predictors of no-reflow for the prediction of high-risk patients and their appropriate management to reduce the risk of no-reflow.

State of the Art: No-Reflow Phenomenon

Primary percutaneous coronary intervention is the preferred reperfusion strategy for the management of acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. No reflow is characterized by the inadequate myocardial perfusion of a given segment without angiographic evidence of persistent mechanical obstruction of epicardial vessels. Both pharmacologic and device-based strategies have been tested to resolve coronary no reflow. This article provides an updated overview of the no-reflow phenomenon, discussing clinical evidence and ongoing investigations of existing and novel therapeutic strategies to counteract it.

A Scoring System to Predict No-Reflow Phenomenon in Elective Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: The RECOVER Score

The RECOVER score system aimed to stratify the risk of no-reflow phenomenon in patients undergoing elective percutaneous coronary intervention. A total of 3967 patients with 5340 lesions were used for the construction and validating of the risk model and score system. In multivariable analyses, 3 variables were independently associated with the risk of no-reflow phenomenon (model C-statistic=0.746 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.690 to 0.803) with good calibration). No-reflow phenomenon rates in both construction and validation cohort increased significantly across different risk groups. The RECOVER score can help identify patients at risk for phenomenon during percutaneous coronary intervention.

Predictors and outcomes of no-reflow phenomenon in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

AIM

The aim of this study is to identify the predictors of angiographic no-reflow development in patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention and to investigate the long-term (median follow-up time=59 months) clinical endpoints.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We retrospectively evaluated 3205 patients (824 females, mean age: 58.6 years) with acute myocardial infarction (ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction) admitted within the first 12 h of chest pain and treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention between January 2006 and January 2010. The patients were divided into angiographic no-reflow [final Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction (TIMI)<3 flow] (n=324) and reflow (final TIMI 3) (n=2881) groups.

RESULTS

On multivariate logistic regression analysis age [odds ratio (OR)=1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00-1.04, P=0.003], Killip class≥2 (OR=1.99, 95% CI: 1.30-3.04, P=0.002), pain-to-balloon time more than 4 h (OR=3.98, 95% CI: 2.50-6.32, P<0.001), baseline TIMI≤1 flow (OR=2.55, 95% CI: 1.05-6.22, P=0.038), lesion length of at least 15 mm (OR=4.31, 95% CI: 2.89-6.41, P<0.001), reference vessel diameter of at least 3.5 mm (OR=2.83, 95% CI: 1.87-4.27, P<0.001), cutoff occlusion pattern (OR=1.93, 95% CI: 1.03-3.62, P=0.04), and SYNTAX score of at least 19 (OR=1.76, 95% CI: 1.1.23-3.07, P<0.001)] were found as significant predictors for the development of no-reflow phenomenon. In no-reflow patients, in-hospital mortality (10.8 vs. 2.9%), heart failure (32.1 vs. 8.7%), and severe arrhythmias (23.1 vs. 9.3%) were significantly more common (P<0.001), for all. In the long-term follow-up, death (33.3 vs. 13.4%, P<0.001), advanced heart failure (12.5 vs. 5.4%, P<0.001), and stroke (3.5 vs. 1.7%, P=0.035) rates were significantly higher in the no-reflow group.

CONCLUSION

The no-reflow predictors that were identified in this study might be useful in the determination of the patients who could benefit from aggressive pharmaco-invasive therapy. Development of no-reflow is associated with both in-hospital and long-term very high morbidity and mortality rates.

The impact of lesion complexity on no-reflow phenomenon and predictors of reversibility in patients treated with primary percutaneous intervention

OBJECTIVES

Complex coronary lesions are more prone to complications; however, the relationship between complex coronary lesions and no-reflow phenomenon in patients undergoing primary percutaneous intervention (pPCI) is still not clarified. Previous studies reported the association of total coronary artery complexity with no-reflow; however, impact of culprit lesion complexity on no-reflow is not known. In this study, we aimed to investigate the impact of culprit lesion complexity on no-reflow phenomenon. Furthermore, we aimed to investigate the factors that are related to reversibility of no-reflow.

METHODS

We prospectively included 424 patients treated with pPCI. Patients' baseline characteristics and clinical variables were recorded. Reversibility of no-reflow was decided according to final angiography or ST resolution during the first hour following pPCI. There were 90 patients with a diagnosis of no-reflow constituted group 1 and patients without no-reflow constituted group 2. Complexity of coronary artery disease was assessed with SYNTAX score and culprit lesion complexity was assessed with both American College of Cardiology/Society of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions lesion classification and SYNTAX score.

RESULTS

Complexity of culprit lesion was significantly higher in group 1 patients (type C lesion 76.6 vs. 27.8%; P < 0.001 and SYNTAX score 8.7 ± 3.0 vs. 6.2 ± 2.6; P < 0.001, respectively, group 1 vs. 2). Multivariate analyses revealed that lesion complexity is independently associated with no-reflow. Among 90 patients of group 1, 43 patients were classified as reversible no-reflow. Logistic regression analysis revealed that only ischaemia duration is independently associated with reversibility of no-reflow.

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrated that culprit lesion complexity is independently associated with no-reflow phenomenon and short ischaemic duration is significantly associated with reversibility of no-reflow.

Ultrasound-Targeted Microbubble Cavitation with Sodium Nitrite Synergistically Enhances Nitric Oxide Production and Microvascular Perfusion

Microvascular obstruction is a common repercussion of percutaneous coronary intervention for distal microembolization, ischemia-reperfusion injury and inflammation, which increases post-myocardial infarction heart failure and mortality. Ultrasound-targeted microbubble cavitation (UTMC) may resolve microvascular obstruction while activating endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and increasing endothelium-derived nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability. Nitrite, a cardioprotective agent, offers an additional source of NO and potential synergy with UTMC. UTMC and nitrite co-therapy increased microvascular perfusion and NO concentration in a rat hindlimb model. Using N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester for eNOS blockade, we found a three-way interaction effect between nitrite, UTMC and eNOS on microvascular perfusion and NO production. Modulating ultrasound peak negative acoustic pressure (0.33-1.5 MPa) significantly affected outcomes, while microbubble dosage (2 × 108 bubbles/mL, 1.5 mL/h to 1 × 109 bubbles/mL, 3 mL/h) did not. Nitrite co-therapy also protected against oxidative stress. Comparison of nitrite to sodium nitroprusside with UTMC revealed synergistic effects were specific to nitrite. Synergy between UTMC and nitrite holds therapeutic potential for cardiovascular disease.

Development and Validation of Risk Nomogram Model Predicting Coronary Microvascular Obstruction in Patients with ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) Undergoing Primary Percutaneous Catheterization

Background

Coronary microvascular functional and structural obstruction (CMVO) remains a major complication in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). This study was designed to develop and validate a nomogram model to predict CMVO risk during primary percutaneous catheterization procedure.

Material/Methods

Starting January 2014 to December 2016, a cohort of eligible candidates were enrolled and divided into a training or a validation database. Each database was divided into MO or NMO subgroups based on TIMI myocardial perfusion grade results after recanalization. Independent factors were identified by multivariate logistic regression, from which the nomogram was plotted. The echocardiography measurement of the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was arranged within 7 days after the procedure.

Results

A nomogram was built for CMVO risk prediction for the first time. There were 446 participants in the training database with 319 cases in the NMO subgroup and 127 participants in the MO subgroup. The validation database included 99 participants with 25 cases in the NMO subgroup and 74 in the MO subgroup. The risk model was developed by 6 independently significant factors: age, symptom onset to balloon time, Killip classification, admission activated clotting time, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, and glucose value. Internal receiver operating characteristic displayed favorable performance with concordance index of 0.925, while external validation area under curve was 0.939. There were significant differences in LVEF values during hospitalization between the subgroups of each database (both P<0.001).

Conclusions

The nomogram model consisting of 6 factors could predict CMVO risk accurately for STEMI patients undergoing primary percutaneous catheterization.

Effect of Chinese Medicine on No or Slow Reflow after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Myocardial Infarction Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE

To systematic review the effect of Chinese medicine (CM) on no or slow reflow after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in myocardial infarction (MI) patients.

METHODS

The PubMed, EMBASE databases, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese BioMedical Literature Database (CBM), Wanfang Knowledge Service Platform (Wanfang Database) and Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP) were searched up to December 2017. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) which evaluated the effect of CM therapies on no or slow reflow after PCI in MI patients were included. The primary outcome was the effect of reperfusion. Secondary outcomes were left ventricular ejection fraction, incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events and adverse effect.

RESULTS

Ten RCTs covering 814 patients were included. Two studies revealed that the incidence of no or slow reflow was less in Shenmai Injection () group than in the control group measured by thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) ⩽ 2 (risk ratio=0.55, 95% confidence interval 0.38 to 0.81, P=0.003, I²=37%). Two studies indicated that Salvianolate Injection showed no additional benefit on no or slow reflow measured by corrected TIMI frame count compared with the conventional treatment (mean difference -4.24, 95% confidence interval -13.03 to 4.54, P=0.34, I²=86%). In addition, Tongxinluo Capsules (), Danhong Injection () and Xuesaitong Injection () may have the potential to reduce no or slow reflow measured during or after PCI in individual studies.

CONCLUSIONS

Current evidence from RCTs are not sufficient to evaluate the effect of CM adjuvant therapies on no or slow reflow after PCI for MI patients. The included studies are limited by small sample size and unclear baseline conditions. Further rigorously designed researches and verification studies with sufficient number of patients are warranted.

The Elevated Soluble ST2 Predicts No-Reflow Phenomenon in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Undergoing Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Aim: The primary percutaneous procedure resulted in a significant improvement in the prognosis of myocardial infarction. However, no-reflow phenomenon restrains this benefit of the process. There are studies suggesting that soluble suppression of tumorigenicity (sST2) can be valuable in the diagnosis and progression of heart failure and myocardial infarction. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of sST2 on no-reflow phenomenon in ST-elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Method: This study included 379 patients (258 men; mean age, 60 ± 11 years) who underwent primary percutaneous treatment for STEMI. sST2 levels were measured from blood samples taken at admission. Patients were divided into two groups according to Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction(TIMI) flow grade: group 1 consists of TIMI 0,1,2, accepted as no-reflow, and group 2 consists of TIMI 3, accepted as reflow.

Results: No-reflow phenomenon occurred in 60 patients (15.8%). The sST2 level was higher in the no-reflow group (14.2 ± 4.6 vs. 11.3 ± 5.0, p = 0.003). Moreover, regression analysis indicated that diabetes mellitus, lower systolic blood pressure, multivessel vascular disease, high plaque burden, and grade 0 initial TIMI flow rate were other independent predictors of the no-reflow phenomenon in our study. Besides, when the patients were divided into high and low sST2 groups according to the cut-off value from the Receiver operating characteristics analysis, being in the high sST2 group was associated with 2.7 times increased odds for no-reflow than being in the low sST2 group.

Conclusion: sST2 is one of the independent predictors of the no-reflow phenomenon in STEMI patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Atrial Fibrillation: A Novel Risk Factor for No-Reflow Following Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

There is a lack of evidence regarding the association of atrial fibrillation (AF) and no-reflow (NR) phenomenon in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI). A total of 2452 patients with STEMI who underwent pPCI were retrospectively investigated. After exclusions, 370 (14.6%) patients were in the AF group and 2095 (85.4%) were in the No-AF group. Patients with a thrombolysis in myocardial infarction flow rate <3 were defined as having NR. Patients in the AF group were older and had higher 3-vessel disease rates (24.1% vs 18.9%; P = .021) and lower left ventricular ejection fraction (45.4 [11.7] vs 48.7 [10.5%]; P < .001). No-reflow rates were higher in the AF group than in the No-AF group (29.1% vs 11.8%; P < .001). According to multivariable analysis, AF (odds ratio: 1.81, 95% confidence interval: 1.63-2.04, P < .001), age, Killip class, anterior myocardial infarction, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, stent length, and smoking were independent predictors of NR following pPCI. Atrial fibrillation is a quite common arrhythmia in patients with STEMI. Atrial fibrillation was found to be an independent predictor of NR in the current study. This effect of AF on coronary flow rate might be considered as an important risk factor in STEMI.

CHA2DS2-VASc Score as an Independent Predictor of Suboptimal Reperfusion and Short-Term Mortality after Primary PCI in Patients with Acute ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

Background and objectives: We aimed to demonstrate the clinical utility of CHA2DS2-VASc score in risk assessment of patients with STEMI regarding adverse clinical outcomes particularly no-reflow phenomenon. Materials and Methods: We designed a retrospective cohort study using the data of Tehran Heart Center registry for acute coronary syndrome. The study included 1331 consecutive patients with STEMI who underwent primary angioplasty. Patients were divided into two groups according to low and high CHA2DS2-VASc score. Angiographic results of reperfusion were inspected to evaluate the association of high CHA2DS2-VASc score and the likelihood of suboptimal TIMI flow. The secondary endpoint of the study was short-term in-hospital mortality of all cause. Results: The present study confirmed that CHA2DS2-VASc model enables us to determine the risk of no-reflow and all-cause in-hospital mortality independently. Odds ratios were 1.59 (1.30–2.25) and 1.60 (1.17–2.19), respectively. Moreover, BMI, high thrombus grade, and cardiogenic shock were predictors of failed reperfusion (odds were 1.07 (1.01–1.35), 1.59 (1.28–1.76), and 8.65 (3.76–24.46), respectively). We showed that using a cut off value of ≥ two in CHA2DS2-VASc model provides a sensitivity of 69.7% and specificity of 64.4% for discrimination of increased mortality hazards. Area under the curve: 0.72 with 95% CI (0.62–0.81). Conclusions: Calculation of CHA2DS2-VASc score applied as a simple risk stratification tool before primary PCI affords great predictive power. Furthermore, incremental values are obtained by using both CHA2DS2-VASc and no-reflow regarding mortality risk assessment.

Intracoronary Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa Inhibitors Improve Short-Term Mortality and Reinfarction in East Asian Patients with ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction after Thrombus Aspiration: A Meta-Analysis

Objective

Intracoronary (IC) glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (GPIs) after thrombus aspiration (TA) for patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), as compared with percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) alone, is still on debate. To address this issue, we performed a meta-analysis of results from prospective or randomized controlled trials on the topic.

Methods

We searched electronic and printed sources (up to June 20, 2016) according to the selection criteria. Data were abstraction and meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software.

Results

The cohorts involved 14 articles describing 1,918 participants were included. The incidence of the short-term major adverse cardiac events (MACE) was significantly reduced with intracoronary GPIs after TA (odds ratio [OR]: 0.29; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.13 to 0.65, p=0.003). Benefits were noted for short-term mortality (OR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.17 to 0.57, p=0.0002) and reinfarction (OR: 0.28; 95% CI: 0.10 to 0.78, p=0.01) in subjects who received intracoronary GPIs after TA. Moreover, the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) trial grade 3 postprocedure (OR: 2.29; 95% CI: 1.72 to 3.04, P<0.00001) and complete ST-segment resolution (STR) rate (OR: 2.68; 95% CI: 1.85 to 3.87, P<0.00001) were both improved with intracoronary GPIs after TA. As a result, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) at short-term follow-up showed a significant difference (OR: 7.33; 95% CI: 5.60 to 9.06, p<0.0001) in favor of the TA and intracoronary GPIs administration.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrates that intracoronary GPIs may have a synergistic effect with thrombus aspiration on short-term mortality, reinfarction, and cardiac functional recovery.