Psychoemotional risk factors for non-communicable diseases in outpatient practice. Guidelines for internists

[Russian eligibility criteria prescribing menopausal hormonal hormones therapy for patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Consensus document of the Russian Cardiological Society, Russian Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Russian Association of Endocrinologists, Eurasian Association of Therapists, Association of Phlebologists of Russia]

Menopausal symptoms can disrupt the life course of women at the peak of their career and family life. Currently, the most effective treatment for these manifestations is menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). The presence of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases in itself does not exclude the possibility of prescribing MHT to relieve menopausal symptoms and improve quality of life. However, often an obstacle to the use of this type of hormonal therapy is the fear of doctors who are afraid of doing more harm to patients than good. Caution is especially important when it comes to women with underlying health conditions. Moreover, it should be recognized that there is a lack of high-quality research regarding the safety of MHT for major chronic non-infectious diseases and common comorbid conditions. The presented consensus document analyzed all currently available data obtained from clinical trials of various designs and created a set of criteria for the acceptability of prescribing MHT to women with concomitant cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Based on the presented document, doctors of various specialties who advise women in menopause will receive an accessible algorithm that will allow them to avoid potentially dangerous situations and reasonably prescribe MHT in real practice.

[Anxiety in subjects with cardiovascular disease: Current diagnostic strategies and therapeutic options. A review]

Anxiety and anxiety disorders are important modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular and other common chronic non-communicable diseases and complications. Anxiety disorders significantly reduce the motivation and adherence of patients to lifestyle changes and drug therapy, significantly worsen the quality of life, and increase the risk of disability and the costs of the health care system. The issues of diagnosis and therapy of anxiety are relevant for the practice of physicians and cardiologists due to the high incidence of anxiety disorders in patients with cardiovascular diseases, a decrease in the quality of life and an increase in adverse outcomes, and also due to the insufficient awareness of the risks associated with the psycho-emotional state of patients. Therapy of anxiety disorders includes both drug and non-drug methods. The first-line drugs in treating most anxiety disorders are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or selective serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors. The risk of possible side effects of these agents in patients with cardiovascular diseases should be considered. Sedative and anti-anxiety drugs, including non-benzodiazepine tranquilizers, are more commonly used. The most studied drug from this class in therapeutic and cardiological practice is fabomotizole. The efficacy and safety of fabomotizole, including long-term use, have been studied in numerous studies in patients with cardiovascular diseases and a wide range of anxiety disorders.

The Study of Adherence to Drug Therapy at the Stage of Outpatient Follow-up in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction (Data from the PROFIL-IM Registry)

Aim. To assess adherence  to the recommended therapy at the stage of outpatient follow-up and its impact on long-term outcomes  in patients after acute myocardial  infarction based on the materials of the prospective PROFILE-IM registry.

Material and methods. The PROFILE-IM register included 160 patients who applied to one of the polyclinics in Moscow after a myocardial  infarction. The combined endpoint (CE) included death from any cause, cardiovascular events (nonfatal myocardial infarction,  nonfatal cerebral stroke), emergency hospitalizations for cardiovascular diseases, significant  cardiac arrhythmias. Patients' adherence to therapy was assessed using the original questionnaire "Scale of Adherence of the National Society of Evidence-based Pharmacotherapy" (NODF) and a direct standardized patient survey by a doctor about taking medications. Visits to the doctor were carried out every two months,  data from the first year of patient follow-up are presented.

Results. In a personal  interview  with a doctor,  the ratio of the proportion  of committed, partially  committed  and non-committed patients  did not change  significantly over the entire follow-up period, while the proportion of committed patients was 81-85%. The "NODF Adherence Scale" showed that the proportion of non-committed patients was about 10 times higher than with direct patient responses to the doctor, and the proportion of non-committed  and partially committed  patients remained high at all stages of follow-up (respectively 28% and 10% at the beginning of the study, 18% and 10% at the end of the study).  Among the main factors  of non-commitment, there was a decrease  in the importance  of forgetfulness and an increase  in factors  such  as fear  of side effects  of medications, doubt  about  the need  for long-term use of medications  and  well-being. A  direct relationship of adherence with the male sex, the presence of hypertension, a feedback  relationship with alcohol consumption was revealed. The risk of CE in non-committed patients was higher compared  to the group of committed  and partially committed  patients (p<0.01).

Conclusion. The proportion of non-committed and partially committed patients remained high at all stages of follow-up. There was a direct relationship between adherence to therapy with the male sex, the presence of hypertension in the anamnesis, and a feedback relationship with alcohol consumption. Low adherence to therapy significantly increased the risk of cardiovascular events.

Algorithms for the management of patients with anxiety in the internist’s practice

The development of guidelines for the detection and further management of patients with anxiety for outpatient physicians is relevant due to the high incidence of anxiety disorders in patients with non-communicable diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, deterioration in quality of life and an increase in adverse outcomes in patients with anxiety. In addition, there is an insufficient awareness of outpatient doctors about the importance of diagnosing and treating anxiety disorders. The aim was to present original "Algorithms for the Management of Patients with Anxiety in the Internist’s Practice" for the detection and timely treatment of anxiety disorders in the routine practice of an internal medicine doctor. The algorithms are intended for internal medicine specialists working in primary outpatient healthcare, as well as for residents.

Long-term survival of patients with various types of cerebrovascular accident: data from the outpatient part of the REGION-M registry

Aim. To study the two-year survival rate of patients with various types of cerebrovascular accident according to the outpatient part of the REGION-M registry.

Material and methods. The outpatient part of the REGION-M registry included 684 patients assigned to the City Polyclinic № 64, discharged from the F. I. Inozemtsev City Clinical Hospital (Moscow) in the period from January 1, 2012 to April 30, 2017 with a confirmed diagnosis of stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA). Of these, 514 (75,1%) patients had an ischemic stroke, 52 (7,6%) — a hemorrhagic stroke, and 118 (17,2%) — a TIA.

Results. The lowest two-year mortality (11%) was observed in patients who underwent TIA (p<0,001) compared with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. The relative risk of death for ischemic stroke was 2,0 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1,13-3,55) (p<0,05), and for hemorrhagic stroke — 2,51 (95% CI: 1, 22-5,15) (p<0,05) relative to patients with TIA. Mortality in patients with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke did not differ significantly — 32,3 and 36,6% (p>0,05). The mean age of patients who underwent TIA was significantly less than the age of patients with hemorrhagic or ischemic stroke. With increasing age, the survival of patients significantly worsened in all types of strokes. In addition, multivariate analysis adjusted for age showed remained significant effect of the stroke type on survival as follows: the relative risk of death for ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke was 1,99 (95% CI: 1,12-3,53) (p<0,05) and 2,45 (95% CI: 1,19-5,02) (p<0,05).

Conclusion. Mortality in patients with stroke was significantly lower after TIA than in any type of stroke and did not differ between subgroups of patients with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke.

Motivational counseling in the prevention of the development and progression of cardiovascular diseases

Despite significant progress in the development of novel methods for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, their prevalence remains high, which is largely due to low adherence of patients to drug and non-drug preventive interventions. Motivational counseling (MC) is a unique technology that makes it possible to activate the patient’s desire to change their behavior towards a healthy one. The review presents an analysis of the literature on MC technology and the possibilities of its application in cardiology practice. Research data show the effectiveness of MC in improving the nutrition profile, physical activity, weight loss, smoking cessation, control of glycated hemoglobin in patients with diabetes, improving outcomes in patients with heart failure, increasing adherence to therapy, etc. Conducting MC using telemedicine technologies seems promising. The training of specialists is of paramount importance, since the effectiveness of this type of counseling largely depends on the accuracy of the consultant’s adherence to the essence and technologies of MC.

The resolution of the Expert Council on current issues of the use of acetylsalicylic acid for the purpose of primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases in the light of new scientific data and updated clinical guidelines

Expert Council: Drapkina O. M., Vavilova T. V., Karpov Yu. A., Kobalava Zh. D., Lomakin N. V., Martynov A. I., Roitman E. V., Sychev D. A.Scientific communities: the Russian Society for the Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases (ROPNIZ), the Russian Scientific Medical Society of Therapists (RNMOT), the Russian Antithrombotic Forum (RAF), the National Association for Thrombosis and Hemostasis (NATH).

Indicators of carbohydrate metabolism in a patient with dyslipidemia and impaired fasting glycemia receiving pitavastatin: a case report

Statins have diabetogenic properties. Pitavastatin is currently considered the only drug in this group that combines high lipid-correcting activity with the absence of a negative effect on carbohydrate metabolism. The article presents a case of correction of carbohydrate metabolism indicators against the background of pitavastatin therapy in a patient with dyslipidemia and impaired fasting glycemia. The optimal algorithms for the examination and treatment of such patients are discussed on the example of this patient.

Risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events in men aged 25-44 in the city of Novosibirsk. Cohort study

Aim. To study the incidence and risk factors of cardiovascular events (CVEs) during an 8-year follow-up of a cohort of men aged 25-44 years (Novosibirsk).

Material and methods. The cohort study included 1415 people aged 37,33 [31,83; 41,92] years (Median, Me [interquartile range, Q25; Q75], of which 670 (47,3%) were men. Median follow-up period was 6,9 [5,8; 7,8] years. CVEs were identified using the "Registry of Acute Myocardial Infarction", fatal cases — from the "Medical Certificates of Cause of Death". The examination program included a questionnaire, anthropometry, biochemical studies. Statistical processing was carried out using SPSS (version 13.0).

Results. Thirteen CVEs were identified, of which 6 were fatal. Survival prognosis was more favorable in men without hypertension, with a heart rate (HR) <80 bpm. The risk of CVEs increased by 14% with an increase in fasting plasma glucose by 0,5 mmol/l, by 1,8 times with creatinine increase by 10 pmol/l (decreased by 29% with an increase in glomerular filtration rate by 5 ml/min /1,73 m2); 2 times with a heart rate increase by 10 bpm, regardless of other cardiometabolic risk factors.

Conclusion. Significant risk factors for fatal and non-fatal CVEs in men aged 25-44 years are hypertension, heart rate >80 bpm, increased fasting plasma glucose, creatinine levels (or decreased glomerular filtration rate).

Effect of early postoperative rehabilitation with aerobic exercise on functional status and cardiac remodeling in patients after heart valve surgery

Aim. To develop a program for early physical rehabilitation of inpatients after heart valve surgery and to evaluate its effectiveness and safety.

Material and methods. The study included 80 patients with valvular heart disease (VHD) after elective on pump valve surgery. Patients in the control group (n=47) underwent standard cardiac rehabilitation after surgery; patients of the main group (n=33) additionally, starting from the 8th day after the intervention, had 14-day treadmill training with the program selection, taking into account the results of cycle ergometry spirometry (CES). A week after the operation and at the end of the training course (median, 24 days after the operation), cardiac remodeling and functional status was assessed according to echocardiography and CE, respectively.

Results. For 7 days after surgery, patients of both groups were comparable. During physical training in the main group, there were no lifethreatening cardiac arrhythmias, episodes of ischemia, desaturation, as well as intracardiac hemodynamics deterioration. With a 14-day training, CES showed a significant increase in exercise tolerance (ET) in the main group from a median of 50 to 75 W (p=0,002), peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak) from 11,7 to 13,4 ml/kg/min (p=0,001). For 24 days after surgery in the control group, there was a trend towards improvement in ET and VO2peak, but without significant changes (p=0,09/p=0,08).

Conclusion. Early inhospital rehabilitation, including physical training of moderate intensity with an individual treadmill speed and incline angle, starting from day 8 after surgery, showed effectiveness and safety in the form of an increase in ET and VO2peak, while not worsening hemodynamic parameters.

Prevalence and Severity of Breast Arterial Calcification on Routine Mammography

Aim. To determine the frequency of detection and severity of breast arterial calcification (BAC) among women undergoing mammography on the basis of medical institutions in Moscow.Material and methods. The analysis included 4274 digital mammograms of women aged 40-93 who underwent preventive or diagnostic mammography. Standard full-format digital mammograms were performed in craniocaudal and mediolateral oblique projections. In addition to the standard diagnosis of breast disease, all mammograms were evaluated for the presence of BAC. The severity of BAC was assessed on a 12-point scale: mild 3-4 points, moderate 5-6 points, severe 7-12 points.Results. The average frequency of BAC was 10.1%, in the middle age group 50-59 years – 6.0%. The incidence of BAC increased with age, from 0.4% to 0.6% in women <50 years of age to >50% in women ≥80 years of age. A statistically significant and pronounced correlation was found between the woman's age and the presence of BAC r Pearson =0.769 (p<0.001). There was also a less noticeable but statistically significant correlation between age and severity of BAC r Spearman =0.319 (p<0.001). Regression analysis made it possible to estimate the probability of CAD depending on age. In women <50 years of age, only mild to moderate calcification occurred, while those ≥65 years of age had a significant increase in the incidence of severe CAD.Conclusion. There was an expected increase with age in both prevalence and severity of BAC. Cases of severe BAC in women younger than 65 years of age and any BAC in women younger than 50 years of age are atypical and require clarification of their association with cardiovascular and other diseases.