Pleiotropic effects of statins in the perioperative setting

Effect of preoperative moderate-dose statin and duration on acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery: a retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

The impact of preoperative statin use on postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) is uncertain. We aimed to examine the association of statin therapy before cardiac surgery with postoperative AKI.

METHODS

The retrospective cohort study consisted of 1581 patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Postoperative AKI were identified by the modified KDIGO definition. Propensity-score matching was employed to control for selection bias, and logistic regression was used to control for confounders. Subgroup and interaction analyses were performed to evaluate the robustness of the findings.

RESULTS

The overall incidence of postoperative AKI and severe AKI were 42.19% and 12.27%, respectively. Preoperative moderate-dose statin was significantly associated with a reduced incidence of postoperative AKI (28.9% vs 43.0%, OR (95%CI): 0.54 (0.38, 0.77), p < 0.001) and severe AKI (6.9% vs 13.7%, OR (95%CI): 0.46 (0.26, 0.83), p = 0.009). The beneficial effect on postoperative AKI persisted after adjusting for major confounding factors (OR (95%CI): 0.47 (0.34, 0.66)). Decreased risk of postoperative AKI was observed in patients with preoperative statin duration of 7 ∼ 14 days (OR (95%CI): 0.41 (0.25, 0.65)) and over 14 days (OR (95%CI): 0.43 (0.28, 0.65)), but not in those with preoperative statin duration of <7 days. Similar favorable effects were noted in most subgroup patients, except for those with high-risk factors such as diabetes mellitus, previous congestive cardiac failure, arrhythmia, preoperative ACEI/ARB, aortic cross-clamping or IABP.

CONCLUSION

Preoperative moderate-dose statin was significantly related to a decreased risk of postoperative AKI, especially in patients who received statins for a longer duration. Further large-scale multicenter randomized controlled trials are needed to ascertain the impact of statin dose, duration, and timing on postoperative AKI in cardiac surgery patients.

Long-Term Preoperative Atorvastatin or Rosuvastatin Use in Adult Patients before CABG Does Not Increase Incidence of Postoperative Acute Kidney Injury: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is among the expected complications of cardiac surgery. Statins with pleiotropic anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects may be effective in the prevention of AKI. However, the results of studies on the efficacy and safety of statins are varied and require further study. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study to evaluate long-term preoperative intake of atorvastatin and rosuvastatin on the incidence of AKI, based on the “Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes” (KDIGO) criteria in the early postoperative period after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG). We performed propensity score matching to compare the findings in our study groups. The incidence of AKI was assessed on day 2 and day 4 after the surgery. Results: The analysis included 958 patients after CABG. After 1:1 individual matching, based on propensity score, the incidence of AKI was comparable both on day 2 after the surgery (7.4%) between the atorvastatin group and rosuvastatin group (6.5%) (OR: 1.182; 95%Cl 0.411–3.397; p = 0.794), and on postoperative day 4 between the atorvastatin group (3.7%) and the rosuvastatin group (4.6%) (OR: 0.723, 95%Cl 0.187–2.792; p = 0.739). Additionally, there were no statistically significant differences in terms of incidence of AKI after 1:1 individual matching, based on propensity score, between the rosuvastatin group and the control group both on postoperative day 2 (OR: 0.692; 95%Cl 0.252–1.899; p = 0.611) and day 4 (OR: 1.245; 95%Cl 0.525–2.953; p = 0.619); as well as between the atorvastatin group and the control group both on postoperative day 2 (OR: 0.549; 95%Cl 0.208–1.453; p = 0.240) and day 4 (OR: 0.580; 95%Cl 0.135–2.501; p = 0.497). Conclusion: Long-term statin use before CABG did not increase the incidence of postoperative AKI. Further, we revealed no difference in the incidence of post-CABG AKI between the atorvastatin and rosuvastatin groups.

Shrinking Weibel-Palade bodies prevents high platelet recruitment in assays using thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura plasma

BACKGROUND

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), caused by a genetic or autoimmune-driven lack of ADAMTS-13 activity, leads to high levels of the ultra-large von Willebrand factor (VWF) multimers produced by endothelial cells, causing excess platelet recruitment into forming thrombi, often with mortal consequences. Treatments include plasma infusion or replacement to restore ADAMTS-13 activity, or prevention of platelet recruitment to VWF.

OBJECTIVES

We tested a different approach, exploiting the unique cell biology of the endothelium. Upon activation, the VWF released by exocytosis of Weibel-Palade bodies (WPBs), transiently anchored to the cell surface, unfurls as strings into flowing plasma, recruiting platelets. Using plasma from patients with TTP increases platelet recruitment to the surface of cultured endothelial cells under flow. WPBs are uniquely plastic, and shortening WPBs dramatically reduces VWF string lengths and the recruitment of platelets. We wished to test whether the TTP plasma-driven increase in platelet recruitment would be countered by reducing formation of the longest WPBs that release longer strings.

METHODS

Endothelial cells grown in flow chambers were treated with fluvastatin, one of 37 drugs shown to shorten WPBs, then activated under flow in the presence of platelets and plasma of either controls or patients with TTP.

RESULT

We found that the dramatic increase in platelet recruitment caused by TTP plasma is entirely countered by treatment with fluvastatin, shortening the WPBs.

CONCLUSIONS

This potential approach of ameliorating the endothelial contribution to thrombotic risk by intervening far upstream of hemostasis might prove a useful adjunct to more conventional and direct therapies.

Atorvastatin and blood flow regulate expression of distinctive sets of genes in mouse carotid artery endothelium

Hypercholesterolemia is a well-known pro-atherogenic risk factor and statin is the most effective anti-atherogenic drug that lowers blood cholesterol levels. However, despite systemic hypercholesterolemia, atherosclerosis preferentially occurs in arterial regions exposed to disturbed blood flow (d-flow), while the stable flow (s-flow) regions are spared. Given their predominant effects on endothelial function and atherosclerosis, we tested whether (1) statin and flow regulate the same or independent sets of genes and (2) statin can rescue d-flow-regulated genes in mouse artery endothelial cells in vivo. To test the hypotheses, C57BL/6 J mice (8-week-old male, n=5 per group) were pre-treated with atorvastatin (10mg/kg/day, Orally) or vehicle for 5 days. Thereafter, partial carotid ligation (PCL) surgery to induce d-flow in the left carotid artery (LCA) was performed, and statin or vehicle treatment was continued. The contralateral right carotid artery (RCA) remained exposed to s-flow to be used as the control. Two days or 2 weeks post-PCL surgery, endothelial-enriched RNAs from the LCAs and RCAs were collected and subjected to microarray gene expression analysis. Statin treatment in the s-flow condition (RCA+statin versus RCA+vehicle) altered the expression of 667 genes at 2-day and 187 genes at 2-week timepoint, respectively (P<0.05, fold change (FC)≥±1.5). Interestingly, statin treatment in the d-flow condition (LCA+statin versus LCA+vehicle) affected a limited number of genes: 113 and 75 differentially expressed genes at 2-day and 2-week timepoint, respectively (P<0.05, FC≥±1.5). In contrast, d-flow in the vehicle groups (LCA+vehicle versus RCA+vehicle) differentially regulated 4061 genes at 2-day and 3169 genes at 2-week timepoint, respectively (P<0.05, FC≥±1.5). Moreover, statin treatment did not reduce the number of flow-sensitive genes (LCA+statin versus RCA+statin) compared to the vehicle groups: 1825 genes at 2-day and 3788 genes at 2-week, respectively, were differentially regulated (P<0.05, FC≥±1.5). These results revealed that both statin and d-flow regulate expression of hundreds or thousands of arterial endothelial genes, respectively, in vivo. Further, statin and d-flow regulate independent sets of endothelial genes. Importantly, statin treatment did not reverse d-flow-regulated genes except for a small number of genes. These results suggest that both statin and flow play important independent roles in atherosclerosis development and highlight the need to consider their therapeutic implications for both.

Management of cardiovascular health in acute leukemia: a national survey

Cardiovascular (CV) disease is a common comorbidity in acute leukemia (AL) patients and can be worsened by the use of anthracyclines. Interruptions and underutilization of CV medications during AL treatments may negatively impact the CV health of these patients. A 30-question electronic survey was distributed to Canadian hematologists who treat adults with AL to determine the frequency, timing and rationale for interruptions in statins, antiplatelets and angiotensin antagonists in patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy. Strategies for mitigating anthracycline cardiotoxicity, methods of establishing baseline CV risk and utilization of clinical pharmacists were also assessed. Results indicate that it is common for AL patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy to require CV medication interruptions. This highlights the need for collaboration between hematology and cardiology healthcare teams and utilization of multidisciplinary healthcare professionals to improve CV care during AL.

Drug delivery to the brain: how can nanoencapsulated statins be used in the clinic?

Statins are used for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease by inhibiting cholesterol synthesis in the liver. Statins have also noncholesterol-related effects, called pleiotropic effects, which arise from statins' anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory and antioxidant properties. These effects are especially attractive for the treatment of various brain diseases ranging from stroke to neurodegenerative diseases. Still, low brain concentrations after oral drug administration hinder the clinical application of statins in these pathologies. Pharmaceutical nanotechnologies may offer a solution to this problem, as local or targeted delivery of nanoencapsulated statins may increase brain availability. This special report rapidly summarizes the potential of statins in the treatment of brain diseases and the pharmaceutical nanotechnologies that could provide a viable approach to enable these indications.

Evaluation of microvascular endothelial function and capillary density in patients with infective endocarditis using laser speckle contrast imaging and video-capillaroscopy

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the systemic microcirculation of patients with infective endocarditis (IE).

METHODS

This is a comparative study of patients with definite IE by the modified Duke criteria admitted to our center for treatment. A reference group of sex- and age-matched healthy volunteers was included. Microvascular flow was evaluated in the forearm using a laser speckle contrast imaging system, for noninvasive measurement of cutaneous microvascular perfusion, in combination with skin iontophoresis of acetylcholine (ACh) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) to test microvascular reactivity. Microvascular density was evaluated using skin video-capillaroscopy.

RESULTS

We studied 22 patients with IE; 15 were male and seven female. The mean age and standard deviation (SD) were 45.5 ± 17.3 years. Basal skin microvascular conductance was significantly increased in patients with IE, compared with healthy individuals (0.36 ± 0.13 versus 0.21 ± 0.08 APU/mmHg; P < 0.0001). The increase in microvascular conductance induced by ACh in patients was 0.21 ± 0.17 and in the reference group, it was 0.37 ± 0.14 APU/mmHg (P = 0.0012). The increase in microvascular conductance induced by SNP in patients was 0.18 ± 0.14 and it was 0.29 ± 0.15 APU/mmHg (P = 0.0140) in the reference group. The basal mean skin capillary density of patients (135 ± 24 capillaries/mm²) was significantly higher, compared with controls (97 ± 21 capillaries/mm²; P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

The main findings in the microcirculation of patients with IE were greater basal vasodilation and a reduction of the endothelium-dependent and -independent microvascular reactivity, as well as greater functional skin capillary density compared to healthy individuals.