Assessment of Coronary Artery Calcium Scoring for Statin Treatment Strategy according to ACC/AHA Guidelines in Asymptomatic Korean Adults

PURPOSE: The 2013 American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA) cholesterol management guidelines advocate the use of statin treatment for prevention of cardiovascular disease. We aimed to assess the usefulness of coronary artery calcium (CAC) for stratifying potential candidates of statin use among asymptomatic Korean individuals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 31375 subjects who underwent CAC scoring as part of a general health examination were enrolled in the current study. Statin eligibility was categorized as statin recommended (SR), considered (SC), and not recommended (SN) according to ACC/AHA guidelines. Cox regression analysis was employed to estimate hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidential intervals (CI) after stratifying the subjects according to CAC scores of 0, 1–100, and >100. Number needed to treat (NNT) to prevent one mortality event during study follow up was calculated for each group. RESULTS: Mean age was 54.4±7.5 years, and 76.3% were male. During a 5-year median follow-up (interquartile range; 3–7), there were 251 (0.8%) deaths from all-causes. A CAC >100 was independently associated with mortality across each statin group after adjusting for cardiac risk factors (e.g., SR: HR, 1.60; 95% CI, 1.07–2.38; SC: HR, 2.98; 95% CI, 1.09–8.13, and SN: HR, 3.14; 95% CI, 1.08–9.17). Notably, patients with CAC >100 displayed a lower NNT in comparison to the absence of CAC or CAC 1–100 in SC and SN groups. CONCLUSION: In Korean asymptomatic individuals, CAC scoring might prove useful for reclassifying patient eligibility for receiving statin therapy based on updated 2013 ACC/AHA guidelines.

Multimodality Imaging in Coronary Artery Disease: Focus on Computed Tomography

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of mortality worldwide, and various cardiovascular imaging modalities have been introduced for the purpose of diagnosing and determining the severity of CAD. More recently, advances in computed tomography (CT) technology have contributed to the widespread clinical application of cardiac CT for accurate and noninvasive evaluation of CAD. In this review, we focus on imaging assessment of CAD based upon CT, which includes coronary artery calcium screening, coronary CT angiography, myocardial CT perfusion, and fractional flow reserve CT. Further, we provide a discussion regarding the potential implications, benefits and limitations, as well as the possible future directions according to each modality.

Cardiovascular Events of Electrical Cardioversion Under Optimal Anticoagulation in Atrial Fibrillation: The Multicenter Analysis

PURPOSE: Electric cardioversion has been successfully used in terminating symptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF). Nevertheless, largescale study about the acute cardiovascular events following electrical cardioversion of AF is lacking. This study was performed to evaluate the incidence, risk factors, and clinical consequences of acute cardiovascular events following electrical cardioversion of AF. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study enrolled 1100 AF patients (mean age 60+/-11 years) who received cardioversion at four tertiary hospitals. Hospitalizations for stroke/transient ischemic attack, major bleedings, and arrhythmic events during 30 days post electric cardioversion were assessed. RESULTS: The mean duration of anticoagulation before cardioversion was 95.8+/-51.6 days. The mean International Normalized Ratio at the time of cardioversion was 2.4+/-0.9. The antiarrhythmic drugs at the time of cardioversion were class I (45%), amiodarone (40%), beta-blocker (53%), calcium-channel blocker (21%), and other medication (11%). The success rate of terminating AF via cardioversion was 87% (n=947). Following cardioversion, 5 strokes and 5 major bleedings occurred. The history of stroke/transient ischemic attack (OR 6.23, 95% CI 1.69-22.90) and heart failure (OR 6.40, 95% CI 1.77-23.14) were among predictors of thromboembolic or bleeding events. Eight patients were hospitalized for bradyarrhythmia. These patients were more likely to have had a lower heart rate prior to the procedure (p=0.045). Consequently, 3 of these patients were implanted with a permanent pacemaker. CONCLUSION: Cardioversion appears as a safe procedure with a reasonably acceptable cardiovascular event rate. However, to prevent the cardiovascular events, several risk factors should be considered before cardioversion.

Reassessing the Usefulness of Coronary Artery Calcium Score among Varying Racial and Ethnic Groups by Geographic Locations: Relevance of the Korea Initiatives on Coronary Artery Calcification Registry

There is some disparity in the morbidity and mortality rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD) according to race, ethnicity, and geographic regions. Although prediction algorithms that evaluate risk of cardiovascular events have been established using traditional risk factors, they have also demonstrated a number of differences along with race and ethnicity. Of various risk assessment modalities, coronary artery calcium (CAC) score is a sensitive marker of calcific atherosclerosis and correlates well with atherosclerotic plaque burden. Although CAC score is now utilized as a useful tool for early detection of coronary artery disease, prior studies have suggested some variability in the presence and severity of coronary calcification according to race, ethnicity, and/or geographic regions. Among Asian populations, it would appear necessary to reappraise the utility of CAC score and whether it remains superior over and above established clinical risk prediction algorithms. To this end, the Korea initiatives on coronary artery calcification (KOICA) registry has been designed to identify the effectiveness of CAC score for primary prevention of CVD in asymptomatic Korean adults. This review discusses the important role of CAC score for prognostication, while also describing the design and rationale of the KOICA registry.