Therapeutic Challenges in Patients With Noncardioembolic Acute Ischemic Stroke in Need of Double Antiplatelet Therapy for Coronary Artery Disease

Frequency, Severity, Risk Factors, and Outcome of Hemorrhagic Transformation in Anterior and Posterior Stroke

Background: There are few data on hemorrhagic transformation in posterior circulation strokes (PCS) compared to anterior circulation strokes (ACS). The aim of this study was to retrospectively analyze the incidence of hemorrhagic transformation, its different subtypes, the associations with different risk factors, and the outcome of ACS and PCS patients. Methods: A retrospective analysis of consecutive ischemic stroke patients with hemorrhagic transformation was performed. Clinical and demographic data were collected from electronic patient records. Results: Included were 186 ACS patients and 67 PCS patients. The median age was 77 years, with PCS patients being slightly younger than ACS patients. ACS patients were more likely to be treated with acetylsalicylic acid before stroke. ACS and PCS patients had comparable frequencies and severity of hemorrhagic transformation. After excluding ACS patients who received thrombectomy, PCS patients developed hemorrhagic transformation more frequently compared to ACS patients. Risk factors for hemorrhagic transformation did not differ between ACS and PCS patients and included vitamin K antagonist use before stroke and thrombectomy in ACS patients. There was no correlation between hemorrhagic transformation and stroke outcome. Conclusions: Hemorrhagic transformation occurs with similar frequency in PCS and ACS patients but is more common in PCS patients after the exclusion of ACS patients undergoing thrombectomy.

Therapeutic Effects of Traditional Chinese Medicine for Patients With Coronary Heart Disease After Treatment of Revascularization: A Prospective Cohort Study in the Northern of China

Aim: To investigate the compliance and the outcome of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) after treatment of revascularization.

Methods: In this prospective cohort study, the non-exposure group (NEG), low-exposure group (LEG), and high-exposure group (HEG) were divided after 2 years follow-up. The primary outcome was a composite of death from cardiovascular causes, non-lethal myocardial infarction, heart transplantation, or stroke. Time-to-event data were evaluated by using the Cox regression analysis with hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs. Then, the two-sided p-values were calculated by using the Cox models. In order to indicate the therapeutic effects of TCM on the CHD after revascularization, the survival analysis and the nested case–control study were conducted separately.

Results: There were 1,003 patients with CHD enrolled, 356 patients (35.49%) did not choose the TCM, 379 patients (37.79%) used the TCM seldom, and only 268 patients (26.72%) used TCM regularly. A total of 653 patients with revascularization participated in the prospective cohort study. Over the duration of the trial, the primary endpoints occurred in 12 (4.35%), 11 (4.80%), and 2 (1.35%) patients in the NEG, LEG, and HEG, while the secondary endpoints occurred in 84 (30.43%), 57 (24.89%), and 15 (10.14%) patients in the NEG, LEG, and HEG, respectively. The occurrence time of secondary endpoint events in HEG was significantly postponed (p < 0.001) compared with the other cohorts. The Cox regression analysis indicated that the HRs in the primary endpoints, the secondary endpoint events, the major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), and the composite endpoint events for HEG were all around 0.3 (p < 0.05) and HRs for LEG were all around 0.8. The results of the nested case–control study showed that the TCM exposure was significantly different between the cases and controls in the secondary endpoints (p < 0.05), while no significant difference in the primary endpoints (p > 0.05), but the percentage of HEG in the cases was extremely lower than the controls.

Conclusion: The HEG-TCM may improve the outcomes of the patients with CHD after treatment of revascularization.

Registration:http://www.chictr.org.cn. Unique identifier: ChiCTR-OOC-17012995.

Adherence to guideline recommended medical therapies in type 2 diabetic patients with chronic critical limb ischemia

AIM

The aim of this study was to evaluate the adherence to guideline recommended medical therapies in type 2 diabetic patients with chronic critical limb ischemia (CCLI).

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed the data of 1315 admissions performed in our Department, focusing on diabetic foot patients (842-64%) of which 603 consecutive type 2 diabetic patients with CCLI (M/F(%): 73/27; age: 70.3 ± 10.4 yrs; diabetes duration: 17.3 ± 13.7 yrs; BMI: 27.7 ± 5.3 Kg/m²; HbA1c 7.8 ± 1.8%) referred to a third-level Center from 2011 to 2015. We focused on medical therapy of diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, peripheral vascular disease and smoke habits.

RESULTS

In total, at admission, 66.6% of patients had HbA1c levels higher than recommended; 65.9% of patients were on statins; 81.4% on anti-hypertensive treatment and 72.4% on antiplatelet drugs. Concerning smoke habits, 27% of patients were no-smokers; 41% former smokers and 32% active smokers. Among all patients, only 24% were prescribed all five guideline recommended therapies while 32% reached four out of five of these. As for patients treated with anti-hypertensive drugs, we observed higher levels of systolic pressure (138.0 ± 29.5 vs 107.7 ± 36.6 p < 0.02) while no differences were observed in diastolic pressure levels.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, when it comes to diabetic patients with a severe limb and life threatening clinical condition, we noticed a lower-than-expected application of international guideline-recommended medical therapies. In fact, only one out of four patients was following all the recommended therapies. Nevertheless, these patients did not reach the standard targets requested to prevent cardiovascular disease.