Prediction of long-term segmental and global functional recovery of hibernating myocardium after revascularisation based on low dose dobutamine and late gadolinium enhancement cardiovascular magnetic resonance

[Prediction of myocardial contractility after coronary bypass surgery according to preoperative contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and echocardiography]

OBJECTIVE

To establish the criteria for reversibility of myocardial contractility in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) after coronary artery bypass grafting considering data of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and echocardiography.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We studied the results of coronary artery bypass grafting in 186 patients with CAD complicated by reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (<30%). All patients underwent cardiac MRI and echocardiography before surgery. Immediate and long-term results were evaluated according to echocardiography and MRI data.

RESULTS

We confirmed the previously established predictors of improvement in left ventricular contractility: diastolic IVST ≥10.5 mm and PWT ≥9.5 mm, score of LV myocardium damage according to MRI with delayed contrast enhancement (p<0.05). Multivariate analysis makes it possible to calculate prognostic index and obtain information about further myocardial contractility after revascularization with an error of 6%.

CONCLUSION

Echocardiography and contrast-enhanced cardiac MRI are valuable to assess morphological and functional state of the left ventricle in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy and preoperatively determine functional reserve of the myocardium.

Myocardial Scar and Revascularization on Mortality in Ischemic Cardiomyopathy (from the Late Gadolinium Enhancement Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Study)

Myocardial viability test to guide revascularization remains uncertain in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy. We evaluated the different impacts of revascularization on cardiac mortality according to the extent of myocardial scar assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy. A total of 404 consecutive patients with significant coronary artery disease and an ejection fraction ≤35% were assessed by LGE-CMR before revascularization. Of them, 306 patients underwent revascularization and 98 patients received medical treatment alone. The primary outcome was cardiac death. During a median follow-up of 6.3 years, cardiac death occurred in 158 patients (39.1%). Revascularization was associated with a significantly lower risk of cardiac death than medical treatment alone in the overall population (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.29, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.19 to 0.45, p <0.001). There was a significant interaction between the number of segments with >75% transmural LGE and revascularization on the risk of cardiac death (p = 0.037 for interaction). In patients with limited myocardial scar (<6 segments with >75% transmural LGE, n = 354), revascularization had a significantly lower risk of cardiac death than medical treatment alone (aHR 0.24, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.37, p <0.001); in patients with extensive myocardial scar (≥6 segments with >75% transmural LGE, n = 50), there was no significant difference between revascularization and medical treatment alone regarding the risk of cardiac death (aHR 1.33, 95% CI 0.46 to 3.80, p = 0.60). In conclusion, the assessment of myocardial scar by LGE-CMR may be helpful in the decision-making process for revascularization in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy.

Clinical Outcomes by Consolidation of Bone Marrow Stem Cell Therapy and Coronary Artery Bypass Graft in Patients With Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction: A Meta-analysis

Bone marrow stem cell (BMSC) transplantation during coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is an innovative treatment for ischemic heart disease (IHD). We conduct a meta-analysis to examine whether patients with IHD presenting heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) can be beneficent from CABG with additional BMSC transplantation. Electronic searches were performed on PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov from their inception to July 2021. The efficacy was based on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD), left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), left ventricular end-diastolic volume index (LVEDVi), left ventricular end-systolic volume index (LVESVi), and 6-min walk test (6MWT) change after treatment. Eight randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this meta-analysis, with a total of 350 patients. Results showed BMSC transplantation significantly improved the LVEF [mean difference (MD) = 6.23%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.22%-9.24%, P < 0.0001], LVEDVi (MD = -20.15 ml/m2, 95% CI: -30.49 to -9.82 ml/m2, P < 0.00001), and LVESVi (MD = -17.69 ml/m2, 95% CI: -25.24 to -10.14 ml/m2, P < 0.00001). There was no statistically significant difference in the improvement of LVEDD, LVEDV, and 6MWT between the cell transplantation group and control groups. Subgroup analysis revealed that the intervention for control group could affect the efficacy of BMSC transplantation. Sensitivity analysis found the conclusion of LVEDD, LVEDV, and 6MWT changes was not stable. Therefore, among patients with IHD presenting HFrEF, BMSC transplantation during CABG is promising to be beneficial for postoperative left ventricular (LV) function improvement. However, according to the unstable results of the sensitivity analysis, it cannot be concluded whether the extra step has a positive effect on left ventricular remodeling and exercise capacity. RCTs with larger cohorts and more strict protocols are needed to validate these conclusions.

Myocardial Viability Testing in the Management of Ischemic Heart Failure

Although major advances have occurred lately in medical therapy, ischemic heart failure remains an important cause of death and disability. Viable myocardium represents a cause of reversible ischemic left ventricular dysfunction. Coronary revascularization may improve left ventricular function and prognosis in patients with viable myocardium. Although patients with impaired left ventricular function and multi-vessel coronary artery disease benefit the most from revascularization, they are at high risk of complications related to revascularization procedure. An important element in selecting the patients for myocardial revascularization is the presence of the viable myocardium. Multiple imaging modalities can assess myocardial viability and predict functional improvement after revascularization, with dobutamine stress echocardiography, nuclear imaging tests and magnetic resonance imaging being the most frequently used. However, the role of myocardial viability testing in the management of patients with ischemic heart failure is still controversial due to the failure of randomized controlled trials of revascularization to reveal clear benefits of viability testing. This review summarizes the current knowledge regarding the concept of viable myocardium, depicts the role and tools for viability testing, discusses the research involving this topic and the controversies related to the utility of myocardial viability testing and provides a patient-centered approach for clinical practice.

Myocardial viability assessment and utility in contemporary management of ischemic cardiomyopathy

Background

In clinical practice, we encounter ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) with underlying viable, dysfunctional myocardium on a regular basis. Evidence from the Surgical Treatment for Ischemic Heart failure (STICH) and its Extension Study is supportive of improved outcomes with coronary revascularization, irrespective of myocardial viable status. However, Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) and single‐photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), used in STICH to assess myocardial viability may fail to distinguish hibernating myocardium from scar due to suboptimal image resolution and poor tissue characterization.

Hypothesis

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) and positron emission tomography (PET) can precisely quantify myocardial scar and identify metabolically active, viable myocardium respectively. Unlike DSE and SPECT, CMR and PET allow examining myocardial status as a contiguous spectrum from viable to partially viable myocardium with varying degrees of subendocardial scar and nonviable myocardium with predominantly transmural scar, the therapeutic and prognostic determinants of ICM.

Methods

Under the guidance of CMR and PET imaging, myocardium can be distinguished viable from partially viable with subendocardial scar and predominantly transmural scar. In ICM, optimal medical therapy and coronary revascularization of viable/partially viable myocardium but not transmural scar may improve outcomes in patients with acceptable procedural risk.

Results

Coronary revascularization of partially viable and viable myocardial territory may improve clinical outcomes by preventing future ischemic, infarct events and further worsening of left ventricular remodeling and function.

Conclusions

When deciding if coronary revascularization is appropriate in a patient with ICM, it is essential to take a patient‐tailored, comprehensive approach incorporating myocardial viability, ischemia, and scar data with others such as procedural risk, and patient's comorbidities.

1.

Viability of myocardium is assessed by different imaging modalities, probing different characteristics of the living myocyte – uptake of radioactive isotope, TC‐99m or Tl‐201 (SPECT MPI), contractile reserve (Dobutamine stress imaging, echo or CMR), metabolic properties (FDG uptake on PET), absence of scar (CMR).

2.

Dysfunctional, viable myocardium as compared to nonviable myocardium carries a better prognosis with appropriate therapy.

3.

Dysfunctional myocardium may not be simplified into a binary state of viable or not. It can be a continuum process, with a myocardial segment in a hybrid state with an intermix of viable myocytes in early to late phases of hibernation and fibrosis.

4.

Nonviable myocardium on Dobutamine Stress Echocardiography or SPECT Nuclear imaging may be partially viable (with varying degrees of fibrosis) or viable with no scar, on CMR.

5.

Coronary revascularization of partially viable or viable myocardium should be considered if the procedural risk is acceptable, as it improves long‐term outcomes by preventing further myocardial ischemia/infarction and possibly improving left ventricular function and remodeling.

Low-dose dobutamine cardiovascular magnetic resonance segmental strain study of early phase of intramyocardial hemorrhage rats

Background

This study investigates the segmental myocardial strain of the early phase of intramyocardial hemorrhage (IMH) caused by reperfused myocardial infarction (MI) in rats by low-dose dobutamine (LDD) cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) feature-tracking.

Methods

Nine sham rats and nine rats with 60-min myocardial ischemia followed by 48-h reperfusion were investigated using CMR, including T2*-mapping sequence and fast imaging with steady-state precession (FISP)–cine sequence. Another FISP–cine sequence was acquired after 2 min of dobutamine injection; the MI, IMH, and Non-MI (NMI) areas were identified. The values of peak radial strains (PRS) and peak circumferential strains (PCS) of the MI, IMH and NMI segments were acquired. The efficiency of PRS and PCS (EPRS and EPCS, respectively) were calculated on the basis of the time of every single heartbeat.

Results

The PRS, PCS, EPRS, and EPCS of the sham group increased after LDD injection. However, the PRS, PCS, EPRS, and EPCS of the IMH segment did not increase. Moreover, the PRS and PCS of the MI and NMI segments did not increase, but the EPRS and EPCS of these segments increased. The PRS, PCS, EPRS, and EPCS of the IMH segment were lower than those of the MI and NMI segments before and after LDD injection, but without a significant difference between MI segment and NMI segment before and after LDD injection.

Conclusions

LDD could help assess dysfunctions in segments with IMH, especially using the efficiency of strain. IMH was a crucial factor that decreased segmental movement and reserved function.

Myocardial stunning and hibernation revisited

Unlike acute myocardial infarction with reperfusion, in which infarct size is the end point reflecting irreversible injury, myocardial stunning and hibernation result from reversible myocardial ischaemia-reperfusion injury, and contractile dysfunction is the obvious end point. Stunned myocardium is characterized by a disproportionately long-lasting, yet fully reversible, contractile dysfunction that follows brief bouts of myocardial ischaemia. Reperfusion precipitates a burst of reactive oxygen species formation and alterations in excitation-contraction coupling, which interact and cause the contractile dysfunction. Hibernating myocardium is characterized by reduced regional contractile function and blood flow, which both recover after reperfusion or revascularization. Short-term myocardial hibernation is an adaptation of contractile function to the reduced blood flow such that energy and substrate metabolism recover during the ongoing ischaemia. Chronic myocardial hibernation is characterized by severe morphological alterations and altered expression of metabolic and pro-survival proteins. Myocardial stunning is observed clinically and must be recognized but is rarely haemodynamically compromising and does not require treatment. Myocardial hibernation is clinically identified with the use of imaging techniques, and the myocardium recovers after revascularization. Several trials in the past two decades have challenged the superiority of revascularization over medical therapy for symptomatic relief and prognosis in patients with chronic coronary syndromes. A better understanding of the pathophysiology of myocardial stunning and hibernation is important for a more precise indication of revascularization and its consequences. Therefore, this Review summarizes the current knowledge of the pathophysiology of these characteristic reperfusion phenomena and highlights their clinical implications.

Effect of Myocardial Viability Assessed by Cardiac Magnetic Resonance on Survival in Patients With Severe Left Ventricular Dysfunction

Background: Myocardial viability assessment in revascularization of ischemic heart failure remains controversial. This study evaluated the prognostic utility of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in ischemic heart failure.

Methods and Results: This study retrospectively analyzed subjects with ischemic heart failure and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤35%, who underwent CMR at a single center in 2004–2014 before undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or optimal medical therapy (OMT). Analyses were stratified by treatment. Myocardial segments were deemed non-viable if LGE exceeded 50% wall thickness. Overall and anterior viability were assessed. Outcomes were all-cause mortality, cardiovascular (CV) mortality and major adverse CV events. Among 165 subjects (mean (±SD) age 57.5±8.5 years, 152 males), 79 underwent CABG and 86 received OMT. A greater number of non-viable segments was significantly associated with higher all-cause and CV mortality in the CABG group (adjusted hazard ratios 1.17 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.01–1.37; P=0.04] and 1.25 [95% CI 1.01–1.56; P=0.045], respectively), but not in the OMT (P>0.05) group. Anterior wall viability did not affect outcomes.

Conclusions: The extent of myocardial viability assessed by LGE appeared to identify patients with a differential survival benefit from CABG in this retrospective, small cohort study. These findings raise interesting hypotheses that need to be validated in larger prospective studies.

Role of Myocardial Extracellular Volume Fraction Measured with Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Prediction of Left Ventricular Functional Outcome after Revascularization of Chronic Total Occlusion of Coronary Arteries

Objective

The purpose of this study was to prospectively investigate the value of the myocardial extracellular volume fraction (ECV) in predicting myocardial functional outcome after revascularization of coronary chronic total occlusion (CTO).

Materials and Methods

Thirty patients with CTO underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) before and 6 months after revascularization. Three baseline markers of functional outcome were evaluated in the dysfunctional segments assigned to the CTO vessels: ECV, transmural extent of infarction (TEI), and unenhanced rim thickness (RIM). At the global level, the ECV values of the whole myocardium with and without a hyperenhanced region (global and remote ECV) were respectively measured.

Results

In per-segment analysis, ECV was superior to TEI and RIM in predicting functional recovery (area under receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC]: 0.86 vs. 0.75 and 0.73, all p values < 0.010), and it emerged as the only independent predictor of regional functional outcome (odds ratio [OR] = 0.83, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.77–0.89; p < 0.001) independent of collateral circulation. In per-patient analysis, global baseline ECV was indicative of ejection fraction (EF) at the follow-up examination (β = −0.61, p < 0.001) and changes in EF (β = −0.57, p = 0.001) in multivariate regression analysis. A patient with global baseline ECV less than 30.0% (AUC, 0.93; sensitivity 94%, specificity 80%) was more likely to demonstrate significant EF improvement (OR: 0.38; 95% CI: 0.17–0.85; p = 0.019).

Conclusion

Extracellular volume fraction obtained by CMR may provide incremental value for the prediction of functional recovery both at the segmental and global levels in CTO patients, and may facilitate the identification of patients who can benefit from revascularization.

Importance of baseline heart rate as a predictor of cardiac functional recovery in newly diagnosed heart failure with reduced ejection fraction

BACKGROUND

Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) has shown to predict outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF). Left ventricular recovery (LVR) has shown to improve prognosis.

HYPOTHESIS

Guideline-directed medical therapy will predict LVR in patients with HF and reduced LVEF.

METHODS

We studied 244 patients with newly diagnosed HF and an LVEF ≤35%. LVR was defined as an increase in LVEF ≥40%. Patients who experienced LVR were compared with those who had persistent left ventricular dysfunction.

RESULTS

Population characteristics included ischemic etiology, 38.1%; baseline LVEF, 23% ±6%; and mean baseline heart rate (HR), 75 ±13 bpm. Guideline-directed medical therapy was achieved as follows: angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, 74.3%; β-blockers (BB), 95.4%; target dosing of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, 33.7%; target dosing of BB, 40.2%. LVR occurred in 154/244 patients (63.1%). By multivariable analysis, baseline HR ≤70 bpm was the only independent predictor of LVR (odds ratio: 3.39, 95% confidence interval: 1.5-7.5, P = 0.003). Target dosing of BB therapy was predictive of LVR only in the univariate analysis (odds ratio: 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1-3.4, P = 0.03). Furthermore, the composite endpoint of HF hospitalization or mortality occurred less frequently in those who did vs those who did not achieve target BB doses (5.4% vs 16.7%, respectively; P = 0.023).

CONCLUSIONS

The novel findings of our analysis reveal that the only predictor of LVR in this study was a low baseline HR. Early modulation of HR in newly diagnosed HF patients may increase the rates of LVR.

Ischemic Mitral Regurgitation: Abnormal Strain Overestimates Nonviable Myocardium

BACKGROUND

Therapy for moderate ischemic mitral regurgitation remains unclear. Determination of myocardial viability, a necessary prerequisite for an improvement in regional contractility, is a likely key factor in determining response to revascularization alone. Myocardial strain has been proposed as a viability measure but has not been compared with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. We hypothesized that abnormal strain overestimates nonviable left ventricular (LV) segments measured with LGE and that ischemia and mechanical tethering by adjacent transmural myocardial infarction (TMI) also decreases strain in viable segments.

METHODS

Sixteen patients with mild or greater ischemic mitral regurgitation and 7 healthy volunteers underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging with noninvasive tags (complementary spatial modulation of magnetization [CSPAMM]), LGE, and stress perfusion. CSPAMM images were post-processed with harmonic phase and circumferential and longitudinal strains were calculated. Viability was defined as the absence of TMI on LGE (hyperenhancement >50% of wall thickness). The borderzone was defined as any segment bordering TMI. Abnormal strain thresholds (±1 to 2.5 SDs from normal mean) were compared with TMI, ischemia, and borderzone.

RESULTS

7.4% of LV segments had TMI on LGE, and more than 14.5% of LV segments were nonviable by strain thresholds (p < 0.005). In viable segments, ischemia impaired longitudinal strain (least perfused one-third of LV segments: -0.18 ± 0.08 versus most perfused: -0.22 ± 0.1, p = 0.01) and circumferential strain (-0.12 ± 0.1 versus -0.16 ± 0.08, p < 0.05). In addition, infarct proximity impaired longitudinal strain (-0.16 ± 0.11 borderzone versus -0.18 ± 0.09 remote, p = 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Impaired LV strain overestimates nonviable myocardium compared with TMI on LGE. Ischemia and infarct proximity also decrease strain in viable segments.

Off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery outcomes in patients with ischaemic left ventricular systolic dysfunction with or without detected viable myocardium

OBJECTIVES

The prognostic value of myocardial viability before coronary bypass grafting remains controversial. The present study evaluated the effects of off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) grafting on patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) with or without viable myocardium (VM) preoperatively detected via nuclear imaging.

METHODS

A total of 115 consecutive patients with 3-vessel disease and impaired left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF ≤ 45%) who underwent OPCAB grafting were recruited in this prospective study. The patients were divided into 2 groups based on myocardial viability, the non-viable myocardium (NVM, 55 patients) and VM (60 patients) groups. Positron emission tomography and radionuclide imaging examination were applied to evaluate the myocardium viability. A Kaplan-Meier analysis was conducted to evaluate the 1-year survival rate.

RESULTS

The preoperative data were similar between groups. An improvement in the LVEF was observed in both groups 12 months after OPCAB grafting (P < 0.05). A binary logistic regression revealed that NVM was an independent predictor of a 5% improvement in LVEF at 6 months (P = 0.012). The rate of main adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) rate at 1 year was similar between the 2 groups (P = 0.06). At 1 year, the death rates were 14.5% in the NVM group and 5% in the VM group (P = 0.17). A Cox regression analysis revealed that NVM and age were independent predictors of mortality [the hazard ratio for death associated with NVM and age were 1.62, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.16-2.89, P = 0.036 and 1.05, 95% CI = 0.98-1.12, P =0.025, respectively].

CONCLUSIONS

The MACCEs and mortality rates of the NVM group were higher than those of the VM group. However, OPCAB surgery improved LVEF, regardless of myocardium status. Therefore, the assessment of myocardial viability might not be the sole deciding factor in decision-making process regarding OPCAB surgery.

Improved recovery of regional left ventricular function after PCI of chronic total occlusion in STEMI patients: a cardiovascular magnetic resonance study of the randomized controlled EXPLORE trial

BACKGROUND

The Evaluating Xience and left ventricular function in PCI on occlusiOns afteR STEMI (EXPLORE) trial did not show a significant benefit of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of the concurrent chronic total occlusion (CTO) in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients on global left ventricular (LV) systolic function. However a possible treatment effect will be most pronounced in the CTO territory. Therefore, we aimed to study the effect of CTO PCI compared to no-CTO PCI on the recovery of regional LV function, particularly in the CTO territory.

METHODS

Using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) we studied 180 of the 302 EXPLORE patients with serial CMR (baseline and 4 months follow-up). Segmental wall thickening (SWT) was quantified on cine images by an independent core laboratory. Dysfunctional segments were defined as SWT < 45%. Dysfunctional segments were further analyzed by viability (transmural extent of infarction (TEI) ≤50%.). All outcomes were stratified for randomization treatment.

RESULTS

In the dysfunctional segments in the CTO territory recovery of SWT was better after CTO PCI compared to no-CTO PCI (ΔSWT 17 ± 27% vs 11 ± 23%, p = 0.03). This recovery was most pronounced in the dysfunctional but viable segments(TEI < 50%) (ΔSWT 17 ± 27% vs 11 ± 22%, p = 0.02). Furthermore in the CTO territory, recovery of SWT was significantly better in the dysfunctional segments in patients with Rentrop grade 2-3 collaterals compared to grade 0-1 collaterals to the CTO (16 ± 26% versus 11 ± 24%, p = 0.04).

CONCLUSION

CTO PCI compared with no-CTO PCI is associated with a greater recovery of regional systolic function in the CTO territory, especially in the dysfunctional but viable segments. Further research is needed to evaluate the use of CMR in selecting post-STEMI patients for CTO PCI and the effect of regional LV function recovery on clinical outcome.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Trialregister.nl NTR1108 , Date registered NTR: 30-okt-2007.

Utility of cardiac magnetic resonance for evaluation of mitral regurgitation prior to mitral valve surgery

Mitral regurgitation (MR) is a common cause of morbidity worldwide and an accepted indication for interventional therapies which aim to reduce or resolve adverse clinical outcomes associated with MR. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) provides highly accurate means of assessing MR, including a variety of approaches that can measure MR based on quantitative flow. Additionally, CMR is widely accepted as a reference standard for cardiac chamber quantification, enabling reliable detection of subtle changes in cardiac chamber size and function so as to guide decision-making regarding timing of mitral valve directed therapies. Beyond geometric imaging, CMR enables tissue characterization of ischemia and infarction in the left ventricular (LV) myocardium as well as within the mitral valve apparatus, thus enabling identification of structural substrates for MR. This review provides an overview of established and emerging CMR approaches to measure valvular regurgitation, including relative utility of different approaches for patients with primary or secondary MR. Clinical outcomes studies are discussed with focus on data demonstrating advantages of CMR for guiding diagnosis, risk stratification, and management of patients with known or suspected MR. Comparative data is reviewed with focus on diagnostic performance of CMR in comparison to conventional assessment via echocardiography (echo). Emerging literature is reviewed concerning potential new approaches that utilize CMR tissue characterization to guide clinical decision-making in order to improve therapeutic outcomes and clinical prognosis for patients with MR.

Delayed enhancement cardiac computed tomography for the assessment of myocardial infarction: from bench to bedside

A large number of studies support the increasingly relevant prognostic value of the presence and extent of delayed enhancement (DE), a surrogate marker of fibrosis, in diverse etiologies. Gadolinium and iodinated based contrast agents share similar kinetics, thus leading to comparable myocardial characterization with cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) and cardiac computed tomography (CT) at both first-pass perfusion and DE imaging. We review the available evidence of DE imaging for the assessment of myocardial infarction (MI) using cardiac CT (CTDE), from animal to clinical studies, and from 16-slice CT to dual-energy CT systems (DECT). Although both CMR and gadolinium agents have been originally deemed innocuous, a number of concerns (though inconclusive and very rare) have been recently issued regarding safety issues, including DNA double-strand breaks related to CMR, and gadolinium-associated nephrogenic systemic fibrosis and deposition in the skin and certain brain structures. These concerns have to be considered in the context of non-negligible rates of claustrophobia, increasing rates of patients with implantable cardiac devices, and a number of logistic drawbacks compared with CTDE, such as higher costs, longer scanning times, and difficulties to scan patients with impaired breath-holding capabilities. Overall, these issues might encourage the role of CTDE as an alternative for DE-CMR in selected populations.

Review of Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance 2015

There were 116 articles published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (JCMR) in 2015, which is a 14 % increase on the 102 articles published in 2014. The quality of the submissions continues to increase. The 2015 JCMR Impact Factor (which is published in June 2016) rose to 5.75 from 4.72 for 2014 (as published in June 2015), which is the highest impact factor ever recorded for JCMR. The 2015 impact factor means that the JCMR papers that were published in 2013 and 2014 were cited on average 5.75 times in 2015. The impact factor undergoes natural variation according to citation rates of papers in the 2 years following publication, and is significantly influenced by highly cited papers such as official reports. However, the progress of the journal's impact over the last 5 years has been impressive. Our acceptance rate is <25 % and has been falling because the number of articles being submitted has been increasing. In accordance with Open-Access publishing, the JCMR articles go on-line as they are accepted with no collating of the articles into sections or special thematic issues. For this reason, the Editors have felt that it is useful once per calendar year to summarize the papers for the readership into broad areas of interest or theme, so that areas of interest can be reviewed in a single article in relation to each other and other recent JCMR articles. The papers are presented in broad themes and set in context with related literature and previously published JCMR papers to guide continuity of thought in the journal. We hope that you find the open-access system increases wider reading and citation of your papers, and that you will continue to send your quality papers to JCMR for publication.

Detection of Left Ventricular Regional Dysfunction and Myocardial Abnormalities Using Complementary Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis without Cardiac Symptoms: A Pilot Study

Objective We sought to detect the presence of left ventricular regional dysfunction and myocardial abnormalities in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients without cardiac symptoms using a complementary cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging approach. Methods Consecutive patients with SSc without cardiac symptoms and healthy controls underwent CMR on a 1.5 T scanner. The peak systolic regional function in the circumferential and radial strain (Ecc, % and Err, %) were calculated using a feature tracking analysis on the mid-left ventricular slices obtained with cine MRI. In addition, we investigated the myocardial characteristics by contrast MRI. Pharmacological stress and rest perfusion scans were performed to assess perfusion defect (PD) due to micro- or macrovascular impairment, and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) images were obtained for the assessment of myocarditis and/or fibrosis. Results We compared 15 SSc patients with 10 healthy controls. No statistically significant differences were observed in the baseline characteristics between the patients and healthy controls. The mean peak Err and Ecc of all segments was significantly lower in the patients than the controls (p=0.011 and p=0.003, respectively). Four patients with LGE (28.6%) and seven patients with PD (50.0%) were observed. PD was significantly associated with digital ulcers (p=0.005). Utilizing a linear regression model, the presence of myocardial LGE was significantly associated with the peak Ecc (p=0.024). After adjusting for age, the association between myocardial LGE and the peak Ecc was strengthened. Conclusion A subclinical myocardial involvement, as detected by CMR, was prevalent in the SSc patients without cardiac symptoms. Regional dysfunction might predict the myocardial abnormalities observed in SSc patients without cardiac symptoms.

Review of Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance 2014

There were 102 articles published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (JCMR) in 2014, which is a 6% decrease on the 109 articles published in 2013. The quality of the submissions continues to increase. The 2013 JCMR Impact Factor (which is published in June 2014) fell to 4.72 from 5.11 for 2012 (as published in June 2013). The 2013 impact factor means that the JCMR papers that were published in 2011 and 2012 were cited on average 4.72 times in 2013. The impact factor undergoes natural variation according to citation rates of papers in the 2 years following publication, and is significantly influenced by highly cited papers such as official reports. However, the progress of the journal's impact over the last 5 years has been impressive. Our acceptance rate is <25% and has been falling because the number of articles being submitted has been increasing. In accordance with Open-Access publishing, the JCMR articles go on-line as they are accepted with no collating of the articles into sections or special thematic issues. For this reason, the Editors have felt that it is useful once per calendar year to summarize the papers for the readership into broad areas of interest or theme, so that areas of interest can be reviewed in a single article in relation to each other and other recent JCMR articles. The papers are presented in broad themes and set in context with related literature and previously published JCMR papers to guide continuity of thought in the journal. We hope that you find the open-access system increases wider reading and citation of your papers, and that you will continue to send your quality papers to JCMR for publication.