The Lipid-Lowering Efficacy of a Nutraceutical Combination Including Leucoselect Phytosome, Red Yeast Rice, Policosanol and Folic Acid in Dyslipidaemia Patients: Real-World Insights

BACKGROUND

Cardiovascular disease is a global health concern and reducing plasma LDL-C levels is a major goal in cardiovascular prevention. Our study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a nutraceutical formulation including leucoselect® phytosome®, red yeast rice, policosanol and folic acid on LDL-c levels in patients at low cardiovascular risk with dyslipidemia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We prospectively enrolled all consecutive patients with dyslipidemia at low cardiovascular risk who were unresponsive to diet and physical activity. Clinical assessments and laboratory analyses, encompassing lipid profile, hepatic function, and CPK levels, were performed at baseline prior to initiating treatment and repeated at the 12-week mark following administration of the study nutraceutical.

RESULTS

Sixty (60) consecutive patients (mean age 48.02 ± 10.1 years; 60% male) were included. At the 12-week follow-up, a statistically significant reduction in Total Cholesterol (13.1%) and LDL-c serum level (20.4%) was observed. Hepatic and muscular function remain stable over the time. The adherence to therapy was 99% and the persistence was maximum.

CONCLUSIONS

The nutraceutical formulation including leucoselect® phytosome® red yeast rice, policosanol and folic acid significantly reduced the LDL-c plasma levels, consistent with previous research showing that the bioactive component in red yeast rice-lovastatin-is effective in addressing problems with lipid metabolism. Importantly, it was safe and well-tolerated among patients with dyslipidemia in a real-world setting.

Arrhythmogenic Left Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: From Diagnosis to Risk Management

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Left ventricular arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ALVC) is a rare and poorly characterized cardiomyopathy that has recently been reclassified in the group of non-dilated left ventricular cardiomyopathies. This review aims to summarize the background, diagnosis, and sudden cardiac death risk in patients presenting this cardiomyopathy.

RECENT FINDINGS

Although there is currently a lack of data on this condition, arrhythmogenic left ventricular dysplasia can be considered a specific disease of the left ventricle (LV). We have collected the latest evidence about the management and the risks associated with this cardiomyopathy.

SUMMARY

Left ventricular arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy is still poorly characterized. ALVC is characterized by fibrofatty replacement in the left ventricular myocardium, with variable phenotypic expression. Diagnosis is based on a multiparametric approach, including cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) and genetic testing, and is important for sudden cardiac death (SCD) risk stratification and management. Recent guidelines have improved the management of left ventricular arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. Further studies are necessary to improve knowledge of this cardiomyopathy.

Pharmacogenomics of Cardiovascular Drugs for Atherothrombotic, Thromboembolic and Atherosclerotic Risk

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Advances in pharmacogenomics have paved the way for personalized medicine. Cardiovascular diseases still represent the leading cause of mortality in the world. The aim of this review is to summarize the background, rationale, and evidence of pharmacogenomics in cardiovascular medicine, in particular, the use of antiplatelet drugs, anticoagulants, and drugs used for the treatment of dyslipidemia.

RECENT FINDINGS

Randomized clinical trials have supported the role of a genotype-guided approach for antiplatelet therapy in patients with coronary heart disease undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions. Numerous studies demonstrate how the risk of ineffectiveness of new oral anticoagulants and vitamin K anticoagulants is linked to various genetic polymorphisms. Furthermore, there is growing evidence to support the association of some genetic variants and poor adherence to statin therapy, for example, due to the appearance of muscular symptoms. There is evidence for resistance to some drugs for the treatment of dyslipidemia, such as anti-PCSK9.

SUMMARY

Pharmacogenomics has the potential to improve patient care by providing the right drug to the right patient and could guide the identification of new drug therapies for cardiovascular disease. This is very important in cardiovascular diseases, which have high morbidity and mortality. The improvement in therapy could be reflected in the reduction of healthcare costs and patient mortality.

"Narrow-Wide-Narrow" QRS Complex Tachycardia-Beware the Smartwatch Monsters

This case report describes an 18-year-old woman with palpitations associated with chest pain and lightheadedness.

A novel tracking tool for the analysis of plant-root tip movements

The growth process of roots consists of many activities, such as exploring the soil volume, mining minerals, avoiding obstacles and taking up water to fulfil the plant's primary functions, that are performed differently, depending on environmental conditions. Root movements are strictly related to a root decision strategy, which helps plants to survive under stressful conditions by optimizing energy consumption. In this work, we present a novel image-analysis tool to study the kinematics of the root tip (apex), named analyser for root tip tracks (ARTT). The software implementation combines a segmentation algorithm with additional software imaging filters in order to realize a 2D tip detection. The resulting paths, or tracks, arise from the sampled tip positions through the acquired images during the growth. ARTT allows work with no markers and deals autonomously with new emerging root tips, as well as handling a massive number of data relying on minimum user interaction. Consequently, ARTT can be used for a wide range of applications and for the study of kinematics in different plant species. In particular, the study of the root growth and behaviour could lead to the definition of novel principles for the penetration and/or control paradigms for soil exploration and monitoring tasks. The software capabilities were demonstrated by experimental trials performed with Zea mays and Oryza sativa.