Clinical Cardiology Alert – February 1, 2025
February 1, 2025
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Angiography-Based QFR Analysis Falls Short Compared with FFR
In this large, multicenter, randomized trial, use of the angiography-based quantitative flow ratio method to guide revascularization of intermediate coronary stenoses resulted in a higher incidence of major adverse cardiac events at one year compared with pressure wire-based fractional flow reserve.
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Antiplatelet Therapy for Coronary Stent Patients Undergoing Noncardiac Surgery
A larger randomized controlled trial of aspirin monotherapy vs. no antiplatelet therapy in patients more than one year post-drug-eluting coronary stent placement failed to show a difference in ischemic outcomes or major bleeding, but minor bleeding was more common in the aspirin group.
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Catheter Ablation for Ischemic Ventricular Tachycardia
A multicenter, randomized trial of initial catheter ablation vs. antiarrhythmic drug therapy for ventricular tachycardia in ischemic cardiomyopathy patients with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator resulted in fewer subsequent ventricular tachycardia episodes with ablation.
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Arrhythmias in the Holiday Heart Syndrome
A small study of continuous electrocardiogram and breath alcohol concentration in young volunteers during acute excessive alcohol consumption has shown that heart rate and ventricular premature beats increased during the drinking period. During recovery (six to 19 hours), significant arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation occured in 5% of the subjects. The observed changes in heart rate variability and breath alcohol concentration suggest that these effects are the result of increased sympathetic nervous system activity associated with excess blood alcohol concentrations.
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Echocardiographic Estimation of Left Atrial Pressure in Atrial Fibrillation Patients
A study of patients undergoing catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation with periprocedural echocardiograms and directly measured left atrial pressure (LAP) has shown that mean LAP can be estimated with a high degree of accuracy by a hierarchical algorithm using three Doppler echocardiographic parameters.