Chilblains.

Idiopathic chilblain is a relatively common yet poorly recognized acrosyndrome. This literature review aims to better understand and draw attention to this disorder. Chilblain is a localized inflammation of the skin that occurs on exposure to cold but non-freezing wet weather. It usually resolves spontaneously. The etiology is uncertain, but vasospasm seems to play a role in this abnormal reaction to cold. Diagnosis is most often based on clinical presentation, but a skin biopsy can be useful in dubious cases. In histology, dermal edema and an inflammatory infiltrate are usually present. A distribution of the infiltrate particularly around the eccrine gland is typical. Systemic symptoms and underlying autoimmune disease should be screened. Avoiding cold and keeping extremities warm is the first recommendation for management, as well as smoking cessation. Calcium channel blockers (in particular nifedipine) seems to be the treatment that has been most evaluated in chilblains. However, their effectiveness is not confirmed by all studies. Topical betamethasone is often used but its effect has not been confirmed by randomized clinical trials. Other treatments, such as pentoxifylline, hydrochloroquine and topical nitroglycerin have shown positive effects only in a reduced number of patients. Acupuncture seems to bring a benefit.

Pretreatment with P2Y12 inhibitors and outcome in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction treated by primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

AIMS: Preload with clopidogrel, ticagrelor, or prasugrel in the setting of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated by primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is frequently applied. Limited data are available regarding the outcome impact of pretreatment with these drugs in the real world. METHODS AND RESULTS: The outcome of 760 STEMI patients treated by primary PCI receiving clopidogrel, prasugrel, or ticagrelor (n = 269, 327, 164, respectively) was evaluated. Patients in the clopidogrel group were older, whereas those in the ticagrelor group had less hypertension but were more active smokers. Angiographic characteristics were comparable among the three groups. At 1 month, more events were observed in the clopidogrel group (11.1%) than in the ticagrelor and prasugrel groups (7.1 vs. 5.1%, P = 0.025), whereas the number of events in the ticagrelor and prasugrel groups did not differ. At 1 year, similar differences existed, mainly driven by a higher rate of death (19.5%, P = 0.008) or stent thrombosis (2 vs. 1.3% for ticagrelor, P = 0.132; vs. 0.3% for prasugrel, P = 0.07) in the clopidogrel group. In-hospital and 1-year bleeding rates were similar between groups. CONCLUSION: In real-world practice, pretreatment with prasugrel or ticagrelor in ongoing STEMI treated by primary PCI seems to be a well tolerated alternative strategy compared with clopidogrel but provides superior benefit in terms of outcomes.

Duration of dual anti-platelet therapy - State of the art after the DAPT and PEGASUS-TIMI 54 trials.

Dual anti-platelet therapy is prescribed in the setting of coronary heart disease for the prevention of stent thrombosis and acute thrombotic events. The optimal duration of dual anti-platelet therapy is still under debate as numerous trials have shown non-inferiority of a strategy of early cessation of one of the agents as compared to the standard practice whereas two larger trials have demonstrated benefit of prolonging dual anti-platelet therapy.

[Coronary drug-eluting stents in diabetic patients]. / Endoprothèses coronaires pharmaco-actives chez les patients diabétiques.

In diabetic patients, the use of drug-eluting stents (paclitaxel-PES or sirolimus-SES) reduces the risk of restenosis as compared to bare-metal stents. However, the risk of (very) late thrombosis is higher with drug-eluting stents than with bare-metal stents. All together, the incidence of major cardiovascular events is reduced with drug-eluting stents, mainly resulting from a diminution of revascularisation procedures rather than from a reduction in myocardial infarcts or cardiovascular deaths. Attempts to compare SES and PES gave discordant results in both randomised trials and registries. Efficacious antiplatelet therapy in the long run is mandatory in all diabetic patients treated with drug-eluting stents.