Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Gemma A. Figtree, Philip D. Adamson, Charalambos Antoniades, Roger S. Blumenthal, Michael Blaha, Matthew Budoff, David S. Celermajer, Mark Y. Chan, Clara K. Chow, Damini Dey, Girish Dwivedi, Nicola Giannotti, Stuart M. Grieve, Christian Hamilton-Craig, Bronwyn A. Kingwell, Jason C. Kovacic, James K. Min, David E. Newby, Sanjay Patel, Karlheinz Peter, Peter J. Psaltis, Stephen T. Vernon, Dennis T. Wong, Stephen J. Nicholls
Summary: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of adult mortality globally. Improvements in imaging techniques have provided a better understanding of different phenotypes of coronary atherosclerosis, which are associated with different risks for acute ischemic events. Noninvasive coronary imaging techniques have the potential to accelerate cardiovascular drug development and reduce costs and timelines.
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Changjing Feng, Rui Chen, Siting Dong, Wei Deng, Shushen Lin, Xiaomei Zhu, Wangyan Liu, Yi Xu, Xiaohu Li, Yinsu Zhu
Summary: By analyzing clinical data and CCTA images of 400 patients, it was found that FAI and NCPB were independent risk factors for coronary plaque progression. Combining conventional parameters with radiomics features derived from CCTA can better predict plaque progression.
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Yao Lu, Ruoyao Cao, Sheng Jiao, Ling Li, Chao Liu, Hailong Hu, Zhuangfei Ma, Yun Jiang, Juan Chen
Summary: This study evaluated the application of black-blood CT in carotid artery wall imaging and confirmed its accuracy in diagnosing stenosis rate and plaque burden of carotid artery. Black-blood CT showed good consistency with CTA and VW-MR in identifying stenosis rate and plaque burden, providing clear visualization of the artery wall, especially for patients with contraindication to MRI.
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Toshimitsu Tsugu, Kaoru Tanaka, Dries Belsack, Yuji Nagatomo, Mayuko Tsugu, Jean-Francois Argacha, Bernard Cosyns, Nico Buls, Michel De Maeseneer, Johan De Mey
Summary: In non-obstructive coronary artery disease, the decline of CT-derived fractional flow reserve (FFRCT) depends not only on vessel length but also on the lumen volume. A new marker, the ratio of lumen volume to vessel length (V/L ratio), was found to be the strongest predictor of distal FFRCT.
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Goran Bergstrom, Margaretha Persson, Martin Adiels, Elias Bjornson, Carl Bonander, Hakan Ahlstrom, Joakim Alfredsson, Oskar Angeras, Goran Berglund, Anders Blomberg, John Brandberg, Mats Borjesson, Kerstin Cederlund, Ulf de Faire, Olov Duvernoy, Orjan Ekblom, Gunnar Engstrom, Jan E. Engvall, Erika Fagman, Mats Eriksson, David Erlinge, Bjorn Fagerberg, Agneta Flinck, Isabel Goncalves, Emil Hagstrom, Ola Hjelmgren, Lars Lind, Eva Lindberg, Per Lindqvist, Johan Ljungberg, Martin Magnusson, Maria Mannila, Hanna Markstad, Moman A. Mohammad, Fredrik H. Nystrom, Ellen Ostenfeld, Anders Persson, Annika Rosengren, Anette Sandstrom, Anders Sjalander, Magnus C. Skold, Johan Sundstrom, Eva Swahn, Stefan Soderberg, Kjell Toren, Carl Johan Ostgren, Tomas Jernberg
Summary: Through conducting a study using CCTA on a random sample of individuals aged 50 to 64, we found that silent coronary atherosclerosis is common in this population, particularly in individuals with higher CAC scores.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Emma J. Hollenberg, Fay Lin, Michael J. Blaha, Matthew J. Budoff, Inge J. van den Hoogen, Umberto Gianni, Yao Lu, A. Maxim Bax, Alexander R. van Rosendael, Sara W. Tantawy, Daniele Andreini, Filippo Cademartiri, Kavitha Chinnaiyan, Jung Hyun Choi, Edoardo Conte, Pedro de Araujo Goncalves, Martin Hadamitzky, Erica Maffei, Gianluca Pontone, Sanghoon Shin, Yong-Jin Kim, Byoung Kwon Lee, Eun Ju Chun, Ji Min Sung, Alessia Gimelli, Sang-Eun Lee, Jeroen J. Bax, Daniel S. Berman, Stephanie L. Sellers, Jonathon A. Leipsic, Ron Blankstein, Jagat Narula, Hyuk-Jae Chang, Leslee J. Shaw
Summary: It remains unclear whether a coronary artery calcium (CAC) score alone is sufficient to determine the risk of obstructive and nonobstructive atherosclerotic plaque in symptomatic patients. This study found that the characterization of atherosclerotic disease burden by CAC score is imperfect, but subgroups of CAC scores showed pathogenic patterns of disease progression and stratified long-term prognostic risk.
JACC-CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING
(2022)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Sara Papp, Gyoergy Barczi, Julia Karady, Marton Kolossvary, Zsofia D. Drobni, Judit Simon, Melinda Boussoussou, Borbala Vattay, Balint Szilveszter, Gyoergy Jermendy, Bela Merkely, Pal Maurovich-Horvat
Summary: The study found that the presence of myocardial bridging on the left anterior descending artery is not associated with increased plaque volumes in the LAD segment proximal to the bridging. In fact, plaque quantity was smaller in the bridging segment compared to control segments.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Tommaso D'Angelo, Ludovica R. M. Lanzafame, Antonino Micari, Alfredo Blandino, Ibrahim Yel, Vitali Koch, Leon D. Gruenewald, Thomas J. Vogl, Christian Booz, Giuseppe M. Bucolo, Maria Teresa Cannizzaro, Giorgio Ascenti, Silvio Mazziotti
Summary: This study investigates the use of monoenergetic reconstructions in coronary CT angiography (CCTA) obtained from a dual-layer spectral detector computed tomography (DLCT) system. The results show that the 40 keV monoenergetic images provide improved image quality without affecting the quantitative assessment of coronary stenoses.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Akos Varga-Szemes, U. Joseph Schoepf, Pal Maurovich-Horvat, Rui Wang, Lei Xu, Danielle M. Dargis, Tilman Emrich, Andrew J. Buckler
Summary: The study evaluated the feasibility of using plaque morphology assessment from CCTA to estimate non-invasive FFR, which outperformed traditional stenosis interpretation and showed comparable sensitivity and specificity. The results suggest that non-invasive plaque morphology-based FFR assessment may be a useful tool for predicting lesion-specific ischemia in hemodynamically significant CAD.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Tsung-Ying Tsai, Pai-Feng Hsu, Cheng-Hsueh Wu, Shao-Sung Huang, Wan-Leong Chan, Shing-Jong Lin, Jaw-Wen Chen, Tse-Min Lu, Hsin-Bang Leu
Summary: Liver fibrosis scores, including NFS, FIB-4, and Forns score, are associated with the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD) plaques in subjects in early CAD stages. For disease progression, male gender, DBP, and NFS appear to be independently associated with coronary atherosclerosis plaque progression in subjects with low calcium scores.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Ghilas Rahoual, Michel Zeitouni, Etienne Charpentier, Paul-Gydeon Ritvo, Stephanie Rouanet, Niki Procopi, Sena Boukhelifa, Pierre Charleux, Paul Guedeney, Mathieu Kerneis, Olivier Barthelemy, Johanne Silvain, Gilles Montalescot, Alban Redheuil, Jean-Philippe Collet
Summary: This study aimed to compare the coronary plaque characteristics between individuals with premature coronary artery disease (CAD) and those without overt cardiovascular disease. The results showed that individuals with premature CAD had a higher prevalence of non-calcified plaques and high-risk plaques (HRP), contributing to disease progression with multiple recurrences. A comprehensive assessment of plaque characteristics may further risk stratify patients beyond traditional risk factors.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL-CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING
(2023)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
David C. Rotzinger, Virginie Magnin, Allard C. van der Wal, Silke Grabherr, Salah D. Qanadli, Katarzyna Michaud
Summary: Multiphase postmortem CT angiography (PMCTA) can be used to detect plaque enhancement as a surrogate marker of inflammation, providing a noninvasive method for evaluating inflammation in coronary plaques.
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Balint Szilveszter, Borbala Vattay, Melinda Bossoussou, Milan Vecsey-Nagy, Judit Simon, Bela Merkely, Pal Maurovich-Horvat, Marton Kolossvary
Summary: Different clinical definitions of coronary artery disease (CAD) have varying effects on the progression and risk factors. CAD-RADS cannot capture the progression of CAD in patients undergoing computed tomography angiography (CTA). Differences in CAD definitions can lead to significant differences in which patients are considered to progress and which risk factors are considered to influence progression.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL-CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING
(2022)
Review
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Patrick W. Serruys, Hironori Hara, Scot Garg, Hideyuki Kawashima, Bjarne L. Norgaard, Marc R. Dweck, Jeroen J. Bax, Juhani Knuuti, Koen Nieman, Jonathon A. Leipsic, Saima Mushtaq, Daniele Andreini, Yoshinobu Onuma
Summary: Coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) has undergone significant technological advancements and is now considered a high-accuracy substitute for conventional invasive coronary angiography in diagnosing and making treatment decisions for patients with suspected coronary artery disease.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF CARDIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Rheumatology
Manphool Singhal, Rakesh Kumar Pilania, Ankur Kumar Jindal, Aman Gupta, Avinash Sharma, Sandesh Guleria, Nameirakpam Johnson, Muniraju Maralakunte, Pandiarajan Vignesh, Deepti Suri, Manavjit Singh Sandhu, Surjit Singh
Summary: Objective evaluation of coronary artery abnormalities (CAAs) in patients with Kawasaki disease (KD) is important. This study investigates the role of CT coronary angiography (CTCA) in detecting CAAs in the distal segments of coronary arteries in KD patients. The results show that CTCA can identify CAAs in the distal segments, including branches, of the coronary arteries, which cannot be detected by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE).
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Thomas Jensen, Pernille G. Thrane, Kevin K. W. Olesen, Morten Wurtz, Martin Bodtker Mortensen, Christine Gyldenkerne, Troels Thim, Bjarne Linde Norgaard, Jesper Moller Jensen, Steen Dalby Kristensen, Jens C. Nielsen, John W. Eikelboom, Michael Maeng
Summary: The study compared the risks of bleeding and ischemic events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) treated with anticoagulant monotherapy or dual therapy after 1 year of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The results showed that the risks were similar between monotherapy and dual therapy, as well as between DOAC and VKA monotherapy.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL-CARDIOVASCULAR PHARMACOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Christine Gyldenkerne, Michael Maeng, Lars Kjoller-Hansen, Akiko Maehara, Zhipeng Zhou, Ori Ben-Yehuda, Hans Erik Botker, Thomas Engstrom, Mitsuaki Matsumura, Gary S. Mintz, Ole Froebert, Jonas Persson, Rune Wiseth, Alf I. Larsen, Lisette O. Jensen, Jan E. Nordrehaug, Oyvind Bleie, Elmir Omerovic, Claes Held, Stefan K. James, Ziad A. Ali, Hans C. Rosen, Gregg W. Stone, David Erlinge
Summary: Patients with diabetes have a higher risk of major adverse cardiac events due to both treated culprit lesions and untreated nonculprit lesions. However, this study did not identify diabetes-related high-risk plaque characteristics using multimodality imaging.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Martin Bodtker Mortensen, Omar Dzaye, Hans Erik Botker, Jesper Moller Jensen, Michael Maeng, Jacob Fog Bentzon, Helle Kanstrup, Henrik Toft Sorensen, Jonathon Leipsic, Ron Blankstein, Khurram Nasir, Michael J. Blaha, Bjarne Linde Norgaard
Summary: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), but its association with ASCVD risk is modified by the presence of coronary artery calcification (CAC). This study found that LDL-C is only associated with ASCVD events in patients with CAC, and not in those without CAC. This information is valuable for individualized risk assessment among middle-aged people with or without coronary atherosclerosis.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Jane Agergaard, Benjamin Yamin Ali Khan, Thomas Engell-Sorensen, Berit Schiottz-Christensen, Lars ostergaard, Eva K. Hejbol, Henrik D. Schroder, Henning Andersen, Jakob Udby Blicher, Thomas Holm Pedersen, Thomas Harbo, Hatice Tankisi, M. U. L. T. I. C. O. V. Consortium MULTICOV Consortium
Summary: This study examined 84 patients with long COVID using qEMG and sfEMG, and performed muscle biopsies in a subset of patients. The results showed that the mean MUP duration was decreased in >= 1 muscles in 52% of the patients, and the mean jitter was increased in 17% of the patients in the tibialis anterior and 25% in the extensor digitorum communis. Muscle biopsies revealed damage of terminal nerves and motor endplate with abundant basal lamina material. These findings suggest a muscle pathophysiology behind fatigue in long COVID.
CLINICAL NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Peter Ferdinandy, Ioanna Andreadou, Gary F. Baxter, Hans Erik Botker, Sean M. Davidson, Dobromir Dobrev, Bernard J. Gersh, Gerd Heusch, Sandrine Lecour, Marisol Ruiz-Meana, Coert J. Zuurbier, Derek J. Hausenloy, Rainer Schulz
Summary: Preconditioning, postconditioning, and remote conditioning of the myocardium have the potential to provide novel therapeutic paradigms for cardioprotection. However, the lack of rigorous preclinical evaluation and consideration of cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities may be a major reason for the failure to develop cardioprotective drugs.
PHARMACOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Anders Dahl Kramer, Kasper Korsholm, Jesper Moller Jensen, Bjarne Linde Norgaard, Srikara Peelukhana, Thomas Herbst, Rodney Horton, Saibal Kar, Jacqueline Saw, Mohamad Alkhouli, Jens Erik Nielsen-Kudsk
Summary: This retrospective observational study investigated the cardiac CT findings during follow-up after Watchman FLX implantation, focusing on hypoattenuated thickening (HAT) and device-related thrombosis (DRT). The study found that subfabric hypoattenuation and flat sessile HAT were frequent CT findings, likely representing benign device healing and endothelialization, while pedunculated HAT and protruding HAT were infrequent findings that might represent DRT.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL-CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Susanne Bendesgaard Pedersen, Jens Cosedis Nielsen, Hans Erik Botker, Aparna Udupi, Jeffrey J. Goldberger
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the association between beta-blocker dose and mortality following acute myocardial infarction. A nationwide cohort study in Denmark was conducted, and the results showed that any dose of beta-blocker was associated with a significant reduction in mortality compared to no treatment. The largest reduction in mortality was observed within the first year after acute myocardial infarction for doses >25%-50% of the recommended target dose, suggesting that higher doses are unnecessary.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Haruhito Yuki, Tomoyo Sugiyama, Keishi Suzuki, Daisuke Kinoshita, Takayuki Niida, Akihiro Nakajima, Makoto Araki, Damini Dey, Hang Lee, Iris McNulty, Sunao Nakamura, Tsunekazu Kakuta, Ik-Kyung Jang
Summary: This study examined the relationship between the level of coronary artery inflammation and plaque characteristics in patients with coronary artery disease using computed tomography angiography and optical coherence tomography. The results showed that patients with high levels of coronary artery inflammation were more likely to have plaque vulnerability features such as lipid-rich plaque, macrophage, microchannels, plaque rupture, and layered plaque. This suggests that vascular inflammation and plaque vulnerability are intimately related.
CIRCULATION-CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING
(2023)
Editorial Material
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Gerd Heusch, Hans Erik Botker, Peter Ferdinandy, Rainer Schulz
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Physiology
Jakob Wang, Anna-Maria Godsk Mogensen, Frederik Thybo, Magnus Brandbyge, Jonas Brorson, Gerrit van Hall, Jakob Agergaard, Frank Vincenzo de Paoli, Benjamin F. Miller, Hans Erik Botker, Jean Farup, Kristian Vissing
Summary: This study found that low-load blood flow-restricted resistance exercise (BFRRE) is effective in promoting muscle hypertrophy and improving muscle function in older individuals. However, its impact on age-related skeletal muscle decay at a cellular level is still unclear. BFRRE resulted in significant increases in muscle fiber morphology, integrated muscle protein synthesis, and muscle functional capacity without changes in muscle stem cells (MuSCs) and myonuclear content.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Cecilia Hvitfeldt Fuglsang, Lars Pedersen, Morten Schmidt, Jan Vandenbroucke, Hans Erik Botker, Henrik Toft Sorensen
Summary: This study used Danish national registries to examine the impact of migraine on the risk of premature myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic/hemorrhagic stroke among men and women. They found that migraine was associated with similarly increased risk of premature ischemic stroke among both men and women, but there may be an increased risk of MI and hemorrhagic stroke only among women.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Roni Nielsen, Kristian Hylleberg Christensen, Nigopan Gopalasingam, Kristoffer Berg-Hansen, Jacob Seefeldt, Casper Homilius, Ebbe Boedtkjer, Mads Jonsson Andersen, Henrik Wiggers, Niels Moller, Hans Erik Botker, Soren Mellemkjaer
Summary: The study demonstrates that 3-hydroxybutyrate (3-OHB) infusion in patients with PAH or CTEPH can decrease pulmonary vascular resistance, improve cardiac output, and enhance right ventricular function. Experimental rat studies also support the relaxing effect of ketone bodies on pulmonary arteries.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Reindert F. F. Oostveen, Yannick Kaiser, Mia R. R. Stahle, Nick S. S. Nurmohamed, Evangelos Tzolos, Marc R. R. Dweck, Jeffrey Kroon, Andrew J. J. Murphy, Damini Dey, Piotr J. J. Slomka, Hein J. J. Verberne, Erik S. G. Stroes, Nordin M. J. Hanssen
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the response of 68GaDOTATATE uptake in individuals with type 2 diabetes to therapeutic intervention. The results showed that after statin treatment, the uptake of 68GaDOTATATE in coronary arteries decreased, and the uptake in bone marrow and spleen also decreased. Therefore, 68GaDOTATATE can serve as an important marker for evaluating vascular and haematopoietic inflammation in individuals with type 2 diabetes undergoing intervention with anti-inflammatory therapeutics.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Simona B. Botezatu, Xinming Yu, Mohammed N. Meah, Michelle C. Williams, Damini Dey, David E. Newby, Evangelos Tzolos, Marc R. Dweck
Summary: CT-derived aortic valve perivascular adipose tissue attenuation is not associated with AS disease severity, activity or progression, suggesting it has no value in the investigation and management of patients with AS.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Casper Homilius, Jacob Marthinsen Seefeldt, Julie Sorensen Axelsen, Tina Myhre Pedersen, Trine Monberg Sorensen, Roni Nielsen, Henrik Wiggers, Jakob Hansen, Vladimir V. Matchkov, Hans Erik Botker, Ebbe Boedtkjer
Summary: The ketone body 3-hydroxybutyrate (3-OHB) directly acts on the heart to increase cardiac contractility and directly acts on blood vessels to lower systemic vascular resistance, leading to increased cardiac output and improved coronary perfusion. This finding strengthens the therapeutic rationale for 3-OHB in heart failure management.
BASIC RESEARCH IN CARDIOLOGY
(2023)