Stroke and Mechanical Circulatory Support in Adults.

PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW: Short-term and durable mechanical circulatory support (MCS) devices represent life-saving interventions for patients with cardiogenic shock and end-stage heart failure. This review will cover the epidemiology, risk factors, and treatment of stroke in this patient population. RECENT FINDINGS: Short-term devices such as intra-aortic balloon pump, Impella, TandemHeart, and Venoatrial Extracorporal Membrane Oxygenation, as well as durable continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), improve cardiac output and blood flow to the vital organs. However, MCS use is associated with high rates of complications, including ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes which carry a high risk for death and disability. Improvements in MCS technology have reduced but not eliminated the risk of stroke. Mitigation strategies focus on careful management of anti-thrombotic therapies. While data on therapeutic options for stroke are limited, several case series reported favorable outcomes with thrombectomy for ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusions, as well as with reversal of anticoagulation for those with hemorrhagic stroke. Stroke in patients treated with MCS is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Preventive strategies are targeted based on the specific form of MCS. Improvements in the design of the newest generation device have reduced the risk of ischemic stroke, though hemorrhagic stroke remains a serious complication.

Validity of echocardiography for detection of left ventricular thrombus with surgical validation in patients awaiting durable left ventricular assist device.

OBJECTIVE: Unrecognized left ventricular thrombi (LVT) can have devastating clinical implications and precludes patients with end-stage heart failure from undergoing left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation without cardiopulmonary bypass assistance. We assessed the reliability of an echocardiogram to diagnose LVT in patients with end-stage heart disease who underwent LVAD implantation. METHODS: A single-center retrospective study evaluated 232 consecutive adult patients requiring implantation of durable LVADs between 2005 and 2019. The validity of preoperative transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) and intraoperative transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) for diagnosing LVT was compared to direct inspection at the time of LVAD implantation. RESULTS: There were 232 patients that underwent LVAD implantation, with 226 patients (97%) receiving a preoperative TTE. Of those 226 patients, 32 patients (14%) received ultrasound enhancing agents (UEA). Intraoperative TEE images were available in 195 patients (84%). The sensitivity of TTE without UEA was 22% and specificity was 90% for detecting LVT, compared to 50% and 86%, respectively, for TTE with UEA. For intraoperative TEE, the sensitivity and specificity were 46% and 96%, respectively. The false omission rate ranged from 4% to 8% for all modalities of echocardiography. CONCLUSION: Among patients undergoing LVAD implantation, preoperative TTE and intraoperative TEE had poor sensitivity for LVT detection. Up to 8% of echocardiograms were incorrectly concluded to be negative for LVT on surgical validation. The low sensitivity and positive predictive value for diagnosing LVT suggest that echocardiography has limited reliability in this cohort of patients who are at high risk of LVT formation and its subsequent complications.

Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitor and Angiotensin II Receptor Blocker Use Among Outpatients Diagnosed With COVID-19.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral pandemic precipitated by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Since previous reports suggested that viral entry into cells may involve angiotensin converting enzyme 2, there has been growing concern that angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) and angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) use may exacerbate the disease severity. In this retrospective, single-center US study of adult patients diagnosed with COVID-19, we evaluated the association of ACEI/ARB use with hospital admission. Secondary outcomes included: ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, length of hospital stay, use of inotropes, and all-cause mortality. Propensity score matching was performed to account for potential confounders. Among 590 unmatched patients diagnosed with COVID-19, 78 patients were receiving ACEI/ARB (median age 63 years and 59.7% male) and 512 patients were non-users (median age 42 years and 47.1% male). In the propensity matched population, multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusting for age, gender and comorbidities demonstrated that ACEI/ARB use was not associated with hospital admission (OR 1.2, 95%CI 0.5 to 2.7, p = 0.652). CAD and CKD/end stage renal disease [ESRD] remained independently associated with admission to hospital. All-cause mortality, ICU stay, need for ventilation, and inotrope use was not significantly different between the 2 study groups. In conclusion, among patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19, ACEI/ARB use was not associated with increased risk of hospital admission.

Practical determination of aortic valve calcium volume score on contrast-enhanced computed tomography prior to transcatheter aortic valve replacement and impact on paravalvular regurgitation: Elucidating optimal threshold cutoffs.

BACKGROUND: The threshold for the optimal computed tomography (CT) number in Hounsfield Units (HU) to quantify aortic valvular calcium on contrast-enhanced scans has not been standardized. Our aim was to find the most accurate threshold to predict paravalvular regurgitation (PVR) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). METHODS: 104 patients who underwent TAVR with the CoreValve prosthesis were studied retrospectively. Luminal attenuation (LA) in HU was measured at the level of the aortic annulus. Calcium volume score for the aortic valvular complex was measured using 6 threshold cutoffs (650 HU, 850 HU, LA × 1.25, LA × 1.5, LA+50, LA+100). Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed to assess the predictive value for > mild PVR (n = 16). Multivariable analysis was performed to determine the accuracy to predict > mild PVR after adjustment for depth and perimeter oversizing. RESULTS: ROC analysis showed lower area under the curve (AUC) values for fixed threshold cutoffs (650 or 850 HU) compared to thresholds relative to LA. The LA+100 threshold had the highest AUC (0.81), and AUC was higher than all studied protocols, other than the LA x 1.25 and LA + 50 protocols, where the difference approached statistical significance (p = 0.05, and 0.068, respectively). Multivariable analysis showed calcium volume determined by the LAx1.25, LAx1.5, LA+50, and LA+ 100 HU protocols to independently predict PVR. CONCLUSIONS: Calcium volume scoring thresholds which are relative to LA are more predictive of PVR post-TAVR than those which use fixed cutoffs. A threshold of LA+100 HU had the highest predictive value.

Impact of Methodologic Differences in Three-Dimensional Echocardiographic Measurements of the Aortic Annulus Compared with Computed Tomographic Angiography Before Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

BACKGROUND: Three-dimensional (3D) echocardiographic (3DE) imaging is an alternative to multi-detector row computed tomography (MDCT) for aortic annular measurement before transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). A commonly used direct planimetry from a reconstructed short-axis view has not been compared with semiautomated 3DE methods. Typically accepted optimal cutoffs for percent prosthesis-area oversizing of the balloon-expandable SAPIEN or SAPIEN XT valve to native annular size are approximately 5% to 15%. The aim of this study was to compare semiautomated and direct planimetric 3DE methods for aortic annular sizing with a gold standard of MDCT to determine predictive value for paravalvular regurgitation (PVR) and balloon postdilatation. METHODS: In this retrospective analysis, aortic annular cross-sectional area was measured from pre-TAVR imaging using (1) MDCT (CT_Area), (2) a 3D transesophageal echocardiographic (TEE) semiautomated method (3DE_Area_SA), and (3) a 3D TEE direct planimetric method (3DE_Area_Direct). Annular area percent oversizing was calculated. PVR after TAVR was assessed from intraoperative TEE imaging. Need for balloon postdilatation was recorded. RESULTS: One hundred patients who underwent TAVR with either the SAPIEN or SAPIEN XT balloon-expandable prosthesis were analyzed. Twenty-three patients had mild or greater PVR after TAVR. CT_Area was 442 ± 79 mm2, 3DE_Area_SA was 435 ± 81 mm2, and 3DE_Area_Direct was 429 ± 82 mm2. Both 3DE_Area_SA and 3DE_Area_Direct underestimated MDCT (P < .05). All methods were highly correlative (R = 0.88-0.93, P < .0001). Percent oversizing obtained by the three methods significantly predicted mild or greater PVR and need for balloon postdilatation by receiver operating characteristic analysis, with optimal cutoffs for CT_Area (9%-10%) and 3DE_Area_SA (14%) within the recommended ranges for the studied transcatheter valves and for 3DE_Area_Direct higher than the recommended range (18%-19%). Inter- and intraobserver reproducibility were lowest for 3DE_Area_Direct. CONCLUSIONS: Caution must be used when using 3D TEE direct planimetry of the aortic annulus, as optimal percent oversizing ranges approach the level associated with root injury, and measurements are less reproducible. Therefore, semiautomated 3DE planimetry is preferred to 3DE direct planimetry for aortic annulus sizing.