Cardiology
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Apixaban vs. Aspirin for Subclinical Atrial Fibrillation
A randomized controlled trial of apixaban vs. low-dose aspirin therapy for subclinical atrial fibrillation detected by implanted electrophysiologic devices showed that apixaban is associated with fewer strokes, but more major bleeding episodes compared to aspirin.
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Percutaneous Coronary Intervention vs. Placebo for Stable Angina Patients
In this randomized trial of patients with stable angina and objective evidence of ischemia, percutaneous coronary intervention resulted in a significant reduction in angina compared to a placebo procedure.
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Subcutaneous Furosemide Infusion Device
A small patient-applied infuser pump for a pH neutral formulation of furosemide has been developed. A comparison of an intravenous (IV) bolus of furosemide to a five-hour infusion with the pump has been completed and shows that the device is well tolerated and provides similar bioavailability as IV furosemide.
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Upgrading Prior Right Ventricular Pacing in Heart Failure
A randomized, controlled, open-label study of upgrading patients with right ventricular pacemaker-induced left ventricular dysfunction and heart failure to cardiac resynchronization pacing plus an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) has shown reduced heart failure hospitalization and improvements in left ventricular function compared to ICD placement alone.
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Apixaban Dose in Atrial Fibrillation Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease
A large nationwide health systems database study comparing 5 mg apixaban vs. 2.5 mg twice daily in patients with stage 4/5 chronic kidney disease not on dialysis shows that the 5 mg dose increases the risk of bleeding compared to 2.5 mg without any improvement in the risk of stroke, systemic emboli, or death.
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The Natural History of Aortic Stenosis Revisited
A large multi-institution observational study of patients referred for Doppler echocardiography to assess for aortic stenosis has shown that discrepant measurements are not uncommon. When four-year all-cause untreated mortality is considered, the intermediate grades of aortic stenosis behave like the next highest level stenosis, which suggests that we should consider intervening earlier in moderate to severe stenosis.
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Five-Year TAVR vs. SAVR Data Show Encouraging Results, but Do Not Move the Needle for Clinical Decision-Making
The PARTNER 3 trial randomized low-risk patients to transcatheter aortic valve replacement vs. surgical aortic valve replacement. Five-year data show no significant differences in the composite endpoint of death, stroke, or rehospitalization.
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The Hemodynamic Effects of an SGLT2 Inhibitor in Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction
The authors of a small, placebo-controlled study of 24 weeks of dapagliflozin therapy in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction reported reductions in pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, which may explain the reductions in heart failure hospitalizations or cardiovascular death in larger randomized outcome trials.
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Major Cardiovascular Event Risk Reduction with Pitavastatin in Patients Living with HIV
Among participants living with HIV who are at low-to-moderate risk for cardiovascular disease, those who received pitavastatin were 35% less likely to experience a major adverse cardiovascular event over a follow-up of approximately five years vs. those who received placebo.
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Aberrant Conduction?
How should one interpret the ECG in the figure? Is the rhythm most likely to be a re-entry supraventricular tachycardia with aberrant conduction?