Relationship between fibrinogen levels and cardiovascular events in patients receiving percutaneous coronary intervention: a large single-center study / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#It is currently unclear if fibrinogen is a risk factor for adverse events in patients receiving percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or merely serves as a marker of pre-existing comorbidities and other causal factors. We therefore investigated the association between fibrinogen levels and 2-year all-cause mortality, and compared the additional predictive value of adding fibrinogen to a basic model including traditional risk factors in patients receiving contemporary PCI.@*METHODS@#A total of 6293 patients undergoing PCI with measured baseline fibrinogen levels were enrolled from January to December 2013 in Fuwai Hospital. Patients were divided into three groups according to tertiles of baseline fibrinogen levels: low fibrinogen, <2.98 g/L; medium fibrinogen, 2.98 to 3.58 g/L; and high fibrinogen, ≥3.58 g/L. Independent predictors of 2-year clinical outcomes were determined by multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression modeling. The increased discriminative value of fibrinogen for predicting all-cause mortality was assessed using the C-statistic and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI).@*RESULTS@#The 2-year all-cause mortality rate was 1.2%. It was significantly higher in the high fibrinogen compared with the low and medium fibrinogen groups according to Kaplan-Meier analyses (1.7% vs. 0.9% and 1.7% vs. 1.0%, respectively; log-rank, P = 0.022). Fibrinogen was significantly associated with all-cause mortality according to multivariate Cox regression (hazard ratio 1.339, 95% confidence interval: 1.109-1.763, P = 0.005), together with traditional risk factors including age, sex, diabetes mellitus, left ventricular ejection fraction, creatinine clearance, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The area under the curve for all-cause mortality in the basic model including traditional risk factors was 0.776, and this value increased to 0.787 when fibrinogen was added to the model (IDI = 0.003, Z = 0.140, P = 0.889).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Fibrinogen is associated with 2-year all-cause mortality in patients receiving PCI, but provides no additional information over a model including traditional risk factors.

Prognostic Value of NT-proBNP in Stable Coronary Artery Disease in Chinese Patients after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in the Drug-eluting Stent Era / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

OBJECTIVE@#The predictive value of N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) in patients with stable coronary artery disease (SCAD) in the drug-eluting stent era is not yet clear. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of NT-proBNP in SCAD patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).@*METHODS@#We examined 4,293 consecutive SCAD patients who underwent PCI between January 2013 and December 2013 in Fuwai Hospital, China. The primary endpoint was all-cause death. NT-proBNP levels were measured before PCI using Elisa kits (Biomedica, Austria). The indication for PCI was based on the degree of coronary stenosis and evidence of ischemia.@*RESULTS@#Among 3,187 SCAD patients with NT-proBNP data, after a 2-year follow-up, NT-proBNP levels were predictive for all-cause death in the SCAD population [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.768; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.687-0.849; P < 0.001]. At the optimum cutoff point of 732 pg/mL, the sensitivity and specificity of death was 75.0% and 72.3%, respectively. In a multivariable Cox regression model, the death hazard ratio was 6.43 (95% CI, 2.99-13.82; P < 0.001) for patients with NT-proBNP levels ⪖ 732 pg/mL, compared with < 732 pg/mL.@*CONCLUSION@#NT-proBNP is a strong predictor of 2-year death with SCAD after PCI in the drug-eluting stent era.

Evaluation of CRUSADE and ACUITY-HORIZONS Scores for Predicting Long-term Out-of-Hospital Bleeding after Percutaneous Coronary Interventions / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#There is scanty evidence concerning the ability of Can Rapid Risk Stratification of Unstable Angina Patients Suppress Adverse Outcomes with Early Implementation of the ACC/AHA Guidelines (CRUSADE) and Acute Catheterization and Urgent Intervention Triage Strategy and Harmonizing Outcomes with Revascularization and Stents in Acute Myocardial Infarction (ACUITY-HORIZONS) scores to predict out-of-hospital bleeding risk after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) with drug-eluting stents (DES) in patients receiving dual antiplatelet therapy. We aimed to assess and compare the long-term prognostic value of these scores regarding out-of-hospital bleeding risk in such patients.@*METHODS@#We performed a prospective observational study of 10,724 patients undergoing PCI between January and December 2013 in Fuwai Hospital, China. All patients were followed up for 2 years and evaluated through the Fuwai Hospital Follow-up Center. Major bleeding was defined as Types 2, 3, and 5 according to Bleeding Academic Research Consortium Definition criteria.@*RESULTS@#During a 2-year follow-up, 245 of 9782 patients (2.5%) had major bleeding (MB). CRUSADE (21.00 [12.00, 29.75] vs. 18.00 [11.00, 26.00], P 0.05). The value of CRUSADE and ACUITY-HORIZONS scores did not differ significantly (P > 0.05) in the whole cohort, ACS subgroup, or non-ACS subgroup.@*CONCLUSIONS@#CRUSADE and ACUITY-HORIZONS scores showed statistically significant but relatively limited long-term prognostic value for out-of-hospital MB after PCI with DES in a cohort of Chinese patients. The value of CRUSADE and ACUITY-HORIZONS scores did not differ significantly (P > 0.05) in the whole cohort, ACS subgroup, or non-ACS subgroup.

Comparison of Efficacy and Safety between First- and Second-Generation Drug-Eluting Stents in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

Background@#It remains undetermined whether second-generation drug-eluting stents (G2-DESs) outperform first-generation DESs (G1-DESs) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). We aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of G1-DES and G2-DES in ACS patients in a high-volume cardiovascular center.@*Methods@#In 2013, 10,724 consecutive patients underwent percutaneous coronary intervention in our institution. We included 4037 patients with ACS who underwent exclusively G1-DES or G2-DES implantation (n = 364 and n = 3673, respectively). We used propensity score matching to minimize the imbalance between the G1-DES and G2-DES groups and followed patients for 2 years. The efficacy endpoints were major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) and its components including target vessel-related myocardial infarction (TV-MI), target vessel revascularization/target lesion revascularization (TVR/TLR), and cardiac death. The safety endpoint was stent thrombosis. Continuous variables were compared by Mann-Whitney U-test, and categorical variables were compared using Pearson's Chi-square or Fisher's exact test. Kaplan-Meier curves were constructed to compare the event-free survival rates, and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to assess whether stent type was an independent risk factor for the efficacy and safety endpoints.@*Results@#At the 2-year follow-up, the results for MACE and it components, as well as stent thrombosis, were similar for G1-DES and G2-DES (MACE, 5.2% vs. 4.3%, χ = 0.514, P = 0.474; TV-MI, 0.8% vs. 0.4%, P = 0.407; TVR, 4.9% vs. 3.7%, χ = 0.939, P = 0.333; TLR, 3.8% vs. 2.5%, χ = 1.610, P = 0.205; cardiac death, 0.3% vs. 0.5%, P = 0.670; and stent thrombosis, 0.5% vs. 0.4%, P > 0.999). Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated similar event-free survival rates between G1-DES and G2-DES after propensity score matching (all: log-rank P > 0.05). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that stent type was not an independent risk factor for the efficacy and safety endpoints (MACE, hazard ratio [HR] = 0.805, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.455-1.424, P = 0.456; TV-MI, HR = 0.500, 95% CI: 0.101-2.475, P = 0.395; TVR, HR = 0.732, 95% CI: 0.403-1.330, P = 0.306; TLR, HR = 0.629, 95% CI: 0.313-1.264, P = 0.193; cardiac death, HR = 1.991, 95% CI: 0.223-17.814, P = 0.538; and stent thrombosis, HR = 0.746, 95% CI: 0.125-4.467, P = 0.749).@*Conclusion@#G1-DES and G2-DES have similar efficacy and safety profiles in ACS patients at the 2-year follow-up.

Validation of Predictive Value of Patterns of Nonadherence to Antiplatelet Regimen in Stented Patients Thrombotic Risk Score in Chinese Population Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Prospective Observational Study / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

Background@#The patterns of nonadherence to antiplatelet regimen in stented patients (PARIS) thrombotic risk score are a novel score for predicting the risk of coronary thrombotic events (CTEs) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with drug-eluting stents. However, the prognostic value of this score has not been fully evaluated in non-Euro-American PCI populations.@*Methods@#We performed a prospective, observational study of 10,724 patients who underwent PCI in Fuwai hospital, China and evaluated the PARIS thrombotic risk score's predictive value of CTEs in the PCI population. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) was used to assess the predictive value of the PARIS score for CTE.@*Results@#Among 9782 patients without in-hospital events, a total of 95 CTEs occurred during the 2-year follow-up. The PARIS score was significantly higher in patients with CTEs (3.38 ± 2.04) compared with patients without events (2.53 ± 1.70, P < 0.001). According to the risk stratification of the PARIS thrombotic score, the risk of CTEs in the high-risk group was 3.14 times higher than that in the low-risk group (hazard ratio [HR], 3.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.92-5.13; P < 0.001). However, the risk of CTEs in the intermediate-risk and low-risk groups was not significant (HR, 1.39; 95% CI, [0.86-2.24]; P = 0.184). The PARIS score showed prognostic value in evaluating CTEs in the overall population (AUROC, 0.621; 95% CI, 0.561-0.681), the acute coronary syndrome (ACS) population (AUROC, 0.617; 95% CI, 0.534-0.700; P = 0.003), and the non-ACS population (AUROC, 0.647; 95% CI, 0.558-0.736; P = 0.001).@*Conclusions@#In a real-world Chinese population, the PARIS thrombotic risk score shows a modest prognostic value for CTEs in patients after PCI. This score also has a predictive value for CTEs in the ACS and non-ACS subgroup populations.

Impact of Residual SYNTAX Score and Its Derived Indexes on Clinical Outcomes after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Data from a Large Single Center / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>Background</b>Residual SYNTAX score (rSS) and its derived indexes including SYNTAX revascularization index (SRI) and clinical rSS had been developed to quantify and describe the extent of incomplete revascularization. This study was conducted to explore the utility of the three scores among real-world patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).</p><p><b>Methods</b>From January 2013 to December 2013, patients underwent PCI treatment at Fuwai Hospital were included. The primary endpoints were all-cause death and major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. The secondary endpoints were myocardial infarction, revascularization, stroke, and stent thrombosis. Kaplan-Meier methodology was used to determine the outcomes. Cox multivariable regression was to test the associations between scores and all-cause mortality.</p><p><b>Results</b>A total of 10,344 patients were finally analyzed in this study. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated that greater residual coronary lesions quantified by rSS and its derived indexes were associated with increased risk of adverse cardiovascular events. However, after multivariate analysis, only clinical rSS was an independent predictor of 2-year all-cause death (hazard ratio: 1.02, 95% confidence interval: 1.01-1.03, P < 0.01). By receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, clinical rSS had superior predictability of 2-year all-cause death than rSS and SRI (area under ROC curve [AUC]: 0.59 vs. 0.56 vs. 0.56, all P < 0.01), whereas rSS was superior in predicting repeat revascularization than clinical rSS and SRI (AUC: 0.62 vs. 0.61 vs. 0.61; all P < 0.01). When comparing the predictive capability of rSS ≥8 with SRI <70%, their predictabilities were not significantly different.</p><p><b>Conclusions</b>This study indicates that all three indexes (rSS, clinical rSS, and SRI) are able to risk-stratify patients and predict 2-year outcomes after PCI. However, their prognostic capabilities are different.</p>

Evaluation of the Patterns of Non-Adherence to Anti-Platelet Regimens in Stented Patients Bleeding Score for Predicting the Long-term Out-of-hospital Bleeding Risk in Chinese Patients after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>Background</b>The Patterns of Non-Adherence to Anti-Platelet Regimens in Stented Patients (PARIS) bleeding score is a novel score for predicting the out-of-hospital bleeding risk after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, whether this score has the same value in non-European and American populations is unclear. This study aimed to assess the PARIS bleeding score's predictive value of bleeding in patients after PCI in the Chinese population.</p><p><b>Methods</b>We performed a prospective, observational study of 10,724 patients who underwent PCI from January to December 2013, in Fuwai Hospital, China. We defined the primary end point as major bleeding (MB) according to Bleeding Academic Research Consortium definition criteria including Type 2, 3, or 5. The predictive value of the PARIS bleeding score was assessed with the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve.</p><p><b>Results</b>Of 9782 patients, 245 (2.50%) MB events occurred during the 2 years of follow-up. The PARIS bleeding score was significantly higher in the MB group than that of non-MB group (4.00 [3.00, 5.00] vs. 3.00 [2.00, 5.00], Z = 3.71, P < 0.001). According to risk stratification of the PARIS bleeding score, the bleeding risk in the intermediate- and high-risk groups was 1.50 times (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.50; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.160-1.950; P = 0.002) and 2.27 times higher (HR: 2.27; 95% CI: 1.320-3.900; P = 0.003) than that in the low-risk group. The PARIS bleeding score showed a moderate predictive value for MB in the overall population (AUROC: 0.568, 95% CI: 0.532-0.605; P < 0.001) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) subgroup (AUROC: 0.578, 95% CI: 0.530-0.626; P = 0.001) and tended to be predictive in the non-ACS subgroup (AUROC: 0.556, 95% CI: 0.501-0.611; P = 0.054).</p><p><b>Conclusion</b>The PARIS bleeding score shows good clinical value for risk stratification and has a significant, but relatively limited, prognostic value for out-of-hospital bleeding in the Chinese population after PCI.</p>

Impact of Elevated Admission Systolic Blood Pressure on Long-term Outcomes in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / 中国循环杂志

Objectives: To investigate the prognostic value of elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) at admission in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: A total of 5 826 consecutive ACS patients undergoing PCI were included. Patients were divided into normal admission SBP (100-139 mmHg, n=4 323) and elevated admission SBP ( ≥ 140 mmHg, n=1 503) groups. All-cause mortality and major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE, including all-cause death, myocardial infarction (MI), revascularization, in-stent thrombosis and stroke) during 2-year follow-up were compared between the two groups. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to identify the independent risk factors of outcomes. The influence of admission SBP on the outcomes of subgroup patients with unstable angina (n=4 261) was also evaluated. Results: Patients were older (61 vs 57 years, P<0.001), proportions of females (29.3% vs 21.6%, P<0.001), concomitant morbidities (such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipemia, previous MI and cerebral vascular disease) and multi-vessel lesions (77.5% vs 71.0%, P<0.001) were significantly higher in elevated admission SBP group than in normal admission SBP group. During two-years follow-up, all-cause mortality, MACCE, MI and revascularization rates were comparable between two groups (all P>0.05). However, incidence of in-stent thrombosis (1.3% vs 0.7%, P=0.048) and stroke (1.9% vs 1.2%, P=0.038) were significantly higher in elevated admission SBP group than in normal admission SBP group. Subgroup analysis on patients with unstable angina showed that, incidence of in-stent thrombosis and MI were also significantly higher in elevated admission SBP group than in normal admission SBP group (both P<0.05). Cox regression analysis showed that elevated admission SBP was no longer an independent predictor of either in-stent thrombosis or stroke, and age and history of cerebrovascular disease were the independent risk factors of stroke. Conclusions: ACS patients with elevated admission SBP have more cardiovascular risk factors, but elevated admission SBP is not an independent risk factor of long-term outcomes in this patient cohort.

Impact of Bundle Branch Block on Long-term Prognosis in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / 中国循环杂志

Objective: To explore the impact of bundle branch block (BBB) on acute coronary syndrome (ACS) prognosis in patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: A total of 6 429 ACS patients received PCI in our hospital from 2013-01 to 2013-12 were enrolled. According to BBB diagnosis at discharge, the patients were divided into 2 groups: BBB group, n=159 and Non-BBB group, n=6 270. The incidences of 2-year major adverse cardio and cerebral-vascular events (MACCE) including all-cause death, cardiac death, myocardial infarction, revascularization, in-stent thrombosis and stroke were compared between 2 groups; relationship between existing BBB and clinical outcomes was assessed. Results: Compared with Non-BBB group, BBB group had the elder age (62.97±11.37) years vs (58.26±10.36) years, lower BMI (25.31±3.02) vs (25.89±3.20), decreased glomerular filtration rate (86.89±16.15)ml/min vs (91.05±15.53)ml/min and LVEF (59.27±9.86)% vs (62.37±7.36) %, all P<0.05; other baseline condition, angiographic and interventional features were similar between 2 groups, all P>0.05. During 2-year follow-up period, compared with Non-BBB group, BBB group showed the higher incidences of cardiac death (2.5% vs 0.7%) and in-stent thrombosis (3.1% vs 0.8%), both P<0.05; other incidences of MACCE were similar between 2 groups, all P>0.05. With adjusted propensity score matching, 2-year incidence of MACCE was similar between 2 groups, P>0.05; 2-year incidences of MACCE in BBB group including LBBB and RBBB were similar to Non-BBB group, P>0.05. Cox regression analysis revealed that BBB was not related to ACS prognosis after PCI. Conclusion: BBB was not an independent risk factor for long-term MACCE occurrence in ACS patients after PCI.

Impact of Proton-pump Inhibitors on the Pharmacodynamic Effect and Clinical Outcomes in Patients Receiving Dual Antiplatelet Therapy after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Propensity Score Analysis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Prior studies have reported controversial conclusions regarding the risk of adverse cardiovascular events in patients using proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) combined with clopidogrel therapy, causing much uncertainty in clinical practice. We sought to evaluate the safety of PPIs use among high-risk cardiovascular patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in a long-term follow-up study.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 7868 consecutive patients who had undergone PCI and received dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) at a single center from January 2013 to December 2013 were enrolled. Adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation inhibition was measured by modified thromboelastography (mTEG) in 5042 patients. Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to control differing baseline factors. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to evaluate the 2-year major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs), as well as individual events, including all-cause death, myocardial infarction, unplanned target vessel revascularization, stent thrombosis, and stroke.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among the whole cohort, 27.2% were prescribed PPIs. The ADP-induced platelet aggregation inhibition by mTEG was significantly lower in PPI users than that in non-PPI users (42.0 ± 30.9% vs. 46.4 ± 31.4%, t = 4.435, P < 0.001). Concomitant PPI use was not associated with increased MACCE through 2-year follow-up (12.7% vs. 12.5%, χ2 = 0.086, P = 0.769). Other endpoints showed no significant differences after multivariate adjustment, regardless of PSM.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In this large cohort of real-world patients, the combination of PPIs with DAPT was not associated with increased risk of MACCE in patients who underwent PCI at up to 2 years of follow-up.</p>

Association of α2A-Adrenergic Receptor Genetic Variants with Platelet Reactivity in Chinese Patients on Dual Antiplatelet Therapy Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>The alpha 2A-adrenergic receptor gene (ADRA2A) polymorphism in individuals modifies the antiplatelet response to sympathetic stimulation. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ADRA2A variants on platelet reactivity in Chinese patients on dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From March 2011 to March 2013, 1,024 patients were enrolled in this prospective, single-center, observational study in China. Four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ADRA2A gene (rs11195419, rs3750625, rs13306146, and rs553668) and CYP2C19*2 were detected by ligase detection reaction (LDR), and adenosine diphosphate (ADP) inhibition was detected by thromboelastography (TEG®).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The minor allele frequencies of ADRA2A SNPs were common. Platelet ADP inhibition was significantly different among patients carrying rs11195419 (adjusted P = 0.022) and rs3750625 (adjusted P = 0.016). The homozygous allele carriers had the lowest ADP inhibition. However, ADP inhibition was not significantly different in rs553668 and rs13306146. At the multivariate analysis, rs11195419 (P = 0.033), rs3750625 (P = 0.020) and CYP2C19*2 (P = 0.002) were independent predictors of ADP inhibition. Subgroups analysis based on sex showed rs11195419 (P = 0.003) and rs3750625 (P = 0.002) were significantly associated with ADP inhibition in males, but not in females.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>ADRA2A genetic variations were associated with ADP-induced platelet aggregation during DAPT in Chinese patients undergoing PCI, and the effect was particularly more pronounced in males.</p>

Long-term Outcomes of Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Second-generation Drug-eluting Stents in ST-elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients Caused by Very Late Stent Thrombosis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients due to stent thrombosis (ST) remain a therapeutic challenge for a clinician. Till date, very few researches have been conducted regarding the safety and effectiveness of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with second-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) for STEMI caused by very late ST (VLST). This retrospective study evaluated the safety, efficacy, and outcomes of primary PCI with second-generation DES for STEMI due to VLST compared with primary PCI for STEMI due to de novo lesion.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Between January 2007 and December 2013, STEMI patients with primary PCI in Fuwai Hospital had only second-generation DES implanted for de novo lesion (558 patients) and VLST (50 patients) were included in this retrospective study. The primary end points included cardiac death and reinfarction. The secondary end points included cardiac death, reinfarction, and target lesion revascularization. Continuous variables were expressed as mean (standard deviation) or median (interquartile range) and compared by Student's t- test or Mann-Whitney U-test as appropriate. Categorical variables were expressed as counts and percentages, and comparison of these variables was performed with Chi-square or Fisher's exact test. A two-tailed value of P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant for all comparisons. Statistical analyses were performed by SAS software (version 9.4, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, USA) for Windows.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>In-hospital primary end point and the secondary end point were no significant differences between two groups (P = 1.000 and P = 1.000, respectively). No significant differences between two groups were observed according to the long-term primary end point and the secondary end point. Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed no significant difference between the two groups in the primary end point and the secondary end point at 2 years (P = 0.340 and P = 0.243, respectively). According to Cox analysis, female, intra-aortic balloon pump support, and postprocedural thrombolysis in myocardial infarction flow 3 were found to be independent predictors for long-term follow-up.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Primary PCI with second-generation DES is a reasonable choice for STEMI patients caused by VLST.</p>

Head to Head Comparison of Two Point-of-care Platelet Function Tests Used for Assessment of On-clopidogrel Platelet Reactivity in Chinese Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Platelet function tests are widely used in clinical practice to guide personalized antiplatelet therapy. In China, the thromboelastography (TEG) test has been well accepted in clinics, whereas VerifyNow, mainly used for scientific research, has not been used in routine clinical practice. The aim of the current study was to compare these two point-of-care platelet function tests and to analyze the consistency between the two tests for evaluating on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity in Chinese acute myocardial infarction patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 184 patients admitted to Fuwai Hospital between August 2014 and May 2015 were enrolled in the study. On-clopidogrel platelet reactivity was assessed 3 days after PCI by TEG and VerifyNow using adenosine diphosphate as an agonist. Based on the previous reports, an inhibition of platelet aggregation (IPA) <30% for TEG or a P2Y12 reaction unit (PRU) >230 for VerifyNow was defined as high on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity (HPR). An IPA >70% or a PRU <178 was defined as low on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity (LPR). Correlation and agreement between the two methods were analyzed using the Spearman correlation coefficient (r) and kappa value (κ), respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Our results showed that VerifyNow and TEG had a moderate but significant correlation in evaluating platelet reactivity (r = -0.511). A significant although poor agreement (κ = 0.225) in identifying HPR and a significantly moderate agreement in identifying LPR (κ = 0.412) were observed between TEG and VerifyNow. By using TEG as the reference for comparison, the cutoff values of VerifyNow for the Chinese patients in this study were identified as PRU >205 for HPR and PRU <169 for LPR.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>By comparing VerifyNow to TEG which has been widely used in clinics, VerifyNow could be an attractive alternative to TEG for monitoring on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity in Chinese patients.</p>

Comparing of light transmittance aggregometry and modified thrombelastograph in predicting clinical outcomes in Chinese patients undergoing coronary stenting with clopidogrel / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Several platelet function tests are currently used to measure responsiveness to antiplatelet therapy. This study was to compare two tests, light transmittance aggregometry (LTA) and modified thrombelastography (mTEG), for predicting clinical outcomes in Chinese patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Prospective, observational, single-center study of 789 Chinese patients undergoing PCI was enrolled. This study was investigated the correlations between the two tests and performed receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis for major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) at 1-year follow-up.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>MACEs occurred in 32 patients (4.1%). Correlations were well between the two tests in the adenosine diphosphate induced platelet reactivity (Spearman r = 0.733, P < 0.001). ROC-curve analysis demonstrated that LTA (area under the curve [AUC]: 0.677; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.643-0.710; P = 0.0009), and mTEG (AUC: 0.684; 95% CI: 0.650-0.716; P = 0.0001) had moderate ability to discriminate between patients with and without MACE. MACE occurred more frequently in patients with high on-treatment platelet reactivity (HPR) when assessed by LTA (7.4% vs. 2.7%; P < 0.001), and by TEG (6.7% vs. 2.6%; P < 0.001). Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that HPR based on the LTA and mTEG was associated with almost 3-fold increased risk of MACE at 1-year follow-up.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The correlation between LTA and mTEG is relatively high in Chinese patients. HPR measured by LTA and mTEG were significantly associated with MACE in Chinese patients undergoing PCI.</p>

Effects of coexisting polymorphisms of CYP2C19 and P2Y12 on clopidogrel responsiveness and clinical outcome in patients with acute coronary syndromes undergoing stent-based coronary intervention / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The CYP2C19 G681A single polymorphism has been proven to affect clopidogrel responsiveness. However, the effect of coexisting polymorphisms of other genes has not yet been reported in the Chinese population. This study investigated the effect of coexisting polymorphisms of CYP2C19 and P2Y12 on clopidogrel responsiveness and adverse clinical events in Chinese patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>In 577 Han Chinese patients undergoing stent placement because of acute coronary syndrome had platelet reactivity assessed by thromboelastography, and the CYP2C19 G681A and P2Y12 C34T polymorphisms were detected by the ligase detection reaction. Primary clinical endpoints included cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, target vessel revascularization, and stent thrombosis. The secondary clinical endpoints were thrombolysis in myocardial infarction bleeding. The follow-up period was 12 months.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Genotyping revealed 194 carriers of the wild type GG genotype of CYP2C19 and the wild type CC genotype of P2Y12 (group 1), 102 carriers of the wild type GG genotype of CYP2C19 and the mutational T allele of P2Y12 (group 2), 163 carriers of the mutational A allele of CYP2C19 and the wild type CC genotype of P2Y12 (group 3), and 118 carriers of the mutational A allele of CYP2C19 and the mutational T allele of P2Y12 (group 4). Group 4 had the lowest ADP-inhibition (49.74 ± 32.61) and the highest prevalence of clopidogrel low response (29.7%) of the four groups. The rate of the composite of primary clinical endpoints increased more in group 4 (8.5%) than in the other three groups; the rate of composite primary endpoints in group 2 (2.9%) and group 3 (3.7%) were not significantly different than that of group 1 (1.5%).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Coexisting polymorphisms of different genes affected clopidogrel responsiveness and clinical outcome more than single polymorphism in Chinese patients with acute coronary syndrome undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention.</p>

Influence of levocarnitine on heart function and endocrine among patients with heart faliure / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective To observe the efficacy of levocarnitine in treating elderly patients with chronic heart failure and to explore its impact on cardiac function and endocrine.Methods 120 elderly patients with chronic heart failure were randomly divided into observation and control groups,with 60 cases of each.Patients in the control group were given conventional anti-heart failure drugs,and those in the observation group were given 3 g levocamitine within 250 ml normal saline for intravenous infusion added to what had been given to the control group.Efficacy of the two groups was observed after 15 days.Results The total effective rate in observation group was 95.0％,significantly higher than in the control group (83.3％),with statistically significant difference (x2=4.227,P＜0.05).After treatment,indicators as LVEDD,LVESD and LVESV in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group,with statistically significant differences (t=2.256,2.335,2.277,P＜0.05).The LVEF values were significantly higher than in the control group after treatment,with statistically significant difference (t=2.364,P＜0.05).Serum NT-pro-BNP,creatinine and cystatin C values in the observation group after treatment appeared significant reduction,when compared to the control group,and the difference was statistically significant (t=2.339,2.289,2.315,P＜0.05).Conclusion Levocarnitine could significantly improve the cardiac function,and reduce the levels of serum NT-pro-BNP,creatinine and cystatin C.Our results suggested that it was worthwhile to promote large-scale clinical trials of this kind.

Impact of cytochrome P450 2C19 polymorphisms on outcome of cardiovascular events in clopidogrel-treated Chinese patients after percutaneous coronary intervention / 中华心血管病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the impact of cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C19 681G > A polymorphism on long-term prognosis of clopidogrel-treated Chinese patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Between January 1, 2009 and August 31,2009, 267 patients with coronary heart disease who received PCI and treated with clopidogrel for 12 months were enrolled. CYP2C19 * 2 was detected by MALDI-TOF MS and patients were grouped into CYP2C19 * 1/ * 1 (n = 130) and CYP2C19 * 2 carriers group (n = 137). Follow-up was 12 months. The primary endpoint was angina recurrence, urgent coronary revascularization, acute myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis, death and the combined end points.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Baseline data were similar between two groups (P > 0.05). Urgent coronary revascularization and the combined end points occurred more frequently in CYP2C19 * 2 carriers than in CYP2C19 * 1/* 1 patients (7.3% vs. 1.5% and 8.0% vs. 2.3% respectively, all P < 0.05). But incidence of angina recurrence, acute myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis and death was similar between two groups (all P > 0.05). Hazard risk of 1 year cumulative survival of CYP2C19 * 2 carriers group was significantly higher than CYP2C19 * 1/ * 1 group after PCI ( HR = 3.59, 95% CI: 1.02 - 12.87, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>CYP2C19 681G > A polymorphism is a determinant of prognosis in coronary heart disease patients receiving chronic clopidogrel treatment after PCI.</p>